The exclusion of Russia’s Sberbank from the list of creditors of Croatia’s troubled food and retail giant Agrokor represents blackmail, the CEO of the Russian bank said, N1 reported on November 15.

Last week, Agrokor accepted creditor claims worth HRK41.2bn (€5.4bn) but disputed other claims worth a total of HRK16.5bn on November 9. The claims of Agrokor’s biggest creditor, Sberbank, remained open to dispute because it had launched legal proceedings against Agrokor companies in other countries. Agrokor owes Sberbank around €1.1bn.

“This wrong decision of the extraordinary commissioner can be understood as blackmail,” Sberbank's Herman Gref said.

“Such acts by the extraordinary commissioner are, mildly speaking, absolutely wrong. The fact that accepting or rejecting our claims depends on our exercising our right to ask for them in court can be understood as blackmail,” Gref added.

He also said that Sberbank has advocated for transparency in the process of Agrokor’s restructuring and will defend its rights in court.

“We have publicly emphasised our constructive position, but as a big company, we cannot tolerate such disregard of our rights. As long as this is the case, we will defend our rights in court and nothing can change our attitude,” Gref said.

Agrokor's extraordinary manager Ante Ramljak, who was brought in to help resolve the crisis in April, has said that if Sberbank withdraws its legal proceedings against Agrokor, its debt could be recognised.

In addition, a UK court recognised the Croatian government's emergency legislation for Agrokor, known as Lex Agrokor. The legislation should put an end to the arbitration launched by the Russian bank in London.

“Today, a London court decided to recognise Lex Agrokor, meaning that all lawsuits filed at a British court will be returned to Croatian courts. That means that the arbitration process will now be halted and Sberbank will have to return to the courts in Croatia with the framework of these proceedings, or take their case to courts that haven't recognised that law, and they are for now - Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro,” Ramljak said, according to Hrt.hr.

Ramljak has expressed optimism that the Russian bank would now be more prepared to compromise and reach a deal on further steps in Agrokor's restructuring process.