According to the Serbian business media outlet Parametar, a serious train accident occurred in Croatia on October 10 on the approach to the Meja station near Rijeka. Freight train No. 82318, operated by Transagent and carrying a grain cargo toward Rijeka, derailed.
According to official data from HŽ Infrastruktura, the accident occurred around 9:25 a.m. on the incoming track at Meja Station. Eleven cars derailed and ended up in a deep ravine. The locomotive and two other cars remained at the station. There were no injuries, but significant property damage was caused to the railway infrastructure, and the Plase–Meja section is closed to traffic.
The Croatian Agency for the Investigation of Incidents in Air, Maritime, and Rail Transport (AIN) has launched an investigation into the circumstances of the accident. The agency confirmed that a report of a serious incident was received on October 10 at approximately 9:25 a.m. and concerned the derailment of several cars of train No. 82318 on line M202.
According to the Croatian publication Novi list, 11 cars were loaded with grain, presumably of Ukrainian origin. However, an official statement from HŽ Infrastruktura confirms only the transport of grain and does not specify the country of origin of the cargo.
A preliminary theory under consideration is that the locomotive’s brakes failed.
The train belonged to the carrier Transagent Rail, part of the Transagent logistics group based in Rijeka. The company specializes in rail and multimodal freight transportation in Central and Southeastern Europe.
The investigation into this accident is ongoing. The exact causes of the derailment are to be determined by AIN experts.
Source: HŽ Infrastruktura, Croatian Agency for the Investigation of Accidents in Air, Maritime, and Rail Transport (AIN), Novi list.
According to the Serbian business media outlet Parametar, Croatia is claiming property worth over $2.7 billion located in Montenegro that remained there following the breakup of Yugoslavia. And this is by no means limited to the well-known training sailing ship “Jadran.”
This was stated by Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman during a visit to Montenegro. Zagreb has documentation regarding property that ended up on Montenegrin territory and was sold or transferred to other owners after the breakup of Yugoslavia.
Among these, the minister specifically mentioned military ships, submarines, and a military hospital.
The “Jadran” has become the most well-known part of the dispute. The training sailing ship was built in the 1930s and was used by the Yugoslav Navy. The vessel is currently in Montenegro, while Croatia insists on its return.
But the property dispute is only part of a much broader list of Zagreb’s demands on Podgorica.
The Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the following among the unresolved issues:
– the return of the “Jadran” and the settlement of other property claims;
– compensation for former Croatian prisoners of the Morin camp;
– the search for 14 people who are still considered missing in action following the war of the 1990s;
– the investigation and prosecution of war crimes;
– the return of property belonging to Croatian families in Montenegro and the conclusion of protracted court proceedings;
– the preservation of a memorial plaque at the site of the former Morin camp;
– renaming the swimming pool in Kotor named after Zoran Hopčević;
– resolving the maritime border between the two countries.
These issues take on particular significance in light of Montenegro’s EU accession negotiations.
Croatia is already using its status as an EU member state to block the closure of certain negotiation chapters. In September, a planned intergovernmental conference had to be postponed after Zagreb refused to agree to the closure of several chapters.
Currently, Croatia is blocking the closure of chapters related to transport policy, foreign policy and security, the judicial system and fundamental rights, as well as justice, freedom, and security.
Podgorica hopes to conclude negotiations and become the 28th member of the European Union in 2028. However, this date is not guaranteed: the consent of EU member states is required for progress and final accession.
At the same time, Croatia is currently the main source of bilateral demands on Montenegro, which directly affect the negotiation process. There is currently no comparable official set of claims from other EU member states.
This creates a rather interesting situation: the closer Montenegro gets to the EU, the greater the significance of long-standing disputes dating back to the breakup of Yugoslavia.
And Croatia’s property claims, totaling more than $2.7 billion, are now becoming not only a matter of relations between Zagreb and Podgorica but also a potential factor capable of influencing the timing of Montenegro’s accession to the European Union.
According to the “Serbian Economist,” five EU countries—the Netherlands, Croatia, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia—have called for a pause before closing the remaining negotiation chapters with Montenegro, reports the Podgorica-based newspaper Dan, citing diplomatic sources in Brussels.
The Netherlands initiated the move, demanding further analysis of Montenegro’s compliance with European criteria and a more consistent application of established standards. Croatia and the three Baltic countries subsequently joined this position.
This has already affected the negotiation schedule. The EU–Montenegro intergovernmental conference scheduled for September—at which Podgorica had hoped to close new chapters—will not take place.
However, Brussels’ official line is more conciliatory. An EU representative stated that several countries have not yet completed their internal approval procedures, as many negotiation chapters are technically complex.
“The desire to make progress is there. The work is practically complete. It’s more a matter of timing than anything else,” the EU representative said.
The most optimistic scenario at the moment is that the next intergovernmental conference will be held in mid-October in Luxembourg.
Montenegro remains the candidate that has made the most progress in the EU accession process. The country has opened all 33 negotiation chapters, 18 of which have already been provisionally closed. The last conference took place on July 14, when Chapters 8 (“Competition Policy”) and 29 (“Customs Union”) were closed.
Croatia’s position remains a separate issue. In July, Zagreb refused to agree to the closure of Chapter 14, “Transport Policy,” primarily due to issues regarding cabotage and aviation permits. Croatia also continues to block Chapter 31, “Foreign Policy, Security, and Defense,” due to unresolved bilateral issues with Montenegro.
The Council of the EU officially confirms that Montenegro’s progress continues and that work on new negotiating positions is ongoing.
According to The Serbian Economist, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury has extended a special license to the Croatian company JANAF, allowing it to continue transporting crude oil for the Serbian company NIS until September 30, 2026.
The company reported that it received the license extension with the assistance of the Croatian government and U.S. legal advisors. The authorization allows it to continue fulfilling its existing contract with NIS within the framework of the U.S. sanctions regime.
Thus, crude oil deliveries via the Adriatic Pipeline can continue for at least another month. The oil arrives by sea at the JANAF terminal in Omišalj on the island of Krk, after which it is transported via the pipeline system toward Serbia and used by the NIS refinery in Pančevo.
This decision is of critical importance for Serbia. The refinery in Pančevo is the country’s only large oil refinery and meets about 80% of the Serbian market’s demand for petroleum products. The facility’s design capacity is up to 4.8 million metric tons of crude processed per year.
NIS itself received a separate special license on August 28. It is also valid until September 30 and allows the company to continue oil refining, crude oil imports, financial transactions, technical maintenance, and other operations necessary to ensure a stable supply to the market.
The extension of the license is particularly important given the problems with alternative supply channels. Due to low water levels in the Danube, the capacity to import fuel by barge has been significantly reduced this summer. In July, fuel imports via this route amounted to only about a quarter of the planned volume, which has increased Serbia’s dependence on the Pančevo refinery and supplies via JANAF.
NIS and JANAF are bound by a three-year contract for the transportation of up to 10 million metric tons of crude oil, which remains in effect until December 2026. Actual supply volumes depend on the amount of oil that NIS purchases and delivers to the Omišalj terminal.
The main issue now concerns the change in NIS’s ownership structure. Hungary’s MOL is in talks with Gazprom Neft regarding the purchase of a 56.15% stake in the company. A potential deal is seen as a long-term way to remove NIS from U.S. sanctions. OFAC has also issued separate temporary licenses to facilitate the negotiations.
U.S. sanctions against NIS took full effect in October 2025 due to Russian control over the company. Since then, OFAC has repeatedly issued temporary licenses, allowing Serbia to maintain the refinery’s operations and oil shipments through Croatia for the duration of negotiations regarding the sale of the Russian stake.
https://t.me/relocationrs/3564
The sale of the seized yacht “Royal Romance,” which is linked to Viktor Medvedchuk, has effectively been blocked due to a change in the procedure for the sale of Ukrainian assets located abroad, stated Pavlo Velykorechanin, an expert with the Verkhovna Rada’s Anti-Corruption Committee and former deputy head of ARMA, in an exclusive interview with the “Interfax-Ukraine” news agency.
According to him, the mechanism developed in 2023 allowed for the sale of seized assets through the “Prozorro.Sales” system, including assets physically located outside Ukraine.
However, the new government regulation stipulates that the sale of seized property abroad must take place on the basis of an asset-sharing agreement between states.
According to international practice, such a division typically becomes possible only after a final conviction by a court.
As a result, Velikorecchanin estimates that the Royal Romance may remain frozen abroad for several years while the trials in the main criminal cases are ongoing.
“The sale of Medvedchuk’s yacht has reached a dead end—these assets will simply remain frozen abroad for many years,” he stated.
The Royal Romance was previously seized in Croatia. Ukraine had attempted to arrange its sale, with the proceeds to be transferred to the state.
According to The Serbian Economist, wildfires are raging in Croatia. Firefighting efforts are currently concentrated in the Omis area, southeast of Split, and on the Pelješac Peninsula.
The largest fire broke out on the evening of August 13 near the village of Lokva-Rogoznica and, driven by strong winds, quickly spread toward Omis. The fire swept through pine forests and coastal vegetation, damaging homes, cars, and boats. According to the latest estimates by Croatian authorities, the area affected by the fire is approximately 900–1,000 hectares.
The situation proved particularly challenging due to strong winds that constantly changed direction. Croatia’s Chief Fire Officer, Slavko Tucaković, described the events of the night as a “fire storm.” More than 150 firefighters took part in the firefighting efforts, along with Canadair aircraft and units from other regions of the country.
Residents and numerous tourists were evacuated from the most dangerous areas. At one point, there were about 1,500 evacuees at the reception center in Omis. Some people, fleeing the rapidly approaching fire, headed toward the sea.
As of midday on August 14, 40 people required medical attention. Fourteen people remain in the Split hospital, seven of whom are in life-threatening condition. The most severely injured have been diagnosed with burns covering a significant portion of their bodies.
By midday, the situation near Omis had improved significantly. No open flames were visible at the main fire site, and firefighters had moved on to dousing and extinguishing isolated hot spots. However, emergency services continue to operate in the area due to the risk of the fire reigniting.
At the same time, on the morning of August 14, a new large forest fire broke out on the Pelješac Peninsula, in the Kuna Pelješka area near Orebić. A pine forest is burning there; due to strong winds, the fire spread toward populated areas and threatened homes.
The fires have also caused transportation problems. In the Omis area, coastal roads were closed, and on Pelješac, traffic was halted on the section of the road between Prizdrina and Potomje.
Thus, as of 1:00–2:00 p.m. on August 14, the most critical situation along the Croatian coast remains in southern Dalmatia.
The Ukrainian Embassy in Croatia has recommended that Ukrainian citizens temporarily refrain from traveling to the city of Omis and the surrounding resort areas of Dalmatia due to the large-scale forest fires.
The fire broke out on the evening of August 13 in the Lokva-Rogoznica area and quickly spread toward Omis. As of August 14, the region has experienced infrastructure damage, partial power outages, and road closures along sections of the main coastal highway. Firefighting efforts and the evacuation of residents are ongoing.
Ukrainians already in the emergency zone are advised to avoid forested areas and fire zones, follow the instructions of local authorities and emergency services, and, if an evacuation is ordered, proceed immediately to designated assembly points.
In the event of a threat to life or health, Ukrainian citizens should contact the embassy’s hotline: +385 91 605 10 10.
https://t.me/relocationrs/3456
