Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Markiyan Dmytrasevych met with Director of the Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid Department of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs Petr Gandalovič. The parties discussed the key needs of Ukrainian farmers and the possibilities of providing them with support from the Czech Republic.

"The main challenge ahead of the sowing campaign is the lack of working capital among farmers. The reasons are clear - domestic prices for agricultural products have fallen dramatically due to expensive logistics, so farmers are losing profits and do not have enough money to continue their work," said Markiyan Dmytrasevych.

According to him, one of the key problems in the agricultural sector is the need to provide generators for processing companies. The need for alternative energy sources is particularly acute in the de-occupied territories of Kharkiv, Kherson, Sumy, Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia and Mykolaiv regions.

Another pressing issue for Ukraine is the mining and contamination of agricultural land with explosive devices.

The Deputy Minister thanked Petr Gandalovič for the assistance provided to Ukraine by the Czech Republic and for the Czech Republic's participation in the implementation of the humanitarian food initiative Grain from Ukraine.

During the meeting, the parties discussed issues of European integration.

"We are actively working in the area of agricultural and agro-development, reform of the fisheries sector, in particular, bringing national legislation in this area in line with EU legislation. Therefore, we will be grateful for your expert advice for the full European integration of our country. This area is strategic and crucial for us," the Deputy Minister emphasized.

Petr Gandalovič, in turn, noted that the Czech Republic would consider supporting Ukraine's European integration efforts. In addition, he emphasized that his country was already actively helping Ukrainians who had suffered in the temporarily occupied territories and would continue to do so.