The Russian Foreign Minister met with his Croatian counterpart, Davor Ivo Stier today in Moscow, Russia.
“There is no political background to the Agrokor issue. We will politically support any solution that will satisfy Agrokor and our banks,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov after talks with his Croatian counterpart Davor Ivo Stier today in Moscow, reports Večernji List on May 23, 2017.
He rejected the speculation that there was a political background with regards to Agrokor while answering the question of whether the current situation in that company was a message from Russia, after Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković’s statements were given in Ukraine. “We do not see any political background. We have talked about this issue with regards to the economy and we think there is a lot of potential for co-operation in the banking sector.”
“That should be the problem of Agrokor’s creditors. Our banking institutions want to see Agrokor back on its feet again. We have also studied the Croatian legal framework. We believe that this issue should be resolved by economic stakeholders. We will politically support any solution that will satisfy Agrokor and our banks,” said Lavrov.
Shortly after coming to power last autumn, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković visited Ukraine where he gave a series of statements in which he expressed strong support for Ukraine in its dealings with Russia. Russian banks are the largest creditors of Agrokor, the embattled largest privately-owned company in Croatia.
Lavrov and Stier also discussed the issue of the oil refinery in Bosanski Brod, near the Bosnian border with Croatia. The oil refinery is causing pollution which severely affects the Croatian town of Slavonski Brod and the surrounding areas. The oil refinery is under Russian ownership.
This is the issue of environmental protection. Air pollution has existed for some time. Representatives of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Zarubezhnyeft, which is the owner of the refinery, established a joint monitoring mechanism back in 2012. ”So, that group exists, it only needs to be more effective”, said Lavrov while answering a question on what the Russian side was doing regarding the issue of the refinery in Bosanski Brod, given that president of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, is opposed to the refinery getting a connection to the Croatian gas pipeline system, which would enable it to lower the pollution. The refinery is located in Republika Srpska, the Serb entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
According to rough calculations and according to current plans, pollution should be reduced and reach the standards prescribed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But, nevertheless, we believe we should continue with the negotiations. Zarubezhnyeft is in contact with the companies in the area and a short pipeline could be built, Lavrov explained.
“There are no obstacles. There is a desire to address this issue so that it is economically viable and does not interfere with the gas supply in the region. We believe the solution can be found, and that it will not cost much. Specifically, as far as the gas supply system in Bosnia and Herzegovina is concerned, of course we will see what they have to say in both Bosnia and Republika Srpska,” Lavrov added.
