Ukraine has made numerous requests to Israel regarding the export of grain stolen from its territories, according to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Georgiy Tikhiy. This statement was made during a briefing on April 28, where he addressed inquiries from Radio Svoboda.
Tikhiy referenced a timeline released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, indicating that Ukraine first contacted Israel about this issue on March 23, but did not receive a response until April 20.
He stated, “After many, many appeals—there were not just one or two, but dozens—we received the only official response from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to our inquiries. I won’t quote it fully, but to summarize, it essentially indicates that Israel has no intention of taking any real action regarding these shipments and Ukraine’s concerns.”
According to Tikhiy, the information provided by Ukraine was deemed insufficient by Tel Aviv, leading to the formal response that Israel would not take any measures.
He added that this situation prompted Ukraine to increase its public outreach: “Of course, we would prefer to resolve issues with partner states through closed channels where we are heard. When we are not heard and receive such responses, we will take our concerns to the public arena, and no one should take offense.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that several shipments of agricultural products illegally exported by Russia from occupied territories have reached Israel.
On April 27, amid reports that Israel had accepted a second shipment of stolen Ukrainian grain, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga announced via social media that the Israeli ambassador had been summoned to the Ministry.
In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Gidon Saar noted on social media platform X that “diplomatic relations, especially between friendly nations, are not conducted on Twitter or in the media.”
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry has revealed that it has repeatedly sought Israel's assistance regarding stolen grain, but has received minimal response. The lack of action from Israel has led Ukraine to escalate its public discourse on the matter.