Ukraine urges Israel to seize Russian vessel allegedly carrying stolen grain
by Vaughn Cockayne · The Washington TimesUkraine’s top prosecutor on Wednesday requested that Israeli forces seize a Russian ship carrying grain that he says was stolen from territory occupied by Russia.
Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko wrote on Telegram that the vessel Panormitis, spotted by maritime organizations last week, is carrying “some” grain stolen by Russia from Ukrainian land. The ship was last seen headed for the Israeli seaport at Haifa.
“The Ukrainian side is asking its Israeli partners to seize the vessel and its cargo, conduct a search, seize the vessel’s and cargo documentation, take grain samples, and question the crew members,” Mr. Kravchenko wrote.
The request is the latest in a growing diplomatic spat between Israel and Ukraine. The two nations traded verbal attacks on Tuesday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accusing Israel of knowingly accepting stolen goods from Russia. He also said Ukraine would consider adopting sanctions on Israel and hoped the European Union would follow suit.
Meanwhile, Ukraine summoned Israel’s ambassador, Michael Brodsky, to deliver a formal protest note over the alleged shipment.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar confirmed that Ukraine sent the request, but criticized Kyiv for conducting diplomacy through social media.
“One would expect the submission of a legal request before Tweeting. You chose differently, for your own reasons,” he wrote in a reply to a post on X from Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha. “Finally, you submitted the request late last night and now you are following it up with another Tweet. The request is now being examined by the relevant authorities.”
Mr. Saar levied similar complaints earlier in the week concerning Ukraine’s public diplomacy, arguing that discussions between friendly nations should not be “conducted on Twitter or in the media.”
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Kyiv says it has repeatedly reached out to Israeli authorities since March to notify them of the transfer of possibly stolen goods through their ports. One vessel, the Abinsk, was carrying stolen Ukrainian grain but was allowed to unload its cargo last month and leave Israel despite warnings from Kyiv.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.