Today, on 4 December, Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Oleh Nemchinov met with the Special Envoy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic for Ukraine, Ambassador Spyridon Lambridis.

During the meeting, the parties discussed cooperation between the two countries and preparations for the planned events.

“Ukraine is interested in further strengthening our political dialogue. The Hellenic Republic is an important partner of Ukraine in Europe. Indeed, 15 January 2024 will mark the 32nd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Greece. Today, it is extremely important to resume the activities of the Intergovernmental Joint Ukrainian-Greek Working Group on Economic, Industrial, Technical and Scientific Cooperation, which I chair. It is important that we have already agreed on the date of the next meeting and started the preparation process. We are currently awaiting the Greek side’s proposals to the draft agenda. I am convinced that this meeting will be an impetus for intensifying economic cooperation between our countries,” said Oleh Nemchinov, Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, opening the meeting.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the special role of Odesa in the history of the Hellenic Republic and the readiness of the Greek side to contribute to the restoration of architectural monuments and the historic centre of Odesa, which were damaged during the russian aggression. Spyridon Lambridis, Special Envoy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic for Ukraine, also stressed that Greece intended to open a special office in Odesa to deal with the reconstruction of Odesa region. The Ambassador noted that Greece fully supported Ukraine’s aspirations for membership in the European Union and NATO.

He also announced that an international conference on Ukraine’s recovery with the involvement of the Greek business community will be held in Athens on 15 February 2024. The key issues to be discussed at the conference are

• Preparation of a plan for the reconstruction of Ukraine: aspects of planning and financing of reconstruction projects with the participation of European agencies and the Ukrainian Government;
• Institutional mechanism for business: presentation of the mechanism for business circles that will be involved in reconstruction projects, with the participation of experts from the Ukrainian Government and business representatives with regional experience in reconstruction;
• Opportunities for cooperation in specific sectors: presentation of such sectors as construction, transport, logistics, energy, technology, IT, consulting and healthcare with the participation of representatives of Greek and Ukrainian trade and industry organisations.

Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Oleh Nemchinov, in his turn, stressed the importance for Ukraine of developing trade and economic cooperation between the two countries, which had huge potential, particularly in the construction, alternative energy and logistics sectors. Particular emphasis was placed on the further development of cooperation in the field of transport, especially given the great potential of the maritime transport capacities of Greek shipping companies.

It is worth noting that in 2022, the volume of trade in goods and services between Ukraine and Greece totalled USD 954.8 million (an increase of 24.3%). For 9 months of 2023, the trade turnover between Ukraine and Greece amounted to USD 1,025.7 million (an increase of 59.4%).