Ukraine and Croatia have reached an agreement for the use of Croatian ports to export Ukrainian grain. Lithuania also stepped forward to offer another potential route to the Baltic and Bulgaria, to offer its railways as part of the EU’s ‘Solidarity Lanes.’ The move comes after Russia’s destruction of 26 port infrastructure facilities and 5 civilian vessels after the collapse of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
“We have agreed on the possibility of using Croatian ports on the Danube and in the Adriatic Sea for the transportation of Ukrainian grain. Now we will work to lay the most efficient routes to these ports and make the most of this opportunity,” said Croatian foreign minister, Gordon Grlić-Radman. The announcement was made following discussions with Kuleba’s Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba.
Their meeting also covered the potential supply of weapons and President Zelenskyy’s “Formula of Peace.”
Lithuania’s proposal, meanwhile, is to use ports located on the Baltic Sea, which could potentially handle up to 25 million tons of grain annually.
Latvian Transport Minister Janis Vitenbergs meanwhile said that the country was willing to help if the EU would invest in rail infrastructure – in particular the Rail Baltica project. Previous attempts to move grain by road have violated sanitary requirements, as shipments take too long.
But the Croatian deal is likely to go into immediate effect. 
”We will now work on planning 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 input to world food security,” said Kuleba at the conclusion of the negotiations.
„The Croatian side has confirmed its readiness to participate in the implementation of several points of the peace formula: regarding food security, energy security, restoration of respect for the UN Charter and territorial integrity of Ukraine, achieving justice for Russian crimes and preventing ecocide. We are very grateful.”