A Russian cargo ship that Ukraine alleges holds stolen grain from territory seized by Moscow amid the war there appears to have reached the Syrian port of Tartus, according to satellite images analyzed Thursday by The Associated Press.
The arrival of the SV Konstantin marks just the latest shipment of Ukrainian grain — whether legally purchased or allegedly looted— to reach Syria.
Another, the Razoni, docked full of legally purchased Ukrainian corn as part of a United Nations-led effort to get the country's food out of the war zone to a hungry world.
The Konstantin's arrival also shows the level Damascus has relied on Russia to keep its embattled President Bashar Assad in power amid his own nation's yearslong war, particularly at this Mediterranean Sea port that hosts Russian warships and has crucial Russian-run grain silos.
The Konstantin traveled from the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula in the Black Sea from around July 6, according to ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP.
The ship had loaded Ukrainian grain at Sevastopol, said Ihor Ostash, Ukraine's ambassador to Lebanon, during an interview with Espreso TV.
That port city in Crimea has seen Russian forces previously bring grain by truck from occupied territories, Ukrainian officials say.
Satellite images from Planet Labs PBC analyzed by the AP show the Konstantin off the coast of Tartus on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The vessel's length, width and appearance resembles previous Planet Labs images of the ship taken at a time corresponding to when its AIS tracker was still on north of Cyprus.
AP
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