WASHINGTON: Russian-flagged ships have been carrying grain harvested in Ukraine last season and transported it to Syria, US satellite imagery company Maxar said on Thursday.
Maxar’s images showed two Russian-flagged bulk carrier ships docked in the Russian-controlled Crimean port of Sevastopol in May and being loaded with grain, the company said.
Days later, Maxar satellites collected images of the same ships docked in Syria, with their hatches open and semi-trucks lined up ready to haul the grain away, Maxar said. Syria and Russia are staunch allies.
The company said another image from June also showed a different ship being loaded with grain in Sevastopol.
Ukraine has accused Russia of stealing grain from the territories that Russian forces occupied since its invasion began in late February. The war threatens to cause severe food shortages as Russia and Ukraine account for about 29 percent of global wheat exports.
Ukraine is one of the world’s largest grain exporters, and Western countries have accused Russia of creating the risk of global famine by shutting Ukraine’s Black Sea ports.
On June 8, the deputy head of Ukrainian agriculture producers union UAC said that Russia has stolen about 600,000 tons of grain from occupied territory and exported some of it.
Russia calls its action in Ukraine a “special military operation” claiming its aim was to disarm and “denazify” its neighbor. The West and Ukraine say this is a pretext for unprovoked aggression.
Russian-flagged ships transport Ukraine’s grain to Syria, Maxar says
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Russian-flagged ships transport Ukraine’s grain to Syria, Maxar says
- Ukraine has accused Russia of stealing grain from the territories that Russian forces occupied since its invasion began in late February
- Ukraine is one of the world’s largest grain exporters
US envoy calls for ceasefire deal in northeastern Syria to be maintained
- Tom Barrack, ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, reiterates Washington’s support for Jan. 18 integration agreement between Syria’s government and Syrian Democratic Forces
LONDON: Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, on Monday reiterated Washington’s desire to ensure the ceasefire agreement in northeastern Syria between Syria’s government and the Syrian Democratic Forces continues.
In a message posted on social media platform X, he wrote: “Productive phone call this evening with his excellency Masoud Barzani to discuss the situation in Syria and the importance of maintaining the ceasefire and ensuring humanitarian assistance to those in need, especially in Kobani.”
Barzani has been the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party since 1979, and served as president of Kurdistan region between 2005 and 2017.
The current present, Nechirvan Barzani, previously welcomed a recent decree by the Syrian president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, officially recognizing the Kurdish population as an integral part of the country.
Barrack reiterated Washington’s support for efforts to advance the Jan. 18 agreement between Syria’s government and the SDF to integrate the latter into state institutions. The SDF is a Kurdish-led faction led by Mazloum Abdi that operates in northeastern Syria and recently clashed with government forces.
On Saturday, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported that the Syrian Ministry of Defense had announced a 15-day extension of the ceasefire deal.
