Britain's Prince Charles has made a donation to the Croatian government fund for the reconstruction of Zagreb after the March 22 earthquake, expressing deep distress and sadness over the casualties and devastation caused by the earthquake, the British Embassy said on Saturday.

Because my wife and I have such fond and special memories of visiting Croatia four years ago, I was immensely shocked to hear that so many valuable historic buildings in Zagreb had suffered so much damage, the Prince of Wales said in a letter to President Zoran Milanovic.

In recognition of the good relations between Great Britain and Croatia, Prince Charles made the donation about a month ago.

Since the earthquake struck the Croatian capital amid the COVID-19 pandemic, I can only imagine the challenging situation that the earthquake has caused for your country, the Prince said in the letter.

Croatia and its people are in our thoughts and prayers in these painful and difficult moments, he said.

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, visited Croatia in the spring of 2016. The visit did not have a political dimension but was focused on strengthening the ties between the two countries and their people.

They visited Zagreb and the eastern regions of Slavonia and Baranja, and chose a photograph taken on March 15 during their visit to Croatia for their Christmas card for that year.