Turkey says no evidence Ukrainian grains stolen by Russia reached its shores
Turkey is being lobbied by the UK to discuss the safe shipping of Ukrainian grain due to looming global shortages but denies any has reached its ports.
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkey was investigating Ukraine’s claims that its grain has been stolen by Russia and sold to third countries via Turkish ports. “Turkey would never allow stolen Ukrainian grain to come to us."
He was referring to allegations made by Ukraine’s ambassador to Ankara, who said Turkish buyers were among those receiving grain looted by Russia in Ukraine. Vasyl Bodnar said earlier this month that his government had sought Ankara’s help to identify and capture individuals engaged in the illicit trade.
Cavusoglu insisted that ongoing probes had not uncovered any stolen shipments so far. But open-source intelligence reports suggest otherwise, with images of cargo vessels carrying wheat from Russian-occupied Crimea en route to Syria and then anchoring at Turkey’s Derince port.
Stolen commodities from occupied #Ukraine on a tyrant’s ship: Syrian government’s SYRIAMAR’s cargo vessel Souria transited Bosphorus carrying wheat en route from occupied Sevastopol’s Avlita pier allegedly to Tripoli Lebanon but more likely to #Syria. My pix via @reuterspictures pic.twitter.com/12vviKJI7o
