Presidential Office calls for secondary sanctions on buyers of stolen Ukrainian grain
Russia continues to sell grain from Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories via occupied ports, circumventing sanctions by changing routes and transshipping cargo.
This was reported by Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the President of Ukraine’s Representative for Sanctions Policy, in a statement to Ukrinform.
“Russia continues to seek buyers for stolen Ukrainian grain, using occupied ports as a stable supply channel. Data for March–April 2026 clearly confirm this,” he said.
According to him, these activities have already been partially met with sanctions.
The Presidential Representative emphasized that a significant portion of the vessels operating on these routes are subject to restrictions imposed by Ukraine, the EU, and the U.S.: MATROS POZYNICH, SEVERNIY PROECT, DAMAS WAVE, NOVAYA ZEMLYA; FEDOR, PRINCESS EVA, MYS ZHELANIYA, ZAID; VICTORIA K, VICTORIA V, DON, ASOMATOS.
At the same time, Vlasiuk stated that, as practice shows, a vessel’s sanction status alone does not stop sales.
“When a restriction arises, the route changes. After Egypt refused to accept the ZAID due to EU sanctions, the vessel was simply redirected to Turkey. At the same time, Egypt itself continued to accept other shipments, particularly from Mariupol, including voyages by sanctioned vessels,” he said.
Another model is also being used in parallel: through non-sanctioned vessels.
In particular, Israel is already involved in this scheme, as the vessels ASOMATOS, ABINSK, and PANORMITIS enter the markets after transshipment in the Kerch Strait area, where the grain is mixed: “According to available data, about 30% of such cargo comes from the occupied territories.”
“Ultimately, Russia is adapting to the restrictions: changing routes and redeploying its fleet, but not stopping exports. That is precisely why sanctions must block not only the ships but any purchase of such grain,” Vlasiuk emphasized.
At the same time, this means further adding involved grain carriers to sanctions lists and applying secondary sanctions against buyers.
“At the same time, this work is being conducted diplomatically and within the framework of international law. Without this, the scheme continues to operate,” the official added.
As reported by Ukrinform, the upcoming 21st package of EU sanctions will include increased pressure on the Russian financial system, additional restrictions on energy exports, and new mechanisms to control the supply of dual-use goods.