Ukrainian reforms are in good hands, and this is important to understand   with a view to the formation of areas for cooperation with Ukraine, and the calculation of efficiency of specific commercial projects that can be implemented in Ukraine. This was stated by  Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway Ine Eriksen Søreide  during a meeting with Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman.

Ine Eriksen Søreide, Norway’s First Woman Foreign Minister and one of the Foreign Ministers who on their own initiative decided to visit the Donbas in order to assess the situation in the region with their own eyes.

"I know that you are planning to visit the East.  It demonstrates your leadership, fearlessness, and desire to see what's happening there. It is important that you personally assess the atrocities committed by the Russian Federation. I am glad that our dialogue is dynamic", the Prime Minister stressed.

"Our bilateral relations are gaining momentum. We see the growing interest of Norwegian companies that want to work in Ukraine, and it gladdens us", the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway said.

During the meeting, the parties commended  the high level of political cooperation and outlined an array of topics and areas that need to be deepened and developed. Among them are the work of the Norwegian Refugee Council in Ukraine, cooperation in the development of the health care system, as well as the implementation of joint large energy projects, primarily in the renewable energy sector. So, the Norwegian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce has recently worked on the Roadmap for small hydropower in Ukraine, the first projects of which can be implemented in Lviv region. According to the Norwegian Minister energy projects currently being underway are multimillion-dollar investments that are large not only for Ukraine but also for Norway. The mere fact that investments ideas appearing is a sign of confidence in Ukraine and its economic policy.

"We are impressed by the results of reforms already achieved by Ukraine. The improvement of the investment climate can already be felt. That is why the prospects of investment cooperation are quite optimistic", Ine Eriksen Søreide noted.

"The volume of tasks facing Ukraine is in fact unprecedented. But if we talk about how many processes we manage today, among the key ones are education, medicine, privatization, decentralization, fighting corruption, defense, internal security. And this is just a small list. Separately, we are shaping a decision on deepening of the European integration processes and improvement of the business climate. So we invite and welcome the Norwegian business in Ukraine", the Prime Minister said.

The Head of Government of Ukraine hopes that Oslo will continue to stick to a staunchest position concerning prevention of the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

The parties stressed that the meeting of the Ukrainian-Norwegian Intergovernmental Commission scheduled for September will give a significant impetus to joint cooperation as well as further direct contacts between government officials of both countries. The Head of Government accepted an invitation to visit Norway approximately in November this year.

Background

Last year the trade turnover between Ukraine and Norway amounted to  $ 290 mln.  And in the first half of this year -$  137.8 mln.  A sum worth $ 7.5 mln  of investments from Norway was attracted to the Ukrainian economy. The total amount of financial assistance from Norway over the past 4 years is over $ 140 mln. Priority directions of cooperation are reform of the judicial system and public administration, promotion of trade and European integration,  issues pertaining to energy, energy efficiency and nuclear safety and  humanitarian assistance.