Ukraine Warns Israel Over Wheat Ship Docking in Haifa, Citing Diplomatic Fallout
A senior Ukrainian diplomatic source has warned that if the ship “Panormitis” docks and unloads in the port of Haifa, relations between Kyiv and Tel Aviv will enter a crisis. According to the official, Ukraine believes this ship is carrying wheat harvested from Ukrainian territories under Russian control.
Barak Ravid, an Axios journalist, citing this source on the X platform, wrote that Kyiv is closely monitoring this ship and will “not remain indifferent” to its arrival and unloading. The official noted that if permission is granted to unload the cargo, the consequences, especially for bilateral relations, will be severe.
The Ukrainian official further stated that if Israel refuses to reject the ship and its cargo, Kyiv reserves the right to employ a range of diplomatic measures and international legal mechanisms. He also claimed that regarding a previous ship, which he said had unloaded “stolen” wheat in Haifa, Ukraine’s requests were effectively ignored.
The source pointed out actions taken by the Ukrainian government in support of Israel and described the current event as incompatible with that approach. He referred to Kyiv’s decisions to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization and criminalize antisemitism, saying that exploiting the disputed shipment does not align with the level of relations between the two sides.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz also reported that, based on obtained information, four shipments of Ukrainian wheat have been unloaded in Israel this year. The Panormitis ship arrived in Haifa Bay yesterday morning and is waiting to enter the port.
The report claims that to transfer wheat from ports like Berdyansk, the grain is first shipped by small vessels into Russian waters before being transferred at sea to larger ships, with customs documents altered to register Russia as the cargo’s origin. These allegations have so far not elicited an official response from Israeli authorities.
