Ukraine estimates that Russia has stolen 15 million tons of grain from the occupied territories since the start of the full-scale war in 2022, Ukraine’s Deputy Economy Minister Taras Vysotsky told reporters in a comment.
According to Ukrainian intelligence, wheat from Ukraine, stolen from the occupied Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, Zaporizhia regions and Crimea, is being mixed with Russian grain at Black Sea ports before being exported, Reuters wrote in a report Thursday.
In one case, Ukraine called on the European Union to impose sanctions on Bangladesh for purchasing wheat allegedly sourced from Russian-occupied regions. However, the EU has not taken any action so far, Reuters noted.
An investigation by Slidstvo.Info and Ukrainian hackers from the KibOrg group showed that a Russian company tied to a well-known Danish inspection firm has been helping export grain from the Russian-occupied Ukrainian port of Berdyansk, Kyiv Post previously reported.
Meanwhile, the Russian occupation authorities claim they increased crop yields in the occupied Luhansk region and plan to expand the sown areas. According to Reuters, part of the grain is expected to be exported under a preferential regime that lifts export duties.
Apart from stealing Ukrainian grain, Russia is also attempting to destroy Ukrainian harvests in liberated territories. Russia is continuously attacking these lands with drones, burning crops and attempting to kill farmers and farm workers.
Around 5,000 hectares of fields in the Kherson Region were burned after three days of Russian drone attacks in June, Kyiv Post reported.
Russia also tries to directly kill farmers in the fields using FPV drones, United24 Media previously reported, showing footage of farmers running away from drones while collecting harvests.