The Russian authorities have engaged the private sector in smuggling grain stolen from Ukraine to Syria.
This is reported by the Turkish media outlet Türkiye Today, whose journalists received the relevant documents at their disposal.
These documents indicate that the key player in the scheme is the “Pallada” LLC. This company was allocated quotas for 2026 to export 13.8 thousand tons of grain from Zaporizhzhia region, 11.8 thousand tons from Crimea, and 7.8 thousand tons from Kherson region.
The publication emphasized that after the change of power in Syria at the end of 2024, illegal trade stopped for a while. However, it has now resumed in the volumes observed during the time of Bashar Assad.
“They [the ships of the Russian shadow fleet] are turning off navigation and forging documents about the origin of the cargo,” the publication quotes a source in Kyiv.
The source added that such tactics “make it incredibly difficult for neighbouring countries, including Turkey, to intercept supplies”. Taxes from the activities of such firms go directly to the Russian budget and finance military operations.
The main destinations remain the Syrian ports of Tartus and Latakia. The Russian bulk carrier Matros Pozynych loaded 27.5 thousand tons of wheat worth about $7 million in Sevastopol between March 26 and April 4, 2026, and unloaded in Syria on April 24.
- Russia illegally exported approximately 2 million tons of Ukrainian grain in 2025 and sold it on foreign markets, Minister Sybiha said during the Black Sea Security Conference.
- At the end of April, a new scandal erupted over the trade in grain stolen from Ukraine — a ship carrying such products was taken by Israel. The Israeli ambassador was handed a note of protest over this, and Ukraine and the EU also stated that they were ready to impose sanctions against the country.
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