The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported receiving an official request from Ukraine regarding the arrest of a ship suspected of transporting grain from temporarily occupied territories. The ministry emphasized that the documents submitted by Kyiv on April 28 contain serious factual gaps and are not accompanied by the necessary evidence required by Israeli law.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Israel Demands Additional Evidence from Ukraine
The Israeli police have approached the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office requesting additional information and evidence to continue the examination of the case. Without convincing confirmations, Israeli law enforcement cannot take action regarding the arrest of the ship.
“The Israeli police have approached the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office requesting additional information and corroborating evidence, as required by Israeli law.”
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs also reported that the ship, which was planning to enter an Israeli port next week, has decided to leave the country’s territorial waters. Earlier, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine provided the Israeli side with documents regarding the arrest of the Russian ship PANORMITIS, which, according to the investigation, may have been transporting cargo related to an illegal scheme for exporting grain from the occupied regions of Ukraine.
Scale of Illegal Export of Ukrainian Agricultural Products
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale aggression, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General, more than 1.7 million tons of agricultural products have been illegally exported from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, estimated at over 20 billion hryvnias.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also recorded the arrival in Israel of several batches of Ukrainian agricultural products illegally exported from the occupied territories by the Russian Federation. On April 27, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated via social media that the Israeli ambassador was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in connection with information about the arrival of a second ship carrying stolen Ukrainian grain.
In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar emphasized on social media that diplomatic relations between friendly countries should be resolved outside the public space.