Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will travel to Croatia for the first time on Wednesday to take part in the Ukraine-Southeast Europe Summit in Dubrovnik, which he has organised together with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

This is the third summit in this format – the first took place in Athens in August 2022 and the second in Tirana in February 2024. The aim of the meeting in Dubrovnik is to show the solidarity and support of the countries of south-east Europe for Ukraine, which has been confronted with Russian aggression for two and a half years.

According to a Croatian government source, high-ranking officials from 12 countries in the region are expected to attend alongside Zelenskyy and Plenkovic, including three heads of state, five prime ministers and four foreign ministers.

The condemnation of Russian aggression among main points of the declaration

The summit participants are expected to adopt a joint declaration, the text of which is still under negotiation but is expected to be in line with the declarations of the two previous summits.

Key points of the declaration include condemnation of Russian aggression, support for the territorial integrity of Ukraine, including the Crimean peninsula, support for President Zelenskyy’s peace plan, calls for the prosecution of war crimes in Ukraine, support for Kyiv’s application for euro integration and application for NATO membership once the necessary conditions are met, and support for the country’s energy security and post-war reconstruction.

On the sidelines of the conference in Dubrovnik, Plenkovic and Zelenskyy are expected to sign an agreement on cooperation between Croatia and Ukraine to formalise existing activities between the two countries, particularly in the areas of humanitarian aid, demining and the prosecution of war crimes.

Largest number of participants so far

The agreement is expected to put the assistance that Croatia is already providing to Ukraine on a long-term basis, the government source said.

The summit in Dubrovnik will have the largest number of participants to date.

Presidents Natasa Pirc-Musar from Slovenia, Jakov Milatovic from Montenegro and Vjosa Osmani from Kosovo as well as Prime Ministers Kyriakos Mitsotakis from Greece, Dimitar Glavchev from Bulgaria, Edi Rama from Albania, Hristijan Mickoski from North Macedonia and Borjana Kristo from Bosnia and Herzegovina will be present.

Turkey, Serbia, Romania and Moldova will be represented by their foreign ministers.

The Vice-President of the European Commission Dubravka Suica and the Secretary-General of the OECD Mathias Cormann will also take part in the summit.

The conference is attracting a great deal of media interest. Around 100 reporters and photojournalists from Croatia and the region are expected to follow the conference.