00:00What do we know about the Abings ship?
00:06A cargo ship accused by Ukraine of carrying grain from Russia's occupied territory
00:11has docked in Israel and left port. Tracking data shows that Russia's flagged bulk carrier
00:17arrived at the port of Haifa on the 12th of April and departed on the 15th of April.
00:23After leaving the port, the vessel's status changed to in ballast,
00:26meaning it was no longer carrying cargo. Its destination is listed as the Turkish port of
00:32Canakkale. In a statement, Ukraine's foreign ministry said it had warned Israeli authorities
00:37in advance about the vessel and the possible origin of its cargo from occupied Ukrainian territory.
00:42So if the cargo was disputed, why was the ship allowed to dock? It's because there is no global
00:48ban on Russian grain exports. Why the European Union bans imports for occupied Crimea because it
00:54considers Russia's annexation illegal. These rules only apply in the bloc.
00:59Countries like Turkey and Israel are not banned by these sanctions,
01:04meaning enforcement depends on national law. However, some NGOs are urging Ukraine's allies
01:09to recognize grain seizures from Crimea as looting and impose sanctions on the vessels
01:15and companies involved. Ukraine, an investigator from the Sea Crime Project,
01:19say that at least 7,500 tons of the cargo carried by Abins may have initially been loaded in occupied
01:26Crimea. They claim it was transferred between vessels and then exported from the port of
01:32Kafkas as a Russian export. Ukraine considers such exports illegal and that they may amount to looting
01:38under international law. But without binding international restrictions, shipments and vessels like this
01:44can still move through global ports.
