Ukraine Summons Israel's Ambassador Over Second Shipload of Stolen Grain
In mid-April, Ukraine's foreign ministry took the Israeli government to task for allowing a ship carrying allegedly stolen grain from Russian-occupied territories to unload at the port of Haifa. On Monday, Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said that he had summoned the Israeli ambassador to present a formal note of protest: a second shipload of allegedly stolen grain has arrived off Haifa, without action by the local authorities - and Kyiv wanted an explanation.
"It is difficult to understand Israel’s lack of appropriate response to Ukraine’s legitimate request regarding the previous vessel that delivered stolen goods to Haifa," said Sybiha. "Now that another such vessel has arrived in Haifa, we once again warn Israel against accepting the stolen grain and harming our relations."
The EU seconded the sentiment, in gentler terms. In a statement to the Times of Israel, an EU spokesperson said that "we condemn all actions that help fund Russia’s illegal war effort and circumvent EU sanctions, and remain ready to target such actions by listing individuals and entities in third countries if necessary."
The vessel has been identified by Israeli media as the Panormitis (IMO 9445201), a Greek-owned bulker that recently anchored off Haifa. Her exact position is unknown: due to the heavy GPS spoofing found in Israeli airspace, Panormitis' AIS system shows (falsely) that the vessel is located in a cluster of ships at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan, 80 miles inland.
It is not Panormitis' first call in Haifa. AIS data provided by Pole Star Global shows that the ship spent about four weeks in the northeast (Russian) corner of the Black Sea in February through March, then transited to Haifa. She returned northwards to call again in the same region in April, potentially reaching the Kerch Strait, then transited back to Haifa once again. The vessel operated with AIS turned off for a significant part of her voyage in the Black Sea, a common practice in the region.
According to Haaretz, the Russian export system for ex-Ukrainian wheat revolves around ship-to-ship transfers, conducted near the southern entrance to Kerch Strait. Shuttle vessels move grain from Sevastopol and other Russian-occupied loading ports to a designated granary ship - in several cases, the bulker Glendale - which then transloads the grain onto the internationally-trading bulkers that carry it to market. In this account, based on satellite imaging, some of the ships that carry stolen grain abroad never call in a Russian port; they load offshore, and can therefore deny connections to the Russian occupation economy. Suspect voyages of this type between the Kerch Strait and Israel have been identified as far back as 2023, with multiple vessels implicated.
Israeli foreign affairs minister Gideon Sa'ar said in a statement that "evidence substantiating the allegations [about Panormitis] have yet to be provided," and he claimed that Ukraine had not reached out privately before broadcasting the complaint on social media. Sa'ar suggested that the matter would be handled locally as an administrative issue.
Ukraine Destroys Sea Drone as Russia Strikes Odesa Ports and Cargo Ships
Ukrainian officials report that Russia continues to target the port infrastructure in the Greater Odesa region in an effort to disrupt commercial trade. They assert the recent strikes on commercial shipping are deliberate acts by the enemy.
Overnight, another cargo ship was struck while sailing in the corridor that Ukraine has maintained for two and a half years for commercial shipping. According to the reports, it was the third commercial ship struck recently, however the Ukrainian Navy also released images of a successful interdiction of a sea drone attempting to attack one of the ports in the Greater Odesa region.
The brief video released by the Navy shows a sea drone approaching when it is hit and explodes. The Navy said they had been able to detect and track the approaching drone and destroyed it before it was able to reach one of the ports in the Greater Odesa area.
The ship that was hit overnight was only identified as a bulker registered in St. Kitts and Nevis. It was struck by two drones, which started a fire on the ship. None of the crew was injured, and they were able to extinguish the fire. The ship was heading toward the Odesa ports.
On Wednesday, the Seaports Administration of Ukraine reported that the port infrastructure was attacked overnight. It said a drone had caused a local fire that damaged warehouse facilities. They also said a cargo ship was hit in the area of its hold and reported a fire.
Media reports said it was the latest in a series of recent attacks. Another ship registered in St. Kitts and Nevis had also been recently struck. A Syrian crewmember was killed, and the assistant captain was injured on a Comoros-flagged bulker that was carrying soy. The Seaports Authority reports the port infrastructure remains operational. It, however, continues to operate with safety restrictions.
Earlier in the week, Oleksiy Kuleba, Vice Prime Minister for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, highlighted that the ports had met 98 percent of their target of over 21 million tons for the first quarter of the year despite the ongoing attacks. He said since the beginning of the year, the ports have been attacked on average every five days, with 193 infrastructure facilities and 25 civilian vessels damaged. Despite that, they handled over 11.6 million tons of grain and 1.2 million tons of steel and metal products. Container handling increased by 43 percent to over 63,000 TEU during the quarter.
Since the start of the Ukrainian Sea Corridor in September 2023, Kuleba says it has processed over 190 million tons of cargo, of which over 110 million tons are grain.
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