Kyiv, Zagreb agree on use of Croatian ports for Ukrainian grain exports

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia Gordan Grlić Radman agreed on the use of Croatian ports for the export of Ukrainian grain.

As the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reports, Ukrainian food exports became an important topic of the ministerial negotiations in view of the Russian Federation’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

"We agreed on the possibility of using Croatian ports on the Danube and the Adriatic Sea for the transportation of Ukrainian grain. We will now work on laying the most efficient routes to these ports and making the most of this opportunity. Every contribution to unlocking exports, every door opened is a real, effective contribution to global food security. I thank Croatia for its constructive assistance," Kuleba emphasized.

The ministers also discussed Zagreb’s security assistance to Kyiv.

"The main topic of our negotiations today, as traditionally with other partners, was weapons. We discussed further support from Croatia and I also thanked for the assistance already provided. For obvious reasons, I will not share the details. I will only say that there are concrete agreements that will soon be implemented. Separately, I would like to note that the aid provided by Croatia is very solid if counting its share in the overall military budget of this country," Kuleba noted.

The top diplomats focused on the preparation for the International Donor Conference for Mine Clearance in Ukraine which will be held in Zagreb in October. Kuleba expressed his gratitude to Croatia, which took on the role of one of the global leaders in demining Ukraine.

The ministers devoted a significant part of the negotiations to the implementation of President Zelensky’s Peace Formula.

"The Croatian side confirmed its readiness to participate in the implementation of a number of points of the Peace Formula: on food security, energy security, restoration of respect for the UN Charter and territorial integrity of Ukraine, achieving accountability for Russian crimes, and preventing ecocide. We are very grateful. This is exactly the specifics that we expect from other countries and we continue to work together on implementing the Peace Formula and holding a relevant summit," said the foreign minister of Ukraine.

As reported, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia Gordan Grlić Radman arrived in Ukraine on Monday, July 31, and already visited Hostomel in Kyiv region.