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Ukraine and Israel were locked in a diplomatic row Tuesday after Kyiv accused Israel of accepting shipments of grain that it says Russia stole from occupied Ukrainian territories.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said another vessel carrying such grain had arrived at an Israeli port and was preparing to unload.
“The Israeli authorities cannot be unaware of which ships are arriving at the country’s ports and what cargo they are carrying,” Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine summoned Israel’s ambassador Tuesday to protest over the alleged shipments.
Kyiv says Russia has repeatedly exported agricultural products illegally from Ukrainian territory captured since Moscow’s invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine alleges Russia stole more than 2 million tons of grain from occupied territory in 2025 and said it has tracked shipments to Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar rejected Ukraine’s claims, saying Kyiv had not provided evidence or submitted a legal assistance request.
“The Ukrainian government has not submitted a request for legal assistance... nor has the Ukrainian government provided evidence for its claims,” Saar said.
He also denied that the vessel had entered Haifa port.
“The vessel has not entered the port and is yet to submit its documents,” Saar said.
He said it was not possible to verify Ukraine’s claims about the alleged forgery of the bill of lading, a document showing details of transported goods.
Saar criticized Ukraine for what he called “Twitter diplomacy.”
“If you have any evidence of theft, submit it through the appropriate channels,” he said.
Russia claims to have annexed parts of southern and eastern Ukraine, including major Black Sea export ports.
Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman, said the dispute was a matter for Israel and Ukraine to resolve and did not address the substance of the allegations.
“We would rather not comment on this in any way or get involved in this matter,” Peskov said.
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