Distinguished colleagues! Fellow Ukrainians!

We are starting a regular session of the Government.

Today, the russian federation is again deliberately and cynically provoking a global food crisis. For this very purpose, it has disrupted the grain initiative, destroyed our storage facilities and elevators, and port infrastructure. At the same time, it is brazenly stealing Ukrainian grain from the temporarily occupied territories.

This is a challenge not only for Ukraine, but for the whole world as well. Thanks to the dedication of Ukrainian farmers, we are harvesting the second wartime harvest.

Now the agrarians have already harvested almost 16.6 million tonnes of grain, most of it in Mykolaiv and Odesa regions. Behind these figures of millions of tonnes of grain is the daily hard work of tens of thousands of people who often risk their lives.

Thanks to this work and the synergy between business and the state we have a clear understanding that there will be enough food to both satisfy domestic needs of Ukraine and to export. Ukraine will continue to be one of the key guarantors of global food security.

In this, we count on the solidarity of our partners. First, we need more air defence to better protect our ports, especially the Danube port cluster.

Second, we need sustainable land logistics routes with high capacity. Every tonne of grain exported makes Ukraine and the free world stronger.

Today the Government makes an important step to develop logistics with Moldova. We approve a draft law on ratification of the intergovernmental agreement on the construction of a bridge across the Dniester. This is a key element of the Kyiv-Chisinau transport corridor. Ukrainian exporters will have a convenient way to southeastern Europe and will increase the volume of exports of goods.

In the context of export promotion the integrating Ukraine's markets into Europe is of particular importance. In particular, over 15,000 transit declarations have been issued in the NCTS system during the 10 months of the customs visa-free regime. The common transit regime minimizes administrative costs for businesses, speeds up the processing of customs declarations and facilitates more intensive movement of goods. The integration of Ukrainian customs into the European customs system is a direct path to transparency and reduction of opportunities for abuse.

We continue to develop logistics, among other things, for the sustainability of our economy. In January-July 2023 alone, Ukraine exported more than 40 million tonnes of agricultural and food products, or almost 70% of exports for the whole of 2022. This is extremely important for our economy and important for the world.

That is why support for farmers is and will remain a priority for the Government.

First of all, it concerns access to concessional loans and grants. In January-July, the state issued UAH 27.6 billion in loans under the 5-7-9 programme. In total, 9,500 agricultural enterprises in Ukraine received UAH 45.5 billion in bank loans under all loan programmes. Mostly in Vinnytsia, Odesa and Kyiv regions. This allowed many farmers to survive and gave them the opportunity to develop further.

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Along with farmers, power engineers fulfill their mission by preparing for winter in the midst of summer.

As always, there is a lot of speculation about the heating season. We are not going to downplay the threats, risks and challenges of this heating season. But we believe that citizens should be informed about the real situation.

What is the current state of affairs? According to the Ministry of Energy, five nuclear units with a capacity of 4.4 GW have been repaired. Four more units with a capacity of 3.4 GW are under repair.

As for thermal power plants. 24 power units either have been repaired or are under repair. This is 62% of the total number, and this is a capacity of 4.3 GW.

Thermal power plants, which provide heat to people in many places, have been repaired by 70%, and another 30% are currently under repair.

Hydroelectric power plants. We either have repaired or are repairing 32 hydroelectric units, or 68% of their capacity. This is a capacity of almost 1.8 GW.

All of these data from the Ministry of Energy show that the repair campaign is on track. On the part of Ukrenergo, we have almost 80% of the work on the repair of trunk grids. In particular, high-voltage substations have already been restored to the pre-war level.

We are creating a multi-level protection for energy facilities. We are preparing for all possible scenarios to avoid the worst. The winter will be challenging, but we have to survive. We are preparing everything necessary for this.

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Finally. Traditionally, at almost every Government meeting, we make decisions on the rapid recovery program and continue to strengthen communities.

Today, the Government is allocating UAH 1.3 billion in subsidies to the regions. With these funds, local authorities will finance salaries for public sector employees, pay for utilities and make other critical expenditures.

We are acting in a coordinated, effective and decisive manner to protect our homeland and restore it.

Thank you for your attention!

Glory to Ukraine!