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During the ongoingRusso-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014 with the illegalannexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation and theWar in Donbas (2014—2022), and expanded with the full-scaleRussian invasion of Ukraine since 24 February 2022,Russian troops in the occupied regions of Ukraine have systematically stolengrain and other products from local farmers.[1] As of May 2022[update], at least 400,000 tons of grain were stolen and exported from Russian-occupied Ukraine according to theUkrainian Ministry of Defence,[2] with theMinistry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine similarly estimating a theft of 'several hundred thousand tonnes' of grain at the end of April 2022.[3]
From 2014 until 2022, grain from the self-proclaimedDonetsk People's Republic and theLuhansk People's Republic came to Russia. According to theBBC, intermediaries transported grain fromDonbas farmers to Russia, passed throughcustoms, everything was paid for bybank transfer, through Russian banks. The grain was unloaded at the warehouses of Russian buyers, and they were already selling grain as Russian.[4]
A June 2022 study by theKyiv School of Economics found that the Russian invasion cost Ukraine's agricultural sector $4.3 billion in destroyed equipment, damaged land and unharvested crops.[5]
As of October 2022[update], the widescale theft of Ukrainian grain was continuing and involved both private companies and Russian state operatives.[6] Some of the stolen grain is transferred and mixed with legitimate goods.[7] TheFinancial Times identified Nikita Busel, a Russian businessman and the general director of the government-run State Grain Operator, as one of the heads of the operation.[6]
According to an investigation released in June 2024 by theBelarusian Investigative Center, the Schemes project ofRadio Liberty's Ukrainian service, and Vyorstka, in 2023, agricultural products worth 6.2 million euros were exported from theoccupied territory of theKherson Oblast, and out of the 6.4 tons of wheat collected, two million tons were exported through Crimean ports. Some of this product was sold to Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, and Spain.[8] According to another investigation by the BRC, Schemes,Cyber Partisans, and KibOrg, released in August 2024, rapeseed is being exported from the Kherson Oblast by people fromRamzan Kadyrov's entourage and their Belarusian business partners; documents were issued for the supply of 4.9 thousand tons of rapeseed to Belarus.[9]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Part of theRusso-Ukrainian war (2022–present) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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