Address of Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal at the Cabinet of Ministers session

Distinguished colleagues! Fellow Ukrainians!

We start a regular session of the Government. The struggle for Ukraine's freedom continues. But we are already planning for recovery, engaging partners and seeking resources. Our consistent principled position is that russia must pay for everything in full.

According to the RDNA-3 assessment we made with the World Bank, the reconstruction needs amount to USD 486 billion. During the full-scale war, the enemy either destroyed or damaged more than 250,000 residential buildings, up to 4,000 schools, more than a thousand hospitals and many other facilities.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has set a clear task - to ensure that russian assets frozen in the West are used for the benefit of Ukraine.

Today we are to take an important step.

We approve a draft decree of the President of Ukraine that updates the composition of the working group developing mechanisms for compensation. And we set up a separate subgroup to work directly on the issue of confiscation of russian sovereign assets abroad.

The subgroup will include representatives of ministries, the President's Office, the Parliament, the NBU, Ukrainian and foreign experts.

We are negotiating with our partners on specific mechanisms of how russia should pay.

During a visit to the United States, the Government delegation had informal meetings on the prospects and ways of confiscation.

We held an in-depth roundtable on this issue with the participation of representatives of the G7 countries. We are grateful to Canada, in particular to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, for organizing the moderation.

There were representatives of the EU, Sweden, and Poland.

The roundtable gathered representatives of academia as well, since we need to create a unique, legally balanced and effective mechanism for using russian assets.

We had focused on Ukraine's needs. On the amount of russian assets available. Principles and tools for utilizing frozen assets.

It is crucial that some of our partners have already taken decisive steps. Canada was one of the leaders in this process. The U.S. Congress has also recently granted the President broad powers to confiscate russian sovereign assets.

Step by step, we are advancing in this direction.

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In June, three key events will take place to strengthen Ukraine, to win and to achieve a just peace.

The first event is the G7 leaders' summit, where the mechanism for using russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine should be finally agreed upon. We are doing everything we can to ensure that our approach is the basis for it.

The second event is a Recovery Conference in Berlin. Its goal is to consolidate international assistance for reconstruction on the basis of clear and understandable principles.

This means maximum involvement of private businesses, focus on sectors that generate added value.

The third key event is the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland.

Ukraine is uniting the international community to make the aggressor realize that there is no alternative to the Ukrainian Peace Formula.

More than 150 states and international organizations are expected to participate. The enemy is making efforts to disrupt this forum. But we and our partners are ready for challenges.

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Effective sanctions are an important element of forcing russia to peace. Over the past month, we have seen a number of critical sanctions initiatives.

The EU Council extended measures against individuals and institutions for violating the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Work has begun on the fourteenth package of European sanctions.

The United States and the United Kingdom announced an embargo on imports of russian aluminum, copper, and nickel.

The United States Senate voted in favor of a law banning the import of enriched uranium from russia. The U.S. government has also activated sanctions against almost two hundred individuals and legal entities that help the russian defense industry.

We are grateful to each of our partners for their consistency and determination. We call for further increasing pressure on russia, for involving new states in the sanctions coalition, and for punishing those who help circumvent sanctions.

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The agricultural sector remains one of the main elements of our economic stability.

We have been successfully conducting the third sowing campaign during the full-scale war.

So far, we have sown 7.2 million hectares of spring crops. In total, we plan to sow 13.5 million hectares during the spring sowing season. This is sufficient to cover domestic needs and to preserve our export potential.

Simultaneously, Ukrainian exports are gaining momentum. In April, we exported over 13 million tonnes of goods. This is more than in the last pre-war month.

In addition to improving logistics, the state is also helping farmers directly.

The Government has postponed the repayment of debts to farms whose land is under occupation or in the war zone.

Through the State Agrarian Register, there is an opportunity to receive a subsidy for those who cultivate land in the de-occupied territories.

In addition, agrarians can receive 25% compensation for the cost of purchased agricultural machinery from Ukrainian producers and 80% of the cost of demining.

I thank our farmers who work in extremely difficult wartime conditions to feed Ukraine and the world.

I am grateful to everyone who contributes to our common future victory.

Thank you for your attention! 

Glory to Ukraine!