EU: 'There is evidence that Russia steals Ukrainian wheat'

A video released by CNN shows new satellite photos of the port of Sevastopol, in the Crimea, in which two Russian ships appear to be loading what is believed to be stolen Ukrainian grain.

New images from Maxar Technologies, dated May 19 and 21, show the ships - the Matros Pozynich and the Matros Koshka - docked alongside grain silos, with grain pouring from a belt into an open hold.

According to the naval tracking site MarineTraffic.com, both ships have left the port: the Matros Pozynich is sailing in the Aegean Sea, claiming to be headed for Beirut, while the Matros Koshka is still in the Black Sea.

The broadcaster points out that it is difficult to know for sure whether the ships were loaded with stolen Ukrainian grain, but Crimea, annexed to Russia, produces little grain, unlike the crop-rich Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, immediately to the north. .

Ukrainian officials and industrial sources reported that Russian forces in the occupied areas have emptied several silos and transported the grain south.

Earlier this month, Matros Pozynich accomplished a similar mission: she loaded grain and sailed from the Black Sea to reach the Mediterranean.

She was initially headed to Egypt with her cargo, but was turned away from Alexandria after a warning from Ukrainian officials, according to the country's government.

She was also barred from entering Beirut and eventually docked in Latakia, Syria, where Russia has been supporting Bashar al-Assad's regime for years.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia on several occasions of "gradually stealing" Ukrainian food products and trying to sell them.

"Russian thieves steal Ukrainian wheat, load it onto ships - wrote the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Twitter -, pass through the Bosphorus and try to sell it abroad. I urge all states to remain vigilant and reject any proposal for This guy. Don't buy stolen grain. Don't become accomplices in Russian crimes. Theft never brought anyone luck. "

"Putin is using the food issue as a weapon, the impact is felt not only on Ukraine but in Africa and Asia: we have no doubt that Russian troops are stealing Ukrainian wheat or destroying stocks, there are various proofs. we can say what we can and want to do to counter the situation because a war is underway but discussions are underway on how to intervene once the ships have left the ports ".

This was stated by a spokesman for the EU Commission.

"We need to raise the issue globally and we are doing it, Egypt has refused to accept grain stolen from Ukraine".