Statement by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal at Government session

Dear colleagues! Fellow Ukrainians!

Last week was extremely productive for Ukrainian diplomacy.

First and foremost, this concerns President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s presentation of Ukraine’s Victory Plan to the European Council, the European Parliament, and our NATO partners.

This work should result in concrete assistance that will allow us to defend our freedom, the common values of the free world, and bring a just peace closer.

For our part, the Government’s team has been actively working in Switzerland and in Finland.

More than 60 countries and international organisations joined the Ukraine Mine Action Conference in Lausanne.

As a result, around USD 70 million in additional pledged assistance was received. These are contributions from Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Latvia, and our other partners.

We will also soon receive new demining equipment from Switzerland for the demining units of the State Emergency Service. The first specialised GCS-200 vehicle was handed over during the conference.

We agreed with the UK and Switzerland to launch a pilot project to prioritise humanitarian demining. It will be implemented in Kharkiv region. The aim of the project is to develop an effective algorithm that will allow us to prioritise the clearance of areas that are needed by people and the economy.

I am grateful to our partners for their important assistance in clearing Ukraine of russian mines.

We have already returned 35,000 square kilometres of our land to use. We are striving to accelerate the pace of work many times over. Our ambitious goal is to survey the vast majority of potentially mined areas by 2033.

The visit to Finland yielded significant results, especially in the context of the coming winter.

Firstly, we had an important dialogue with the country’s leadership: Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, President Alexander Stubb and Parliament Speaker Jussi Halla-aho. We proposed to our Finnish colleagues to launch a civil protection coalition. Finland has a huge experience in building shelters, and we will adopt it as much as possible.

Secondly, we talked to Finnish companies that are interested in investing in our economy. The construction, energy, education and IT sectors seem particularly promising. At the state level, Finland strongly encourages entrepreneurs to engage in such economic activity.

Thirdly, we held a thematic conference on Point 8 of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Peace Formula. It is about environmental safety. Ukraine will receive support in assessing the impact of the war on the environment, and russia will be held accountable for its crimes. We also agreed to intensify international cooperation to implement technologies for restoring soil, flora, fauna and water resources in Ukraine. A special financial mechanism will be developed to restore ecosystems.

The fourth is that Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has announced an energy aid package to help Ukraine get through this winter. This is an extensive list of energy equipment that we need.

In general, all the Nordic-Baltic Eight countries are planning to step up their efforts in this area.

Thank you very much for this solidarity, which is particularly timely now.

The heating season is already starting in Ukraine. Social infrastructure facilities are being connected to the heating system. First of all, hospitals, schools and kindergartens.

The exact dates of heat supply will depend on weather conditions, and local authorities will make their decisions accordingly.

All 9 power units of Ukrainian nuclear power plants are in operation, covering the main generation needs.

We are receiving new generation equipment. Banks are lending to businesses under Government’s energy programmes. Applications for UAH 7.9 billion were approved, and more than UAH 2 billion in loans were actually disbursed. Loans worth over UAH 204 million were approved for households.

We are doing everything possible to ensure that all Ukrainians have light and heat at home in winter and that businesses operate smoothly.

I am grateful to power engineers, heating engineers and all critical infrastructure workers for their contribution to our resilience.

Today we are also making two important decisions.

First, we are approving a draft presidential decree that will allow us to attract more than EUR 17 million from the European Investment Bank for the development of urban transport in Ukraine. These funds will go to communities to finance payments for the renewal of municipal vehicle fleets.

The second decision is to create an industrial park in Chernivtsi, which will generate about 750 new jobs in the processing industry.

I thank everyone who is defending Ukraine on the frontline, everyone who is strengthening our rear, everyone who is strengthening the state and bringing our victory closer.

Thank you for your attention! Glory to Ukraine!