Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha will visit Romania on Sept. 18, paying his first official visit to a foreign state since entering office earlier this month, Ukraine's foreign ministry announced.
Sybiha, a career diplomat, replaced Dmytro Kuleba as Foreign Minister on Sept. 5, amid a large-scale reshuffle of the Ukrainian government.
According to the ministry, Sybiha will visit Romania to hold bilateral negotiations with his Romanian counterpart Luminita Odobescu and other high-ranking officials. After the negotiations, the ministers will hold a joint press conference.
The diplomats will reportedly discuss support for Kyiv's defense capabilities, Ukraine's path to membership in the European Union and NATO, and the implementation of President Volodymyr Zelensky's Peace Formula.
The negotiations in Bucharest will also focus on Black Sea security and the protection of the legal rights and interests of Ukrainian citizens in Romania.
The visit kicks off Sybiha's regional tour of several neighboring states, the ministry said. The tour is meant to signal Ukraine's determination to develop a "constructive ... mutually beneficial" relationship with its neighbors.
Romania, a NATO member, signed a security agreement with Ukraine in June and has pledged to send Kyiv a Patriot air defense system.
Throughout the full-scale war, Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukrainian port infrastructure on the Danube River that separates Ukraine and Romania. Russian drone debris has crashed on Romanian soil multiple times.
Chris York
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