In the situation involving Israel and Ukrainian grain, we still don’t know for certain—and cannot know—who is right and who is at fault.
We need to examine documents that we do not have. Israel claims that Ukraine has not substantiated that this grain originated specifically from the occupied territories. Ukraine claims that this grain was shipped specifically from the occupied territories to Israel and some other countries in the region. The problem is that without the documents, we cannot confirm or refute this.
And this is not the first crisis of this kind. The fact that it has entered the public sphere creates a burdensome backdrop for interstate relations and may be a manifestation of several processes.
First and foremost, it reflects the deterioration of relations between Israel and Europe. Israel believes that Ukraine is taking a hardline, negative stance toward Israel because the latter’s relations with Europe are deteriorating. And that Ukraine is, in a sense, aligning its position accordingly. Second, there is the developing cooperation between Ukraine and the new Syrian government, which remains anti-Israeli—this too may cast a shadow over these processes. Third, we cannot rule out that certain interests of individual companies are driving this conflict, because grain from the occupied territories is supplied by Russian companies, and it is taking the market share of some Ukrainian companies. And business interests may indeed be the driving force behind this.
It seems to me that the government is currently trying to create a situation in which Israel will be forced either to apologize, making Ukraine look strong, or to compensate Ukraine in some other way—for example, by providing additional military or financial support.
Ruslan Bortnik
