ISTANBUL

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday proposed establishing a joint production and transportation hub for fertilizers during his official visit to South Africa, aiming to strengthen economic cooperation between the two nations.

Zelenskyy, speaking alongside South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at a joint press conference, emphasized the opportunity to expand bilateral trade through collaborative projects in agriculture and other areas.

"Ukraine offers South Africa to create such a joint general hub, a hub for the production and transportation of fertilizers, which supports your entire region. There is significant potential in the agro-industrial sector,” he was quoted by Interfax-Ukraine as saying.

Zelenskyy also emphasized the potential for joint initiatives in renewable and nuclear energy production, expressing Ukraine’s readiness to help improve South Africa’s energy generation capacity.

"We are ready to work together to create modern security systems, particularly at facilities like your national parks, and new technological steps on our part," he said, noting that government officials have been directed to explore all possible joint projects.