Minister: Croatia allocates 1 million euros for demining in Ukraine
Croatia allocated one million euros ($1.1 million) for demining of Ukrainian agricultural lands, Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko reported on July 31.
The funds will go to the UN World Food Program to help farmers and food producers resume work in Ukrainian regions most affected by the war, according to Svyrydenko.
The program began in March to support small farmers having less than 300 hectares of land, or families who grow food for themselves. The project is ongoing in Ukraine's Kharkiv Oblast and is set to expand to Kherson and Mykolaiv oblasts.
"Thanks to it, the plots of farmers are inspected, demined, and returned to use," the official said, adding that Ukrainians can apply to receive the help through the State Agrarian Registry.
During Russia's all-out war, casualties due to mine explosions have become a regular occurrence in Ukraine. Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on March 1 that nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory had been mined since February last year.
The Croatian capital, Zagreb, will host a conference on the humanitarian demining of Ukraine in October. "Croatia's experience, expertise, and production capacity are an example for many other countries. Thus having such partners is quite valuable," reads Svyrydenko's Facebook post.
On the same day, Ukraine and Croatia agreed on using Croatian ports on the Danube River and the Adriatic Sea to export Ukrainian grain following Russia's one-sided termination of the Black Sea grain deal.
Read also: UNICEF: 20 children killed, 69 wounded in Ukraine due to mine explosions
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