Ukraine says Russian ship carrying stolen grain docked at Haifa, asks Israel to detain it

Ambassador said to have initially asked Israel to prevent the vessel from docking; Ukraine’s FM tells Sa’ar ‘illegal trade with stolen goods must not be allowed’

Israel has allowed a Russian ship carrying stolen Ukrainian grain to dock in Haifa, Ukraine alleged Tuesday, reportedly asking Israel to stop the vessel from leaving the port.

The Russian vessel ABINSK was loaded by boats sailing from ports in Russian-occupied Ukraine, according to Ukrainian journalist Kateryna Yaresko of the Myrotvorets Center’s SeaKrime project.

Since Russia’s capture of swaths of agricultural land in Ukraine in early 2022, Kyiv has accused Moscow of illegally harvesting and shipping grain produced on occupied territory to third countries, often using vessels from a so-called shadow fleet.

Axios reported Tuesday that Ukrainian Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk met with senior Israeli Foreign Ministry officials on March 27 and asked them to prevent the ship, apparently part of the shadow fleet, from docking in Israel.

As the ship was permitted to dock, Ukraine’s attorney general met Israel’s Ambassador to Kyiv Michael Brodsky on Tuesday to ask Israel to stop the vessel from leaving the port, according to the report.

Additionally, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called his Israeli counterpart Gideon Sa’ar to discuss the cargo, Kyiv said.

Sybiha “drew attention to a Russian vessel carrying grain stolen from Ukraine that was allowed to dock in one of Israel’s ports.”

He stressed “that the illegal export of stolen Ukrainian agricultural products is part of Russia’s broader war effort. Such illegal trade with stolen goods must not be allowed.”

Shadow fleet vessels typically have opaque ownership structures and have raised concern about environmental risks, with poorly regulated, aging tankers prone to spills, mechanical failures and leaks, threatening marine ecosystems.

They usually sail without top-tier Western insurance or safety certification cover, and often have unknown insurers or assessors of seaworthiness — both required for ocean-going commercial ships, shipping and insurance industry sources familiar with the matter have said.

Speaking to the Kyiv Post, the Ukrainian Embassy in Israel described the ship’s arrival as “a blatant violation of international law and its territorial sovereignty.”

“We call on the Israeli authorities to thoroughly examine the matter, act in accordance with their international obligations, and ensure that the territory of the State of Israel is not used as a route for the transfer of goods originating from unlawful activities,” the embassy said.

The Kyiv Post noted that the Haifa Port serves as a regional hub for imports and exports, particularly with shipping disrupted in the Gulf amid the Iran war, and that it was therefore unclear whether the grain was meant for an Israeli domestic market or was to be shipped overland.

If the vessel is confirmed to contain stolen Ukrainian grain, the incident could mean that Israel has run afoul of sanctions imposed by the US and international community in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Ties between Israel and Ukraine have been delicate since the Russian invasion began in 2022.

Last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to maintain a neutral stance between Moscow and Kyiv, even though Russia has been providing critical intelligence to Iran in the US-Israel war against Iran.

Ukraine has sought to purchase Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, but Netanyahu ruled that out to avoid antagonizing Russia.

Israeli officials routinely defended this stance when Russia controlled the skies over Syria before the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime in 2024. Since then, some Israeli officials have been willing to break more publicly with Moscow, but Netanyahu has avoided doing so.