A dispute between Ukraine and Israel deepened on Wednesday, after Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar criticised Kyiv's handling of an official complaint over the purchase of grain from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory.
In a post on social media, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said his country had raised concerns over the purchase through “diplomatic and legal channels”.
“This is not Twitter diplomacy, but a very concrete legal and diplomatic request for international legal assistance that necessitates a response. We expect the Israeli side to take it seriously rather than responding with emotional statements,” Mr Sybiha added.
Shortly afterwards, Mr Saar accused Mr Sybiha of using social media as a weapon during the complaints process.
The dispute marks another blow for Israel on the world stage, as it faces unprecedented criticism from allies and rivals over its conduct since the Gaza war broke out in October 2023.
The grain issue could have consequences for Israel's relationship with the EU, its largest trading partner and a key ally of Ukraine.
The ministers' exchange on Wednesday followed a post on Tuesday by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said Israel's grain purchase “cannot be legitimate business”.
He added that Ukraine is preparing to impose sanctions against those who move grain from occupied territories, as well as “legal entities attempting to profit from this criminal scheme”.
On Monday, Mr Sybiha had said he would summon the Israeli ambassador in relation to the grain purchase. The following day, Mr Saar claimed that Ukraine had provided no evidence that the grain was stolen.
In his post on Wednesday, Mr Saar repeated his criticism of Mr Sybiha. “One would expect the submission of a legal request before tweeting. You chose differently, for your own reasons,” he wrote.
“Finally, you submitted the request late last night and now you are following it up with another tweet. The request is now being examined by the relevant authorities.”
European Commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni told The National on Tuesday that the bloc had approached Israel for clarification on the issue and added that sanctions were under consideration.
Kyiv considers all grain produced in the four regions Russia has claimed since invading Ukraine in 2022 – along with Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014 – to have been stolen by Moscow. Russia claims that the regions are its “new territories”, but they are still internationally recognised as part of Ukraine.
