Ukraine and the United Kingdom : A Strategic Partnership

O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N

UKRAINE and the

UNITED KINGDOM

A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP PUBLISHED TO MARK THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF UKRAINE

FIRST

O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N

UKRAINE and the

UNITED KINGDOM A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP PUBLISHED TO MARK THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF UKRAINE

Published by FIRST, Victory House, 99-101 Regent Street, London W1B 4EZ Tel: +44 20 7440 3500 Email: publisher@firstforum.org www.firstforum.org Chairman and Founder Rupert Goodman dl Hon. Chairman, Advisory Council The Rt Hon Lord Hurd of Westwell ch cbe Executive Publisher Declan Hartnett VP, Strategic Partneships Emmanuel Artusa-Barrell Research and Communications Officer Harry Dobbs Designer Jon Mark Deane President, International Affairs Lord Cormack fsa dl Non-Executive Director The Hon Alexander Hambro, Special Advisors Sir Andrew Wood gcmg, Jacques Arnold dl, Professor Victor Bulmer-Thomas cmg obe Chaiman, Judging Panel Rt Hon Lord Judge Award Advisory Panel Lord Cormack fsa dl, Hon. Philip Lader, Professor Lord Plant of Highfield, Lord Robertson of Port Ellen kt gcmg pc frsa frse, Chief Emeka Anyaoku gcvo tc cfr, Marilyn Carlson Nelson, Dr Daniel Vasella, Ratan Tata kbe, Philippa Foster Back cbe, Meg Hillier mp, Baroness Bull cbe and Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne FIRST

is composed of the opinions and ideas of leading business and political figures.

All

information in this publication is verified to the best of the authors’ and

publishers’ ability, but no responsibility can be accepted for loss arising from decisions based on this material.

Where

opinion is expressed, it is that of the authors.

© FIRST Strategic Insight Ltd 2021 FIRST gratefully acknowledges the cooperation of Baroness Meyer cbe, Prime Minister's Trade Envoy for Ukraine, His Excellency Vadym Prystaiko and the staff at the Embassy of Ukraine, London and Kateryna Hrechko and her team at UkraineInvest in Kyiv

FIRST

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UKRAINE

I Foreword by Rupert Goodman dl Chairman and Founder FIRST

t gives me great pleasure to introduce this Official Publication to mark the thirtieth Anniversary of Ukraine’s independence. Lord Astor and I are extremely grateful to Baroness Meyer CBE, the Prime Minister’s trade envoy for Ukraine, HE Vadym Prystaiko, Ambassador of Ukraine and his Embassy staff for all their help and guidance in the preparation of this publication.We are also especially grateful to Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP, Prime Minister and HE Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine for contributing such important and personal messages.

The United Kingdom and Ukraine have a broad and wide ranging bilateral relationship.

The UK recognised the independence of Ukraine on 31st December 1991 and diplomatic relations were established on 10th January 2002. The Joint Statement of 2008 officially declared the strategic nature of this important bilateral relationship.

Our two countries enjoy a close and enduring relationship built on strengthening economic ties and shared defence interests.

During President Zelensky’s Official Visit

Rupert Goodman dl, President Volodymyr Zelensky and Rt Hon. Lord Astor of Hever dl

to the United Kingdom in October 2020 a comprehensive Political, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership was signed. This wideranging agreement covers trade, investment and security issues with the backing of a new £2.5 billion export funding package provided

by UKEF. The United Kingdom has reaffirmed its commitment to Ukraine’s security and territorial integrity, working with NATO allies to improve stability and prosperity in support of the rules based international system. Operation ORBITAL and the UK-led Maritime Treaty initiative are key components of this comprehenseive strategy.

This important moment in Ukraine’s history gives us all an opportunity to study the important developments in both our countries and to weigh carefully the many opportunities to work together ever more closely.

We at FIRST are delighted to have been asked to produce this official publication and hope that it contributes, in a small way, to the increasing development and strengthening of this important bilateral relationship, especially F in the trade and investment spheres.

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FIRST

UKRAINE

Introduction by Rt Hon Lord Astor of Hever pc dl

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence 2010-2015

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e are delighted to produce this Official Publication to mark Ukraine’s 30th Anniversary. The United Kingdom and Ukraine have a strong and enduring strategic partnership built on shared interests and close political, cultural, business and diplomatic relations. The United Kingdom was the first European country to recognise the independence of Ukraine in 1991 and we are now major trading partners. The United Kingdom is the fifth largest investor in Ukraine.

I am certain that the United Kingdom and Ukraine will continue to work closely together to address key global challenges. Our own Prime Minster is a great friend of Ukraine underlined by his clear position regarding Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty. I congratulate F the leadership and people of Ukraine on this significant anniversary year.

Rt. Hon. Lord Astor of Hever pc dl

FIRST

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I was very happy to welcome President Zelensky in October 2020 to sign our UK-Ukraine Strategic Partnership Agreement. The Agreement is a signal not only of our close bilateral relationship, but also of our strong support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity despite threats from Russia.

President Zelensky has made courageous commitments to strengthening Ukraine’s resilience, through widespread reforms to provide Ukraine with economic stability, encourage foreign investment and ultimately deliver the security that Ukrainian people deserve. The UK fully supports these commitments, and I am confident that our relationship will go from strength to strength as Ukraine follows its chosen path towards full Euro-Atlantic integration.

I congratulate Ukraine on its 30th anniversary of independence, and I send my very best wishes to President Zelensky and all the Ukrainian people.

Rt Hon. Boris Johnson mp Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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The 30th Anniversary of Independence of Ukraine provides a backdrop for celebrating an historic moment in our development and underlines the importance we attach to our international partnerships and alliances.

It brings together our partners who support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. Ukraine and the United Kingdom are strategic partners with close political, cultural, business and diplomatic ties.

On my official visit to Great Britain in October 2020, I was delighted to have an audience with Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as well as negotiations with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, which resulted in Ukraine-UK Political Cooperation, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership Agreement to further strengthen the relations between our nations.

Such a high level of mutual interest, cooperation and support should help Britons learn more about Ukraine. I therefore invite everyone to discover something new about the nation that boasts a rich history, unique culture and traditions as well as one of Europe’s most extroverted societies.

Welcome to this FIRST official publication on Ukraine that underlines our country’s role on the world stage and promotes the many trade and investment opportunities.

Volodymyr Zelensky President of Ukraine

UKRAINE

Key ally and reliable partner

By H.E. DENYS ANATOLIYOVYCH SHMYHAL Prime Minister of Ukraine

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DENYS SHMYHAL graduated from Lviv Polytechnic in Economics and worked in the private sector as an accountant before entering politics.

He served in various political roles in the Lviv Oblast (regional administration) in the economic field, including economic development, investment and trade policy. In 2019 he was appointed Governor of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (a region in western Ukraine) later becoming Minister of Regional Development in the government of Ukraine. He succeeded to the Premiership in March 2020.

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he United Kingdom and Ukraine’s bilateral cooperation back dates to January 1992, when Kyiv and London established formal diplomatic relations. Since then, the United Kingdom has not just been an important partner for Ukraine, but a strategic partner as well in security and political domains, as well as in economic cooperation.

The United Kingdom is Ukraine’s twelfth-largest trading partner overall, and the fourth in terms of services.

Cooperation between our countries was further strengthened in October 2020 with the signing of a range of important agreements on trade, security and other areas. The United Kingdom is now the third largest investor in Ukraine: FDI flows constituted £207 million in 2020. Moreover, the UK’s £2.5 billion credit facility, managed by UK Export Finance (UKEF) is a good sign of the developing economic trust between the two countries.

The Government of Ukraine has been working to implement a number of significant reforms. These include pension reform, land and capital markets initiatives, privatisation of state-owned enterprises, as well as deregulation and investment climate improvements.

One of the most significant regulatory developments took place in February 2021 when the Ukraine’s Parliament passed the law “On State Support for Investment Projects with Significant Investments in Ukraine”, a piece of legislation aimed at further improving the country’s investment climate. Ukraine will now provide a number of additional incentives for large investment projects. The public support will cover up to 30 per cent of investments of more than EUR €20 million and that create at least 80 new jobs. According to the law, incentives will also be provided for investment projects, which are designed for the modernisation and technical upgrading of enterprises.

The Ukrainian Government has also launched a major reform to reboot the capital market. The Government, the EBRD, the American Chamber of Commerce and USAID have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish an organised national capital and commodity market over the next three years – the National Exchange for Trade in Capital and Goods (NEXT). The availability of a reliable exchange infrastructure together with the clearing system will minimise transaction risks, reduce transaction costs, and contribute to better functioning of the capital market in general.

In addition, our government in cooperation with MP’s is planning to introduce a defined contribution pension

system. It will ensure the growth of Pension Fund assets and contribute to the economic development of our country. With a long-term investment horizon and low leverage, pension funds can be effective in providing longterm finance. Another historic step that has been taking lately is the opening of Ukraine’s farmland market. It will provide great opportunities for the agricultural sector, which has already been quite strong. The impact on the broader Ukrainian economy will be equally significant.

Ukraine can potentially get US$10 billion additional investment thanks to the land market opening.

Besides the points listed above, successful privatisation is an important driver for attracting investment into the Ukrainian economy aimed at increasing the state budget revenue. The large-scale privatisation program was relaunched in 2021. Large-scale privatisation will involve state-owned enterprises with a book value exceeding £6.5 million. Thus, JSC United Mining and Chemical Company will be auctioned at the end of August with the opening price of UAH 3.7 billion (£98.5 million in equivalent). This company is the largest miner of titanium and zirconium ores in Europe and already exports its products to 35 countries. Further implementation of the privatisation reform of state and municipal facilities will significantly improve the investment climate and employ the industrial potential of Ukraine.

The idea of industrial relocation to Ukraine is also becoming more topical. Thus, the UK imported goods worth £119 billion from Asia in 2020, and this amount is expected to rapidly increase every year. However, since it usually takes over 30 days to deliver goods from Asia, which requires costly spending on logistics and remote management. Instead, British companies could relocate manufacturing facilities to Ukraine. In particular, electronics and technology, vehicles, chemicals, furniture, toys and sports equipment, metalworking, light industry, glass, ceramics and stone. In this case, Ukraine can be the UK’s reliable partner in the manufacturing relocation exercise, benefitting from the experience and skills of Ukraine’s workforce, Ukraine’s proximity, its abundant natural resources, and other major advantages.

We look forward to welcoming the UK business community to Ukraine. Our country remains open to attracting foreign investment, and the Government is constantly working on providing transparent and predictable conditions for investors to make doing F business in Ukraine comfortable.

UKRAINE

Strengthening cooperation

By RT HON. BEN WALLACE MP Secretary of State for Defence, United Kingdom

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BEN WALLACE is currently serving as Secretary of State for Defence, a position he has held since 2019, and he has been the MP for Wyre and Preston North since 2005. His previous ministerial position was as the UK’s Minister of State for Security and Economic Crime from 2016 to 2019. Prior to becoming a politician, he served as a captain in the Scots Guards regiment of the British Army. He attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

his year marks thirty years of Ukrainian independence. This important milestone is a chance to celebrate everything that Ukraine has to be proud of. A chance to applaud the achievements of those individuals who have made significant contributions to the development of Ukraine’s national economy, science, education, culture, healthcare, defence and philanthropy. Above all, it is a chance to celebrate the values our nations share. That is why the UK participated in this year’s Independence Day parade. RAF Typhoons soared in the skies overhead, a British contingent marched by and the music of the Colchester Band was heard.

It is unacceptable that Ukrainians today are still fighting for their nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. In my visit to Ukraine in 2019, I visited the Donbas region and stood on what is now the frontline of a dirty war waged with proxies, electronic warfare and disinformation. During my subsequent visit in 2020, it was heart breaking to speak to veterans who told me of the thousands killed, tens of thousands displaced and millions whose lives will never be the same again. I have enormous admiration for the resilience shown by Ukraine in the face of ongoing Russian aggression.

In the UK, we know what it is like to be in the Kremlin’s crosshairs having experienced offensive cyberattacks, repeated fusillades of disinformation and, most shockingly, the use of a chemical weapon on British soil poisoning Sergei and Yulia Skripal and causing the death of an innocent British woman, Dawn Sturgess.

That is why the UK became the first country to provide military training to Ukraine in the aftermath of the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. It is why we deploy and exercise Royal Navy vessels in the Black Sea, alongside NATO Allies and partners to defend regional stability. And, it is why we are helping to strengthen the resilience of Ukrainian institutions as its government pursues an ambitious programme of defence reforms and tightens its Euro-Atlantic ties.

It has been seven years since Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea, but the passage of time does not change the fact that Crimea and Ukraine are one.

Neither will it prevent the United Kingdom drawing international attention to the continued suffering and oppression of the Crimean population.

Reports from international monitoring organisations

and NGOs highlight a concerning trend of ongoing human rights abuses and violations in Crimea, particularly against ethnic and religious minorities such as Crimean Tatars. The destruction of Tatar heritage and restrictions on the use of and education in the Crimean Tatar language is particularly deplorable.

It is unacceptable that at least 100 Ukrainian political prisoners remain in detention in Crimea and Russia.

Those released have given shocking accounts of the inhumane conditions in which they were kept, with lack of access to medicines and medical treatment, and use of torture to coerce victims to self-incriminate or to provide incriminating information against third parties.

The International Crimea Platform will play a vital role in raising global awareness of this appalling situation and enhancing regional security. The UK has been one of the Platform’s most vocal supporters since its inception. Not only will we continue pressing for the reintegration of Crimea, but we will keep calling out Russia for its violations of international law.

Our actions will keep matching those words. Since 2015, the United Kingdom has trained over 21,000 Armed Forces of Ukraine personnel in medical skills, logistics, counter improvised explosive devices, leadership, planning and infantry tactics as part of Operation ORBITAL. The UK is also leading the Maritime Training Initiative with Allies, helping Ukraine rebuild its Navy and defend its borders. With the recent signing of a Memorandum of Implementation between HM Government, UK industry and Ukraine we have taken another significant step towards enhancing Ukraine’s naval capabilities, while showcasing the very best of the UK Defence industry.

Our response in Ukraine also signals a critical shift in direction for UK Defence policy. As set out in the Integrated Review and Defence Command paper, our Armed Forces will be more persistently engaged against the threats of this more competitive era. We cannot stand idly by while the Western values of freedom, democracy and justice that we share with our Ukrainian friends are junked by aggressive autocracies.

For far too long, a great nation and its long-suffering people have lived under the shadow of war and malign Russian interference. But our forces are there to send the people of Ukraine and the people of Crimea a message of hope. We stand with them in solidarity. They are not F forgotten, and they are certainly not alone.

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UKRAINE

UK and Ukraine - a bright future

By BARONESS MEYER CBE Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Ukraine

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CATHERINE MEYER has been serving as the Prime Minister’s first Trade Envoy to Ukraine since 2020, and was the National Treasurer of the Conservative Party from 2010-2015. A leading figure in Child Advocacy, in 1998 she co-founded the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC) and in 2000 she created her own organisation, PACT, renamed Action Against Abduction (AAA). She holds degrees from the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (UCL) and the London School of Economics, and began her career in financial services.

e in Britain warmly congratulate Ukraine on the 30th anniversary of its independence as a sovereign nation. We pay our respects to its people who have fought so courageously for democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights.

Most regrettably, it is for this very reason that Ukraine is threatened from the east by an autocratic and menacing Russia. The United Kingdom has not hesitated to condemn Russian behaviour and to give support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. Earlier this year our support was plain to see when two ships of the Royal Navy visited the Black Sea. It is clearly time to put diplomacy back to work and revive the so-called Minsk process. Ukraine needs peace and stability in its eastern regions. I know, from his recent statement, that President Zelensky would welcome the active participation of the UK and the US in these efforts.

In the meantime, as the Prime Minister’s first Trade Envoy to Ukraine, I intend to do everything in my power to fulfil the commercial commitments made in the Strategic Partnership Agreement, signed last year

by Prime Minister Johnson and President Zelensky, whom I had the honour to meet. The Agreement, which has political, security and commercial dimensions, offers us a springboard for really significant progress.

As a Trade Envoy, my role is to push open the doors to British goods and services. This is the age of Global Britain and our renewed commitment as a sovereign state to Free Trade.

Now that the UK has left the EU, we will be working even harder to develop mutually beneficial relations with countries around the world – including Ukraine, with which we have common interests and common values.

The UK and Ukraine have so much to offer each other. Ukraine is not just a large and important European power, with an historic and glorious culture.

It is also Europe’s largest emerging market. The UK is the world’s sixth largest economy. The Bank of England expects our GDP to increase by 7.25 per cent this year, the fastest since the Second World War. The potential for growth in our mutual trade and investment relationship is, without exaggeration, phenomenal.

How to realise this potential? Often, it’s the simple things that matter – like raising awareness among Ukrainians of the amazing range of things the UK

produces, and of alerting British business to the emerging opportunities in Ukraine.

So let me say a word about the UK’s “offer”. It runs from warships to smoked salmon!

During President Zelensky’s highly productive visit, our two countries signed two further agreements: one to help Ukraine rebuild its navy and naval port infrastructure; the other to provide on generous terms £2.5bn of export finance to support British exports to Ukraine. The latter embraces energy, renewable and nuclear; healthcare and pharmaceuticals; agri-tech; and services, including finance, tourism and the creative industries. British companies are designing new metro stations in the city of Dnipro, landscaping in Lviv and advising on safer road design in Odesa.

But, among these big priority sectors, let’s not forget food and drink. I am very pleased that Ukraine has just agreed to allow the import of British fish and fish products. The finest Scottish smoked salmon is already in the shops! I understand that chickens and heat-treated milk products will soon follow.

I have not forgotten that trade should be a twoway process. I am pleased to say that 98 per cent of Ukrainian goods already enter the UK market free of tariffs and quotas. In 2019, UK-Ukraine trade hit an all-time high of £1.5bn. Although the volume shrank because of Covid, the early signs are that it is growing again as both sides’ economies come back to life.

I have been really struck by the resilience and creativity of Ukrainians in the face of the pandemic. Ukraine’s reputation for producing advanced software coders of the highest skill goes from strength to strength. There has been an unprecedented number of new Ukrainian literary works, theatre and cinema productions, music festivals, and art spaces. I am waiting impatiently for the next Ukrainian hit from the Eurovision Song Contest.

“Made in Ukraine” is now a highly desirable label in global fashion, with young Ukrainians modernising traditional village and Carpathian ethnic clothing. The Vyshyvanka has even made it into Vogue!

All this whets my appetite even more to return to Ukraine, which I have not seen since I was a child. That will be the day when Covid travel restrictions can be lifted and I can stand in Maidan Nezalezhnosti – or Independence Square, looking once again at Saint Sophia Cathedral and wearing one of those beautiful F Vyshyvanka dresses.

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UKRAINE

Eastern Europe’s digital pioneer

By MYKHAILO FEDOROV Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Transformation

I MYKHAILO FEDOROV is a graduate of the Faculty of Sociology and Management of Zaporizhzhia University.

At the age of 21, he started the largest youth public movement in Zaporizhzhia and with the USAID Foundation he has implemented the Zaporizhzhia IT Capacity Building Initiative. He subsequently founded the digital agency SMMSTUDIO and 2019 became head of the digital for President Zelensky’s election campaign. Following the President’s win he was appointed Minister of Digital Transformation with a remit to change the interaction of Ukrainians with the State via digitalisation.

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n 2019, Ukraine began an active process of digital transformation: from former-Soviet Republic to a digital pioneer in Eastern Europe, and the body tasked with this undertaking is the Ministry of Digital Transformation.

After 18 months of preparation, the ministry launched the Diia (Action) app and webportal, eMalyatko, one of the world’s fastest business registration and dozens of other online services. Today, more than 10 million people, one in four of Ukraine’s population, use the Diia ecosystem. The ministry’s team has created a strategy and vision for Ukraine’s digitalisation for at least the next decade, an enormous undertaking related to the main goal: to create the world’s most convinient and user-friendly state in terms of public services.

With this in mind, the Ministry of Digital Transformation has set itself four specific strategic goals to be achieved by 2024: 100 per cent of the services provided by the state have to be accessible online; 95 per cent of transport infrastructure and towns and cities will have high-speed Internet; six million Ukrainians will be involved in the digital skills development program, and IT will contribute 10 per cent to the country’s GDP. Ukraine’s IT sector provides about 4 per cent of the country’s GDP and almost a quarter of Ukrainian export of services. Ukraine is now one the largest exporters of IT services globally, and the vast majority of Ukrainian IT companies are outsourcers who provide their services to foreign customers, being

selected, among other benefits, for highly qualified specialists who can ensure the quality realisation of large and complex technological tasks.

Diia means action Ukraine is the first state in the world where digital passports, stored on a smartphone are full legal counterparts of paper documents. It is also among the four countries in Europe with digital driving licenses. Nine digital documents and 12 services are now available through the Diia application, and more than 70 online services for citizens and businesses are available on the Diia website, as well as one of the world’s fastest business registration: 10 minutes to fill in the application and 2 seconds for the approval to start your business. Already, more than 374,000 people have used the services to set themselves up as entrepreneurs using the Diia website.

Digitalisation is also proving an effective tool to fight corruption: computers do not take bribes. What’s more, digitalisation saves huge amounts of money.

With the introduction of electronic documents available in the Diia mobile application, the need for mastering basic digital skills increases. To make every citizen feel comfortable in the digital state, to have easy access to all online services, and be successful in job hunting, the national project Diia.Digital Education was launched. It is designed to provide knowledge on using computer devices, communication on the Internet, and other digital literacy skills which become vital in the digitalising world.

The platform covers a vast range of topics – from payment of bills to conducting online classes during lockdown caused by COVID-19 pandemic. The offline component is a network of hubs based on the partner’s institutions – libraries, administrative services centres, and educational centres, where anyone can improve their digital skills with the help of qualified trainers and free access to the platform.

Diia.City Diia City is a legal framework for the IT industry, which introduces incentives for its development and provides comfortable tax and legal conditions as well as a flexible form of cooperation with IT specialists. It also includes

additional mechanisms to protect the property and rights of residents.

Diia City is often called the driver of Ukraine’s economy. It is projected that the introduction of a special regime will allow the IT industry to increase revenues from US$6 billion to US$16.5 billion in 5 years. According to the authors of the concept, the IT industry’s share in GDP will reach 10 per cent, and the number of jobs will increase to 450,000. The state will have every chance to become the largest IT hub in Eastern Europe. In turn, the growth of investment, including venture capital, will let Ukraine create its own global IT products. Diia City will be a recipe for success for the whole country. It is anticipated that after the successful implementation of the special regime, similar projects can be implemented in other sectors of the economy. The authors of the concept believe that DIIA City will receive its first residents by the end of the year.

Income from the sale of a share in a resident company in Diia.City, provided it has been owned for more than a year, will be exempt from taxation.

Similarly, income from dividends accrued by a resident company, provided that they are paid no more than once every two years, will not be taxed. A tax rebate is available for individuals in the case of acquiring a stake in a startup company based in Diia.City.

These tax mechanisms are beneficial for both IT companies and potential investors. Their implementation will allow the industry to more actively attract investments for scaling and development. The industry will also have an additional incentive to reinvest in business development. e-Residency We are also launching an e-residency project for freelancers from the creative and IT spheres that will allow foreigners to conduct business in Ukraine remotely under favourable conditions.

In July 2021, the Ukrainian Parliament approved the draft law on e-residency, which makes it possible to register business in Ukraine under competitive taxation conditions, using digital services to do business, as well as opening bank accounts online without a physical presence in the country. We would like to note that not every e-residency regime offer its residents access to the banking system in remote regime.

All services will be provided exclusively online by using authorised digital signature. What’s more e-residents will only pay one tax of 5 per cent and the procedure will be automated. We estimate that the project will bring in more than US$1.5 million in revenue to the state budget annually, while increasing the volume of Ukrainian IT services and improving the recognition of Ukraine as a global brand. We expect that by the end of 2022, 3000+ e-residents will be

registered ; but out capacity and plans to bring around 1 million people into virtual Ukraine’s economy.

Virtual asset market We have begun the process of legalising the market of virtual assets, which is already well-developed in Ukraine, with a significant turnover. In 2020, Ukraine was number one in the world according to the index of the use of crypto assets among the population. Our goal is to create in Ukraine one of the most favourable environments for the innovative sector of the economy. The regulation of virtual assets will allow Ukrainian companies specialising in cryptoassets to work officially with the banking system and capitalise their business in the future.

At the same time, we are working to make Ukraine an attractive jurisdiction for foreign companies specialising in virtual assets. The goals is to offer them a comfortable environment, where it will be convenient to work with the regulator and competitive taxation, and thus attract significant investment to the country.

The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the digitalisation of all processes in many countries, including Ukraine, providing an opportunity for both government and business to make a digital leap. The ministry has played an active role in the fight against Covid-19, offering innovative digital solutions, developing a mobile track and trace app that has been used by around a million Ukrainians, as well as another to coordinate vaccination appointments. We are now about to launch an app for Covid vaccination certificates and signing of interstate agreements on the mutual recognition of Ukraine’s and EU countries’ certificates.

Ukraine’s IT industry is already growing annually by 20 per cent to 30 per cent. It is clear that the country’s future lies in technology and the development of online services, and the team at the Ministry of Digital Transformation is committed to making this a reality. F

Digitalisation is also proving an effective tool to fight corruption, computers do not take bribes.

What’s more, digitalisation saves huge amounts of money

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UKRAINE

Strengthening regional security

By ANDRIY TARAN Minister of Defence, Ukraine

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ANDRIY TARAN is the current Minister of Defence of Ukraine, a role he has held since March 2020; he is also a member of the National Security and Defence Council.

He has held senior positions in the central office of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, the Chief Directorate of Intelligence, and the National Security and Defence Council, as an expert in the Centre for Strategic Planning and Analysis. He has also served as military attaché at the Embassy of Ukraine, Washington, DC, and as Ukraine’s Deputy Head of Defence Intelligence. He is a graduate of the Kyiv Higher Engineer School of Artillery and the Air Defence Army Academy.

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his is not the first time Ukraine is experiencing geopolitical challenges that are forcing our country to fight for its own statehood and territory.

At the present historical stage, during the RussianUkrainian war, our state has been defending its sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity for the eighth year (which exceeds the duration of the World War II). Currently the security situation in the Ukrainian Joint Forces AOR against the Russian enemy remains under control but is regularly exacerbated.

Since the beginning of 2021, there has been an almost twofold increase in the number of enemy’s violations of ceasefire agreements, despite the “silence” regime that came into force on July 27, 2020.

The enemy constantly uses 152mm and 122mm artillery systems as well as 82mm and 120mm mortars which are prohibited for use in accordance with the above-mentioned agreements with the aim of increasing the effectiveness of fire and guaranteed damaging of Joint Forces. At the same time, in order to increase casualties and psychological pressure on the Ukrainian military, the enemy significantly intensified sniper fire and the use of UAVs with combat equipment.

The enemy is also remotely mining the positions of the Joint Forces and the surrounding area with Russian-made POM-2 anti-personnel mines, which are prohibited for use by International Conventions.

Using the fact that the Armed Forces of Ukraine respect the ceasefire regime, the enemy has been continuously improving the fortification of positions and increasing the system of defence echelons along the contact line. Their main works are usually carried out covertly: during the OSCE SMM’s inspection the equipment of positions is stopped, while the admission of the representatives of the Mission is constantly limited.

Since the beginning of its armed aggression and up to the present time, the Russian Federation has been consistently providing comprehensive support to the 1st and 2nd Army Corps operating in the temporarily occupied territory of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine, supplying them with weapons and ammunition, fuel and other military equipment, transferring them across areas of the state RussianUkrainian border beyond Ukraine’s control.

In addition, Russia continues to supply the occupying

forces with a variety of weapons, not only typical for former Soviet countries, but also unique types of special equipment and small arms produced only in Russia. Thus, the Kremlin uses the occupied territories to test the latest weapon systems. During last year, the Ukrainian Joint Forces repeatedly recorded cases of use by occupying forces of the latest electronic warfare and reconnaissance systems (complex R-330 “Zhitel”), UAVs (“Orlan10”), artillery reconnaissance stations, protected digital communications, tactical equipment, and sniper weapons.

The situation is not much calmer in the Azov-Black Sea region, where the Kremlin is trying to gain full control over the Black and Azov Seas, acting more aggressively and confidently.

The Russian Black Sea Fleet is annually reinforced by ships equipped with naval-based cruise missiles of the “Calibre” type, which are capable of hitting longrange ground targets, located even in Western Europe.

This spring the Kremlin intensified activities to demonstrate military force, additionally redeploying more than 12,000 servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces with weapons and military equipment to the temporarily occupied territory of the Crimea. Such actions are primarily directed against our country, as well as neighbouring NATO member states, whose forces perform tasks in the Black Sea region on a rotating basis.

During the main combat training exercises of the Russian Armed Forces the scenarios of detection, shadowing and destruction of NATO and Ukrainian Navy ships, as well as the blockade of the Bosporus and the main ports of the Black Sea states are regularly worked out. Such actions of the Russian Federation were observed during the preparation and conduct of multinational exercise (in the spirit of Partnership for Peace programme) “Sea Breeze-2021” in June-July of the year.

Russia demonstrates its readiness to completely block Ukraine’s activities in the Sea of Azov and the northern part of the Black Sea. By creating an A2/AD in the region, Russia can block sea and air transport corridors along the shores of the Black Sea states.

At this difficult time for Ukraine the support of our great strategic friends such as the United Kingdom is very important, partnering Ukraine in carrying out reforms in the security and defence sector and in counteracting Russian aggression. The United Kingdom continues to support the EU’s and Western countries’ common sanctions policy against Russia, does not

recognize the annexation of the Crimea and has agreed to participate in the Crimean Platform. In addition, the United Kingdom adheres to the unchanging position on Russia’s full implementation of the provisions of the Minsk agreements, and also opposes the return of the Russian Federation to the G7.

The British side constantly supports UN resolutions on the territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine, condemns the aggression of the Russian Federation against our state.

On June 12, 2020, a decision was made to grant Ukraine the status of NATO Enhanced Opportunity Partnership, not least due to the United Kingdom’s active position in the Alliance.

London annually increases its bilateral technical assistance to Ukraine and constantly expands the scope of support of our state in carrying out economic transformations (governance, reforms, justice, overcoming corruption), in the security sector (including overcoming the consequences of Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine) and in social-humanitarian sphere (using the wide possibilities of the British Council).

A clear example of real action, not words, is the support of our state in the implementation of projects for strengthening Ukraine’s defence capabilities, in particular in developing and enhancing the capabilities of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine through British credit opportunities.

On June 21, 2021, the Governments of Ukraine and the United Kingdom signed the Memorandum of Implementation in the framework of cooperation to strengthen the capabilities of the Ukrainian Navy as a practical stage in the implementation of the project. In addition, an important aspect of assistance to Ukraine by the UK in increasing the defence capabilities of our country is the Training operation “ORBITAL”, which has been going on since 2015.

At a difficult time for Ukraine during the RussianUkrainian war, the United Kingdom Government decided to launch a training group of British instructors and send military personnel to Ukraine to assist in developing the operational and combat capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Since March 2015, more than 22,500 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been trained by British instructors. Advisory assistance is provided to Ukraine in carrying out reforms to delineate the powers of military authorities. Thanks to this close cooperation our country is being provided comprehensive preparation for participation in NATO-led operations. It facilitates to the realization of Ukraine’s status as a NATO EOP partner.

We see the prospect of increasing our further cooperation and strengthening Operation “ORBITAL”, in which Ukraine can make its own contribution to improving the British Armed Forces, effectively raising the level of the operation from a “training” one to an “experience exchange mission”.

Given the significant interest of the United Kingdom in the Ukrainian experience of countering Russian aggression, hybrid threats, sabotage, detailed study of forms and methods of hostilities by the Russian armed forces, we can offer the British Army officers to visit Ukrainian Joint Forces AOR. Our cooperation will help strengthen regional security in the Azov-Black Sea region which is one of the areas of critical interest for the United Kingdom.

We welcome the establishment of the United Kingdom-led Multinational Naval Development Capability Training Mission and the involvement of other democracies to ensure the military presence in Ukraine of the United Kingdom and other goodwill forces. This will give a significant impetus to the expansion of their participation in joint exercises in F Ukraine. We are much stronger together!

Since March 2015, more than 22,500 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been trained

by British instructors

Ukraine has exported it’s BM Oplot MBT to Thailand

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UKRAINE

Transforming the defence industry

By OLEH URUSKYI Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Strategic Industries, Ukraine

D OLEY URUSKYI is a graduate of the Kyiv Higher Military Aviation Engineering School in 1985 and began his career at the National Space Agency of Ukraine, subsequently becoming First Deputy Chairman of the State Commission for Defence and Industry of Ukraine. In 2005 he was appointed First Deputy Minister of Industrial Policy and in 2014 Deputy General Director of the State Concern “Ukroboronprom” and later Chairman of the State Space Agency. On July 16, 2020 he was appointed Vice Prime Minister, Minister for Strategic Industries of Ukraine.

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Ukraine’s state of the art ‘CORSAR’ light portable missile system

eveloping Ukraine’s strategic industries, in particular defence and aerospace, is a priority for Kiev: despite the country’s solid armaments and military equipment exports and the potential of its defence industry, this science-intensive and important sector is long overdue for reform. Which is why, in July 2020 Ministry of Strategic Industries was created. The need for such an entity had long been discussed in expert environment, but only took place alter the election of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Ministry of Strategic Industries focuses primarily on industrial development, defence and high-tech industries. This will involve an overhaul of Ukraine’s military-industrial sectors, re-equipping domestic enterprises through investment and new technologies, as well as greater cooperation with European producers and boosting exports. In this context, certain steps are already being taken in 2020-2021.

So, Ukraine plans to dismantle the obsolete, Soviet system of state defence acquisition in favour of unified defence acquisition plans. The draft Law “On Defence Procurement” was voted by Ukrainian parliament in May, 2020 and aims to declassify a significant part of the state defence budget and create a competitive and transparent environment in the military hardware market. New defence procurement law is a revolutionary development that drastically limits the

volume of classified information related to procurement throughout the defence sector. This represents a major shift. Until now, approximately 90 per cent of all defence purchases were classified. For obvious reasons, this approach has made it impossible to exercise proper civil control over Ukraine’s defence spending.

The next important aspect is the reform of the defense-industrial complex of Ukraine, in particular, its state segment, which is represented by the State Concern “Ukroboronprom”. A corresponding concept has already been developed and approved. It envisages a complete restructuring of the Concern’s structure, its management system, scientific, technical, and production-technological base, as well as increasing the efficiency of the use of enterprise assets.

Ukroboronprom will be split into holdings under the two “umbrellas” – State Holdings companies “Defence Systems of Ukraine” and “Aerospace Systems of Ukraine “. Sectoral holding companies will be created in areas such as high-precision weapons, ammunition and special chemicals, radar systems, armoured vehicles and artillery systems, marine systems, and military aircraft repair. The eventual goal is the breakup of UOP, but “Defence Systems of Ukraine” and “Aerospace Systems of Ukraine” will remain in state ownership. Part of shares of other sub-holdings will eventually be offered for sale, leaving a controlling stake for the state. Thus, a normal business climate should be created, which in the future will ensure the effective functioning of the defence industry of Ukraine. Concern will be transformed into a joint-stock company, 100 per cent of which will be owned by the state, and will act as a holding company), taking the lead in transforming its companies, and subsequently in attracting investment.

This reform will make the company more efficient, cohesive and profitable.

Furthermore, closer cooperation with NATO countries will allow for a higher degree of technology transfer. The G7 has welcomed the measures and the improvement of corporate governance standards in the sector in line with OECD guidelines.

Another important step was done in June 2021. The National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine approved the Strategy

for the Development of Ukraine’s Defence Industry Complex, which was developed by the Ministry of Strategic Industries. This is a key document that takes into account current military and political threats and challenges while establishing the goals, main directions and tasks of the state military-industrial policy.

Among the main goals are the creation of a hightech, defence-industrial complex to meet the needs of the Armed Forces, ensuring the competitiveness of the domestic defence industry in domestic and international markets, participation in international projects with foreign companies to develop weapons and increasing the share of production of civilian hightech products while creating new jobs.

The strategy identifies a number of areas of state military-industrial policy. Among the most important are the creation of a system of strategic defence planning, the corporatisation of defence industry enterprises; import substitution of critical technologies and materials and the removal of legal restrictions on the establishment of joint ventures with foreign companies. It will also see the creation of the Defence Technology Agency, which will oversee innovative projects and the development of critical technologies such as automated control systems, rocket and space technology, unmanned platforms and systems to defend the country from cyber-attacks. Furthermore, the strategy calls for spending of at least 0.5 per cent of GDP annually for the defence industry. These are just some of the measures currently being implemented by the Ministry of Strategic Industries of Ukraine to reform the defence industry.

Among the priority tasks for 2021 are the development and approval of the National Targeted Scientific and Technical Space Program of Ukraine for 2021-2025, the State Targeted Scientific and Technical Program for the Development of the Aviation Industry of Ukraine for 2021-2030, the creation of the State Target defence industry support fund, reform of the export control system.

A separate important area of the Ministry’s activity is military-technical cooperation with foreign partners. During the existence of the agency, about 30 international meetings have been organized and held to deepen cooperation in the field of strategic industry. Participation in six intergovernmental bilateral trade and economic commissions is provided.

In order to establish new and strengthen existing ties with international partners, Ministry’s have taken part in a number of international events and signed several Memoranda of understanding/cooperation. And these are just the beginning.

Greater cooperation with the United Kingdom Meanwhile, cooperation with one of our important

partners, Great Britain, is developing dynamically.

One of my first meetings back in September 2020 was a meeting with the British Ambassador to Ukraine, Melinda Simmons, during which we discussed issues of bilateral cooperation between our countries. In particular, the possibility of making high-speed missile boats using credit funds from the United Kingdom at Ukrainian shipyards. A month later, in October of 2020, our two countries signed an agreement on political cooperation, free trade and strategic partnership in London. Then, in June 2021, aboard the Royal Navy’s HMS Defender an agreement was signed to boost Ukraine’s naval capacities, an important step in the development of bilateral cooperation between our countries.

Building on the agreement signed in October 2020, the two nations and their industrial partners will now push Ukrainian naval capabilities enhancement projects forward.

Contractual work will now begin to develop and joint production warships, the creation of a new naval base on the Black Sea as the primary fleet base for Ukraine, and a new base on the Sea of Azov. At the same time, it is important for Ukraine that the level of involvement of the local component in the localization of production was as high as possible because the potential and opportunities of domestic industry are significant.

I am convinced that this is only the beginning of bilateral Ukrainian-British cooperation and I hope that after restructuring Ukraine’s defence industry we will see the dynamic development of the sector, deployment and expansion of high-tech production, while at the same time creating jobs and boosting local economies. This would represent a major outcome of the ongoing transformation of Ukraine’s strategic defence industry and the country’s F successful integration into the world community.

State owned Ukroboronprom is a conglomerate of 137 enterprises which enjoy a monopoly on defence production in Ukraine

Ukraine demonstrates the Antonov An-178 at the Berlin airshow

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UKRAINE

Ukraine and the United Kingdom

By DMYTRO KULEBA Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ukraine

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DMYTRO KULEBA has been Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine since March 2020 and is also concurrently a member of the National Defence and Security Council of Ukraine. Prior to this, he was Deputy Prime Minister on Matter of European Relations from 20192020 and Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Council of Europe from 2016-2019.

He graduated from the Institute of International Relations of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Ukraine in 2003 and holds a Candidate of Sciences Degree (Doctorate) in International Law.

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fter the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, we have used the momentum to upgrade our bilateral relations to a strategic partnership by signing a new comprehensive agreement.

The UK Government is willing to strengthen and develop its global role and its role in the region. For more than seven years Ukraine has been countering Russian aggression. We are grateful to have the UK standing by Ukraine during this challenging period.

An Integrated Review clearly states that the UK will help build our Armed Forces’ capacity and support the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.

Modern Ukraine is a country of freedom and opportunities. During the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, the Ukrainian people made their choice: we are an integral part of the democratic world and are moving towards joining the EU and NATO. Ukraine is persistently pursuing important internal transformations along the way. Today Ukraine strengthens the security of the region, creates new opportunities for business, develops renewable energy and facilitates Europe’s ambitious green transition, and plays the role of a global food security guarantor with its mighty agricultural sector.

The UK is a key international player, with a prominent place within NATO. Together with the Alliance, the UK has stated its support for Ukraine’s future NATO membership with the Membership Action Plan as an integral part of this process. We would like to see London speaking in a stronger voice for Ukraine within NATO: advocating for MAP and ultimately for our membership.

Last year, the UK conducted a parachute landing in Ukraine – its biggest such operation since WW2 – and sent two Royal Navy ships to the Black Sea to support Ukraine. Furthermore, just recently, HMS Defender became a symbol of undaunted British spirit in upholding international law and the non-recognition policy of Russia’s attempt to annex Crimea.

Having such an ally as the UK in this crucial time is of a great importance for Ukraine and we are committed to further strengthening our strategic partnership. Together with the UK and other partners, we will launch a special international format: the Crimea Platform. It will help us address the threats of the Russian occupation of Crimea and lead to the eventual de-occupation of the Ukrainian peninsula, a top priority of Ukraine’s foreign policy agenda. We proactively seek to reverse the negative trends observed

on the Russian occupied peninsula - military build-ups, political persecutions, environmental and economic hazards, violation of international law and many others.

Russia’s heightened activities in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea have direct implications for Ukraine, but also for the UK and its NATO allies. In order to prevent further expansion of Russian military presence on the peninsula, combat hybrid threats and ensure freedom of navigation, Russia’s hostile policies should be constantly monitored and addressed. It’s high time to demonstrate a long-term commitment to the protection of international maritime law and ensuring that no one is allowed to cross red lines.

The Crimea Platform summit sends a strong signal to the international community that, contrary to Russia’s claims that “the Crimea issue is over”, it is not. The summit will consolidate the international response to Russia’s illegal attempt to annex Crimea and facilitate an augmented synergy of international efforts on Crimea’s de-occupation. We are grateful to Her Majesty’s government for its solidarity with the Crimea Platform’s objectives. Great Britain had always been admirably steadfast in its commitment to Ukrainian territorial sovereignty. The Crimea Platform presents it with an opportunity to acquire geostrategic benefits by providing coherent support to Ukraine’s Crimea deoccupation efforts. Both our countries face a massive Russian dis-information offensive. Our cooperation on countering Russian disinfo, special operations, and cyber-attacks strengthens the international firewall against these malicious activities.

Another example of our advanced cooperation is the sphere of IT and innovation. Recently we held the first Ukrainian-British Fintech Summit, where we presented Ukraine’s competitive advantages as a regional technical hub and launched ambitious tech partnerships between Ukraine and the UK. With international tourism gradually returning to normality, Ukraine has launched its first strategy of tourist brand promotion. The aim is to reveal our unique attractions to the world. I am sure more and more UK citizens will find a special, authentic and safe vacation in our country.

These developments tighten the bond between our nations. Two important flanks of Europe, Ukraine and the United Kingdom are destined to be forever close F friends and allies.

UKRAINE

An enduring partnership

By H.E. MELINDA SIMMONS Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Ukraine

B MELINDA SIMMONS has been Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Ukraine since 2019. Prior to this appointment, she served as Director of the National Security Secretariat Joint Funds Unit from 2017-2018 and the Head of the Joint Programme Hub from 2016-2017, and from 2013-2016 she served as Deputy Director of the FCO’s conflict department. She holds a BA in Modern Languages (French and German) from the University of Exeter and an MA in European Politics from the University of North London.

eyond the honour I feel every day at being Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Ukraine, it’s a special honour to be Ambassador as Ukraine celebrates 30 years of independence. The UK was in the second wave of countries to recognise Ukraine’s independence – having waited for the results of both the referendum and the agreement on the dissolution of the Soviet Union before announcing our recognition. But we had been quietly building relations with Ukraine in the lead-up to independence, taking advantage of the relative liberalisation of the Soviet political system in the 1980s. Shock at the tragedy of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster had the small consolation of breaking down barriers of opposing political systems and opening the door to cooperation – with the British public supportive of the UK’s efforts to help Ukraine’s brave response to the aftermath of the explosion.

That pre-independence cooperation helped lay the groundwork for what became our bilateral relations – for example the twinning of Kyiv and Edinburgh, the month-long exhibition of British culture, commerce and technology in 1990, and the visit of then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, whose personal archives give us an insight into how the UK was preparing to support Ukraine, and some constants of the last 30 years. While in Kyiv, she talked about Ukraine’s enormous potential, boosting UK and Ukrainian prosperity through increased trade in the agricultural and engineering sectors, and support for parliamentary democracy.

Post-independence, the UK was instrumental in helping Ukraine develop into a more secure, democratic country, better integrated into the European and global system. The exact nature of UK support for Ukraine’s development may have fluctuated with Ukrainian political currents, but the principles of encouraging good governance and a functioning free market economy have been consistent.

Also a constant was the UK’s understanding that the UK and Europe’s future was intrinsically bound to Ukraine’s. When then-PM Tony Blair visited in 2005 – marking Ukraine’s entry into the WTO, he said Ukraine could “rest assured that in progress towards a shared future… the UK will be your partner”.

Russia’s aggression since 2014 has added urgency to the UK’s support to Ukraine. We recognise – as the downing of MH17 and Salisbury poisonings have proved – that these are shared security challenges.

The UK has: led the international response in the UN and OSCE; fought disinformation; and provided millions in vital humanitarian aid. The UK military has trained thousands of Ukrainian troops, and advised on the revitalisation of Ukraine’s navy, and combating hybrid warfare. Recognising that Ukraine would only generate internal resilience to Russia’s aggression if it stepped up reforms to bring its political, economic and judicial systems into line with international standards, then-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson launched the Ukraine Reform Conference.

The contribution of Ukrainians to the UK has been another constant. Much of that has been local, with the Ukrainian diaspora integrating into communities in the UK. Ukrainian troops, medics and pilots have supported UK colleagues in UN and NATO/ISAF peacekeeping missions, and continue to share their experience of Russian aggression.

The post-independence explosion of Ukrainian cultural output, which the British Council has been helping to nurture, is starting to get noticed, as streaming platforms carry more Ukrainian content.

British tourism to Ukraine was increasing until the start of the pandemic, and post-Covid, I expect that more British travellers will start exploring Ukraine and realising that it is one of Europe’s best-kept secrets.

The beauty of the Ukrainian Carpathians, its Black Sea coast, and the architecture in cities like Lviv, Odesa and Kyiv, will help people in Britain to think differently about Ukraine, but it’s unlikely to change the overriding perception of the country.

The UK’s support to Ukraine, as outlined by our ambitious Strategic Partnership Agreement, signed by Prime Minister Johnson and President Zelenskyy in 2020, can help to shift those perceptions. The UK’s political and practical support is intended to reinforce Ukraine’s efforts to end the conflict in Donbas, resist Russian aggression, and complete the reforms, which are necessary for Ukraine’s stories on anti-corruption and democracy to be more positive.

The Strategic Partnership Agreement is a springboard for the next thirty years of partnership to be even stronger than the last. The UK will continue to be one of Ukraine’s most reliable partners as it looks to bounce back from the Covid-19 pandemic, recover its territorial integrity, and complete its Euro-Atlantic path. I’m looking forward to joining Ukraine on this journey. F

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UKRAINE

An intriguingly close destination

Ukraine is a short flight from western Europe and provides historic cities, stunning mountains and balmy beaches to rival the Mediterranean. Combined with a welcoming people, value for money and a cuisine which represents a melting pot of cultures, Ukraine is a jewel to be discovered.

When you visit Ukraine, your journey is full of unusual and intriguing adventures

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Hryshko National Botanical Garden in Kyiv (Photo: Andriy Yakymenko ukraine.ua/imagebank)

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t’s incredibly easy to travel to Ukraine with an average flying time of just two-to-three hours from most European airports. Ukraine is perfect for travellers who love new experiences. When you visit Ukraine, your journey is full of unusual and intriguing adventures, wow-destinations, diverse cuisine, rich culture and vibrant nightlife.

Urban tourism or wildlife experience? Ancient castles or modern festivals? Seaside holiday or mountain hiking? It’s hard to believe – but Ukraine has it all. And many more surprises you wouldn’t expect! The most interesting things are happening in Ukraine right now.

Cities Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine Kyiv is a place where the rhythm of history meets a modern urban vibe! It’s #KyivNotKiev by the way!

Ancient (more than 1,500 years!). Trendy. Ageless.

Feel Kyiv’s timeless spirit in the very center of the city by checking out St. Sophia Cathedral, the Kyivan Rus monument of architecture, and monumental paintings dating back to the 11th century. You can also check out St. Andrew’s Church, a rare masterpiece of rococo

architecture that stands on a hill in the historic centre of Kyiv with a fantastic view of the Dnipro river.

Lviv, the cultural center of Western Ukraine Lviv is definitely among the best places to visit in Ukraine. It is bursting at the seams with cultural life.

It’s a city of legends. Amazing architecture, trams, a myriad of coffee flavours, bars with homemade liqueurs, tiny courtyards, and cobbled streets, a big tech hub – Lviv is a place that will inspire you.

Odesa, sea pearl of Ukraine Odesa is a city of love, sun, fun, and beautiful 19th Century architecture. This city is always celebrating something. Why come to Odesa? To taste delicious food in its traditional restaurants, to have a relaxing walk by the sea during the daytime, and to experience the real party at night. The first thing you should do is to take a walk passing Derybasivska Street to the city’s absolute must-see highlights – Passage, Odesa National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, and the famous Potemkin Steps that sweep you down to the Black Sea harbour.

The Carpathians Photo: Andriy Yakymenko / ukraine.ua/imagebank

UKRAINE

Places The Carpathian Mountains, a perfect wild nature spot The Carpathians are without a doubt a place of power.

It’s a crinkled region of forested hills, fast-flowing rivers, and mountain lakes, the fresh air of dense pine forests, and adorable alpine villages beckon travellers from all over the world.

There are lots of tourist routes with different difficulty levels, nature, and landscape parks. You can make your way to Hoverla – the highest peak of the Ukrainian Carpathians – in 6-8 hours. It stands at a height of 2,061 meters (6761 feet).

Located in the heart of the Carpathians, Bukovel is one of Ukraine’s top recreation centres. It is easy to get there from either Lviv or Ivano-Frankivsk international airports. Bukovel has a well-developed infrastructure and offers a wide range of activities when people visit for wellness and SPA activities.

Above: Pink Lake Syvash, Kherson region (Photo: Oksana Yermoshenko) Below: Traditional Ukrainian borsch (Photo: Timolina - Depositphotos)

Kherson region, a land of beautiful nature The Kherson region is a perfect mix of great history, legendary architecture, and truly unique Ukrainian nature sights. Take a look at the most famous sights of the city – the fortress park and 240 years old Ochakiv gate. Kherson is rich in gastronomic delicacies. Try the grilled watermelon which is served with spices and cheese – perhaps the most unusual seasonal local dish you will ever try.

The Kherson region is one of the most attractive regions of Ukraine washed by the Black and Azov seas, as well as the Gulf of Syvash (Glacial Sea) and Kakhovka Reservoir. The areas include 200 km of the Black and Azov sea coast with beautiful sandy beaches.

Here you can find fantastic Pink lakes, the uninhabited island Dzarylhach with dolphins playing in coastal waters, or the 700 meters coastline of Arabat Spit.

Tunnel of love One of the best romantic places in Ukraine – the five kilometre green corridor surrounded by trees lined up in an arch, and the old railway track – attracts visitors from all over Ukraine and abroad. You can visit the tunnel during any season, but we strongly recommend you visit it in autumn, when nature paints the leaves in incredible colours and shades, from green to gold.

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Chornobyl Exclusion Zone No worries – it’s safe now. To get to the Exclusion Zone you’ll have to pass through the dosimetry control checkpoint. And then the real stalker adventures will begin. The total area of the exclusion zone is 2600 square km. 96 settlements were evacuated from the area. 2 towns – the town of Chornobyl, the town of Prypiat and 94 villages. The area is divided into 2 parts: 10km zone or zone of absolute resettlement –

contaminated area and 30 km zone-kind of a buffer zone. The Chornobyl zone now represents the thirdlargest nature reserve in mainland Europe and became a popular tourist destination. A Tour to Chornobyl is truly an eye-opening adventure, which will print in your memory forever.

Food & Wine Ukrainian cuisine is one of the best ones in Europe.

Give it a chance to surprise you with the outstanding cooking and Ukrainian wine tasting that are on offer.

Ukraine has a delectable culinary culture. Taste Ukraine – from major cities to the countryside – with creative restaurants, lively bar scenes, vibrant food markets, and local wineries.

The restaurants in Ukraine are remarkably diverse. In addition to Ukrainian cuisine with its traditional borsch and Chicken Kyiv, there are plenty of others from Israeli and Crimean Tatar to Georgian and Mediterranean that allow everyone to make the best choice. By the way, Ukrainian borscht is already on its way to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

Witness the birth of Ukrainian wine! Every day the Ukrainian wine industry continues to grow – explore it from the largest to the smallest family wineries. Check out Ukrainian wine tours to try wine with craft cheeses, meat, or Ukrainian snails and oysters.

Ukrainian coffee culture is booming and emerging as a central element of the new, strong, and vibrant generation of young Ukrainians. In the last five years,

dozens of third-wave coffee shops have sprung up around the country.

Architecture Let’s talk about architecture! Being a country with a thousand-year history and a meeting place of various cultures, Ukraine is proud to have seven UNESCO world heritage sites. Ukrainian architecture has a rich history and occupies an important place in the history of European art.

This country is a perfect destination for history lovers who adore visiting historical spots, such as beautiful castles. There are more than 5,000 fortifications in the country and each of them has its unique atmosphere. Walk the routes of knights, hear the sounds of medieval battles, marvel at the exquisite architecture, and explore ancient legends!

Visit Kachanivka palace, one of the most impressive masterpieces built in the noble architecture style of Classicism or Pidhirtsi, one of the most beautiful castles in Ukraine.

Ukraine is also a must-visit place for the lovers of modernist and brutalist architecture: many fine examples of such buildings still exist in Ukraine.

Must-visit examples include monumental mosaics from the 1960-70s, which used to be a key feature of F modernist architecture.

Explore more on the official website of Ukraine – ukraine.ua – and enjoy @ukraine.ua on Instagram.

Ukraine is proud to have seven UNESCO world heritage sites

Left: Pidhirtsi Castle, Lviv region (Photo: Oksana Yermoshenko) Right: Hotel “Kyiv” (Photo: Vladyslav Lypovyi)

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UKRAINE

30 years of independent energy

By GERMAN GALUSHCHENKO Minister of Energy of Ukraine

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GERMAN GALUSHCHENKO Is Minister of Energy of Ukraine. Prior to this, he has was Associate Professor of Private International Law and Chair of the Institute of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko University in Kyiv. From 2011-2013 he worked in the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine as Assistant to the Minister of Justice and Head of Department on Court Proceedings. He holds a PhD in Law, and is a graduate of Legal Science of Lviv State University, as well as having a Masters from the Ukrainian Academy of Foreign Trade.

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Ukraine is targeting 25 per cent renewable energy by 2035

hirty years of Ukraine’s independence.

Thirty years of building an independent power system. These years were anything but simple. Our country has faced numerous challenges during this time.

The collapse of the USSR, the emergence of an independent state, and political changes had a significant effect on the energy industry. However, the biggest challenge for Ukraine was Russia’s armed aggression in Donbas. Loss of human life, including soldiers dying in the line of duty and civilian casualties is without a doubt the most painful blow our country has suffered.

With the start of hostilities, Ukraine’s energy sector also suffered losses. More than two-thirds of the coal industry assets were left in the occupied territories.

These were the coal-mines that extract anthracite – highest quality thermal coal. The nation’s thermal generation lost fuel resource and was on the verge of shutdown. At the same time, Russia began threatening to cut off gas supplies. And Ukraine had to make a firm decision to abandon the purchase of gas from Russia’s Gazprom. At that time the government had to change the energy system in a prompt and decisive manner.

There was no room for error. The collapse of the system was prevented through increase in international coal supplies and diversification of natural gas supplies.

While in 2013 the import of natural gas from Russia was over 90 per cent, in 2016 Naftogaz and private importers

were buying gas only from European suppliers.

Thermal generation gradually pivoted towards gas coal. By the end of 2019, 10 TPP units with a total capacity of 2,050 MW switched to this brand of coal.

Pro-European choice Ukraine has confidently set a course for European integration. European integration is Ukraine’s strategic choice. The Association Agreement and EU directives are a guide for Ukrainian reforms, including in the energy sector. Ukraine has achieved almost half of the objectives set out by the Association Agreement.

Reforming Ukraine’s energy sector means, first and foremost, implementing fair and transparent market rules. Significant progress was achieved in the gas sector: Ukraine has completed unbundling, effectively separating an independent company engaged in transportation and storage of natural gas, from the Naftogaz group. In accordance with OECD principles, Ukraine carried out corporate governance reform of state-owned companies in the sector. And our most important European integration achievement - Ukraine has launched a free market for natural gas.

Electricity sector is also undergoing reforms.

Following adoption of the new law on the electricity market in 2019, producers, suppliers and consumers of electricity operate according to market rules in various market segments. Electricity is sold to non-household consumers on e-auctions.

To ensure effective functioning of energy markets, Ukraine established an independent regulatory body – the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission.

Significant progress has been made in implementing the Association Agreement in energy efficiency. Ukraine has fulfilled almost two thirds of the objectives set out in the EU Association Agreement. Ukraine has drafted strategic documents, adopted a number of underlying laws, established the Energy Efficiency Fund, and launched a programme of “warm loans” that citizens can use to implement energy-saving measures in their buildings. Ukraine is implementing an important European instrument - eco-design (with 36 relevant regulations adopted), as well as energy labelling of energy products according to EU standards.

Now Ukraine is on the verge of final testing: next year will be a historic test of the sustainability and stability of the energy system in isolation. For the first time, Ukraine, albeit not for a long period, will be completely disconnected from the energy systems of Russia and Belarus. Based on the results, a decision will be made on the country’s preparedness to synchronise with the European power network.

In addition to the technical aspect, considerable attention is paid to regulation and compliance with a number of European requirements. Now Ukraine’s transmission system operator NPC Ukrenergo, is being certified according to European standards. This is the second exam that Ukraine must pass with flying colours. And the third is the final implementation of market rules in the electricity sector.

Point of no return Synchronisation of Ukraine’s power system into the European network (ENTSO-E) by 2023 is a priority and a strategic goal. It is an essential component of Ukraine’s energy security. Synchronous operation with the European electricity network will increase the reliability and sustainability of the Ukrainian power system, expand opportunities for electricity exchange between neighbouring countries, increase competition in the domestic market and create opportunities for work in the European energy market. Europe, in turn, will be able to strengthen its energy stability and gain a reliable partner in the industry.

Synchronisation is not merely a technical process.

First of all, it is an important geopolitical choice.

Disconnection from the power systems of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, with which Ukraine has historically been integrated since the Soviet times, is a kind of point of no return. This is a manifestation of the final turn towards Europe.

However, it is the technical aspect that will play a fundamental role here – for this symbolic “cutting of the cord” from the Soviet past, it is necessary to prove that Ukraine’s power system is prepared for this.

Since 2015, NPC Ukrenergo, together with neighbouring Moldova, have done extensive work to prepare the Ukrainian grid for synchronisation with Europe.

Everything is going according to the approved plan.

In 2019, tests of automatic systems were conducted at 11 units of 8 power plants: TPP, CHP and HPP. In this work Ukrenergo partnered with US Energy Association (USEA), the Turkish company EPRA and Ukrainian DMCC. In 2020, the excitation systems at the NPP were tested. Additional studies were conducted: static calculations in the conditions of synchronous connection of power systems of continental Europe and Ukraine, dynamic tests of the system.

Clean energy Ukraine’s pro-European choice is not limited to the integration of power systems. Ukraine does not stand aside from current trends in climate neutrality. Ukraine and the EU have great ambitions for implementing the European Green Deal. Our country shares the goals of the European Green Deal. This is reflected in the strategic documents, such as Ukraine’s energy strategy until 2035, which envisages an increase in the share of renewable energy to 25 per cent in total production.

Even now, “green” energy is growing well above the targets. Market integration of alternative energy and introduction of new energy storage technologies are the challenges Ukraine is facing today.

For the successful decarbonisation of the economy, the Ministry of Energy has proposed the establishment of a Fund for the decarbonisation and increase of the tax on harmful emissions. On the one hand, this will encourage businesses to independently introduce new technologies to reduce emissions, on the other hand, this will create a reserve of funds for further greening of energy.

Together with international partners, Ukraine is successfully implementing energy-saving technologies and developing the latest energy trends. In particular, one of the most promising areas is hydrogen energy.

Ukraine is recognised as a country with a strategic potential for green hydrogen production. So now the Ministry of Energy is developing the Hydrogen Energy Strategy of Ukraine and investigating the possibilities for its transportation to Europe.

Even though for now the state-of-the-art technologies are only in the long run, but Ukraine has already proven over the past 30 years that it is capable of decisive transformations in the energy sector. They often happen despite negative geopolitical influences, and almost always thanks to fruitful cooperation with F our international partners.

Ukraine has confidently set a course for European Integration.

European integration is Ukraine’s strategic choice

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UKRAINE

Multi-domain integration

By ADAM WILDING-WEBB Defence and Security Consultant

T

ADAM WILDING-WEBB has over 20 years’ experience in the Aerospace, Defence and Security sectors, in helping businesses develop client relationships and innovate services and solutions. With a focus on Europe and the Middle East, he has delivered numerous projects around the world for military, government, and commercial partners, working alongside defence prime contractors and security system integrators.

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he advance of digital technologies being deployed in operational military environments is taking place at an exponential pace. Drones, digital propaganda, electronic warfare and cyber threats are now de facto weapons of choice on the modern battlefield.

The speed at which these threats are deployed in the battlespace increases as the proliferation of autonomous systems and AI driven technologies push for the operational advantage. The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson recently stated that; “In the future a soldier in hostile territory will be alerted to a distant ambush by sensors on satellites or drones, instantly transmitting a warning, using Artificial Intelligence to devise the optimal response, and offering an array of options, from summoning an air strike to ordering a swarm attack by drones, or paralysing the enemy with cyber weapons.” [Integrated Review, November 2020] Having solutions to outsmart ‘hyperwar’ threats, as well as providing distributed information sharing, is critical. Consequently, armed forces must be able to meet these emerging threats and challenges, as well as countering regional military modernisation. The risk of state-on-state conflict through technological disruption is an ever-increasing process.

The UK MOD released its Digital Strategy for Defence [April 2021] which is focused on “securing access to our data ‘anytime, anyplace, anywhere’ across our sea, land, air, space and cyber platforms, as well as our headquarters and bases.” Armed forces are required to maintain and enhance their ability to shape the security environment, deter actions against their national interests and respond with credible and appropriate force. In addition, a comprehensive view and understanding of the threat environment is critical for delivering effective security and protection of assets, infrastructure, and people. This can only be achieved through seamless integration and interoperability across an enhanced suite of defensive and surveillance systems, sensors and effectors.

With asymmetric threats from land, sea, air and underwater, armed forces must be equipped with the tools and capabilities to operate across all domains.

Recognising time sensitivity, a declining workforce and budgetary constraints, operators require a single intuitive system to provide a digital backbone that simplifies and enhances decision making.

Multi-domain operations are the only way new

threats can be identified and denied, allowing militaries to act and react to rapidly evolving situations. Fusing data from sensors, software, and a wide range of components and platforms, information needs to be carefully managed to maximise efficiency and response.

Deploying a coherent digital system to meet these challenges requires an elegant solution that provides a comprehensive understanding of an operational environment - multi-domain situational awareness in a single tactical picture. Having a system of systems that integrates and fuses data from sensors and platforms allows armed forces to deliver a proportionate capability in the right place, at the right time.

A handful of UK defence companies have developed military solutions designed to operate across domains for maximum efficiency, with open architecture and interoperability, combined with artificial intelligence technology to reduce the cognitive burden on operators, whilst enhancing the decision-making process.

MARSS is one such company at the bleeding-edge of defence AI technology development, with its NiDAR software having evolved over 15 years to provide the integration and fusion capability to be platform and sensor agnostic allowing rapid growth, regardless of the technology. NiDAR can be deployed across multiple domains allowing operators to access and share relevant information in real time, enhancing mission efficiency, reducing cost and complexity whilst allowing a more flexible approach.

Providing operators with these tools to achieve objectives in a complex and often ambiguous operational environment, NiDAR evolves as threats and subsequent actions against those threats are implemented, continuously adapting across a multidomain environment. Combined with the ability to integrate legacy systems, as well as new technology when available, the operational fluidity that NiDAR brings allows processes and structures to become more dynamic and pre-emptive, information-led and autonomous. Operators control the intent, NiDAR facilitates the process.

In a fast and ever-changing security threat environment, it is important to act quickly and decisively to mitigate security risks. The asymmetric threats, to which assets and infrastructure are subject, are evolving rapidly. MARSS extends its full support to F Ukraine to counter these threats.

UKRAINE

Strengthening trading ties

By LOUIS TAYLOR Chief Executive, UK Export Finance (UKEF)

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LOUIS TAYLOR is Chief Executive of UK Export Finance (UKEF). He is also a Director General in the Department for International Trade, and a member of its Executive Committee and Management Board.

Before joining UKEF, Louis held senior roles at Standard Chartered Bank, including from 2013 to 2015 as Chief Operating Officer of Group Treasury, based in London. Before that, he spent three years as the bank’s CEO for Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. His earlier career included working for JP Morgan, Cookson Group plc and BTR plc. He has an MA in Law from Cambridge University.

Ukraine’s economy is expected to grow by almost 4 per cent in 2021

he UK and Ukraine have been close partners in many areas over the past 30 years.

On matters from defence to agriculture, our two countries share an important relationship that closer trading ties can only enrich.

Trade between the UK and Ukraine was worth £1.3 billion last year and with both of our economies returning to growth following the impact of COVID19, we expect this to rise substantially.

Last year, alongside the signing of the Strategic Partnership Agreement by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also agreed between the Ukrainian government and UK Export Finance (UKEF).

Recognised as the world’s best export credit agency, UKEF provides guarantees, insurance and direct lending to support British exporters and make major projects happen all over the world.

UKEF exists to ensure that no viable trade with the UK should fail for lack of finance or insurance and has recently come back on normal medium to long term cover for the Ukrainian market.

When restrictions on the availability of private sector finance are a constraint on international trade, UKEF can step in. Through our offer of finance, we can support the Ukrainian government and large international corporates with finance, loans and insurance on attractive terms to facilitate projects coming to fruition, with the proviso that they commit

to procuring from the UK supply chain.

UKEF’s overall country limit currently stands at £2.5 billion. With high uptake already, much of this is starting to be committed on projects. Our limits are also self-renewing as capacity becomes available again as it is recycled from completed projects, so we are very much open for business.

Over the past two years, we have provided £16.7 billion to support UK exports worldwide and take advantage of the trading agreements the UK has signed around the world, including the one signed with Ukraine last year.

On a recent trip to Kyiv, UKEF representatives met with ministers from the Ukrainian finance, health and infrastructure ministries. The portfolio of projects we are working on together is exciting, diverse and will bring positive impacts to Ukraine’s society and economy, ranging from agriculture and healthcare to infrastructure and defence.

These are all sectors in which the UK has tremendous expertise and UKEF has experience in providing crucial financial support, having recently backed BAE System’s £5 billion package of military aircraft to Qatar, hospital projects in Ghana and two monorail lines in Egypt.

We have also been strengthening our support for clean energy, with backing for solar projects in Spain and offshore wind in Taiwan. This activity reflects the UK’s commitment and ambitions in this area, and our hosting of the UN’s Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021.

The signing of the trade agreement and MoU last year demonstrates the UK’s confidence in and support for Ukraine’s long term economic fundamentals.

I am confident that, with UKEF’s awardwinning financial offer, the world-leading expertise of the British supply chain and the tremendous economic potential of Ukraine, we can make transformational and innovative projects happen together, improving peoples’ lives and bringing prosperity to local communities.

As Ukraine celebrates 30 years of independence, I look forward to seeing our new trading relationship flourish and to the F signing of many exciting deals.

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UKRAINE

A European manufacturing hub

By SERGIY TSIVKACH Executive Director, UkraineInvest

U SERGIY TSIVKACH is a Ukrainian and UK qualified commercial lawyer with over 20 years of professional experience. He has acted as advisor on economic and regulatory policy, business transactions and operations, international strategic relations for the state, international and private organisations. Previously he held positions as advisor to the Prime Minister of Ukraine, the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, and Members of the Parliament of Ukraine. Has worked as Chair of the Board of C.A.S.E.S. International (the organization that cooperates with Ukrainian state and business institutions as well as UN, World Bank, OECD, US FTC, etc).

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Site visit to Risoil S.A. Terminals’ newly constructed pier, Chornomorsk Seaport, Odesa region

kraine is one of Europe’s largest emerging markets, providing a wide range of opportunities. Location, talented human capital, cost-competitiveness, and availability of free trade agreements with many markets globally point to the potential of rapid growth and a high return on investments.

Ukraine has a developed market economy with competitive agriculture, energy, metallurgy, chemicals and manufacturing industries, along with a high-tech industrial base and a fast developing IT and hightech sector. It is a global leader in the production of sunflowers seeds and production and export of sunflower oil, second in the export of rapeseed, millet, barley and peas, third in exports of walnuts and apple juice concentrate, and fourth in the export of corn, wheat and honey. The most promising sectors for large investments are in manufacturing (in particular, electronics and technology, automotive, chemical), agriculture (processing and irrigation),

energy (hydrogen production), infrastructure (through privatisation and concessions), IT (including construction of data centres), as well as mining, waste management and logistics.

The country’s educated workforce is highly respected around the world, and the country is home to global firms that began as successful startups, including Grammarly, Depositphotos, MacPaw, and Petcube. Among the global giants with major R+D facilities in Ukraine are Oracle, Ring, Siemens, Cisco and Samsung. Ukraine also has one of the largest IT engineering work-forces in Central and Eastern Europe and more than 100 R&D centres owned by or working with global companies. Many of them have significantly expanded the number of employees or/ and opened new offices.

Even though FDI inflow to Ukraine decreased last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ukraine’s economy is recovering rapidly. Thus, in the first quarter of 2021, FDI inflow had a positive tendency

and already amounted to US$1.48 billion. According to the National Bank and the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, the volume of investments attracted will be from US$3 to 5 billion by the end of this year.

There are more than 150 UK companies in Ukraine, with many more brands present. Major UK companies in the market include Shell, CPG Ukraine, Ahmad Tea Limited, GSK, BAT, Imperial Tobacco and Skyrora.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the issue of reorganization of global supply chains, as well as relocation of production facilities from Asian countries to other regions of the world became especially relevant. And due to the number of competitive advantages such as unique location on the crossroads of the main trade routes between Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, highly skilled and cost-competitive workforce and a wide selection of greenfields and brownfields Ukraine is becoming a European manufacturing hub.

Along with this, on 17 December 2020, the Ukrainian Parliament adopted the Presidential Initiative - the law “On State Support for Investment Projects with Significant Investments in Ukraine,” which entered into force on 13 February 2021. The law features a number of benefits, among them tax incentives (exemption from income tax, customs duties and VAT when importing new equipment into Ukraine), access to land on preferential terms, and a direct agreement with the Ukrainian government for up to 15 years. State support will cover up to 30 per cent of investments in the form of fiscal and other incentives. These attractive terms will be available to investors who invest more than 20 million and create at least 80 new jobs within five years. UkraineInvest Investment Promotion Office has been designated by the Ukrainian government as the authorised institution to support investment projects according to the new legislation. As a result of notable regulatory reforms adopted, such as starting gradual land market reform, introducing a competition-based procedure for concession tenders, launching the largescale privatization, and switching all public services into “paperless mode” via an online platform “Diia,” Ukraine is proved to be a dynamic European country that is constantly working on boosting its investment attractiveness.

Since Ukraine strengthens its position as a European manufacturing hub, the country’s automotive industry, for instance, has become one of the fastestgrowing manufacturing sectors thanks to a favourable combination of increasing demand, availability of skilled workers, competitive salaries and integration into the European supply chain. More than 20 global automotive companies, some 40 automotive plants, and more than 60 thousand workplaces testify to this. Among rapidly developing sectors in Ukraine

are metalworking, textiles, chemicals, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and others. Furthermore, the President of Ukraine initiated the Great Construction project that aims to renovate infrastructure and improve the logistics sector all over the country, which is essential when relocating production facilities from Asia to Ukraine. On March 1, 2020, construction works on more than 300 sites began simultaneously as part of the Great Construction project, and more than 4,500 km of roads of national significance were built and restored last year.

Even more investment opportunities can be found in Ukraine’s significant reserves of raw materials. The State Geologic and Subsoil Survey of Ukraine is organising auctions for the sale of permits to extract lithium, cobalt, zirconium, gold and other important minerals required by industry. Ukraine can raise up to US$10 billion investments to further develop these deposits.

As the governmental office that provides investors with free of charge “one-stop support,” UkraineInvest remains a reliable partner for business representatives willing to apply for state support and implement their investment projects in Ukraine. As a result, UkraineInvest has already succeeded in helping unlock more than US$4 billion of FDI. We continue to promote Ukraine’s investment opportunities globally and are always ready to provide assistance for F investment projects from all over the world.

There are more than 150 wellestablished UK companies in Ukraine, with many more brands present

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UKRAINE

Stability, security and prosperity

By RT HON. MARK PRITCHARD MP Chairman, All-Party Parliamentary Group on Ukraine, and Member, Intelligence and Security Committee

S MARK PRITCHARD is the Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Ukraine and has been the Conservative Member of Parliament for The Wrekin since 2005. He is currently a member of the House of Commons Panel of Chairs, as well as the Intelligence and Security Committee. He previously served as the UK’s first Trade Envoy to Georgia and Armenia. He was also a member of the House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights from 2015–2017, and the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy from 2010-2015.

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President Zelensky and Prime Minister Boris Johnson signing the Political, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership Agreement

eventy-five years after the start of the first significant migration of Ukrainians to the UK, people of Ukrainian descent are found in many areas of British national life, from business and the professions to academia and hospitality.

On the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence, cooperation between the UK and Ukraine has never been stronger.

In the face of Russia’s threatening troop movements on Ukraine’s borders, the British Government stands steadfast in its support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Prime Minister Boris Johnson reaffirmed this position in a recent phone call with President Zelensky, and the UK delegation at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) followed suit. In London, the Russian Ambassador was summoned to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to explain Russia’s actions.

The UK’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty goes beyond mere rhetoric, however. As Chairman of the UK Parliament’s All-Party Parliamentary Group on Ukraine, I was pleased to meet President Zelensky on his first official visit to the UK in October 2020.

During that visit, Ukrainian Minister of Defence Andriy Taran and UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace signed an agreement on defence construction, with £1.25bn funding made available on favourable terms from UK Export Finance.

That agreement will strengthen Ukraine’s naval defences through the construction of new, state-ofthe-art military vessels in line with NATO standards.

The first two ships will be built in the UK but with Ukraine’s cooperation. Further vessels will be built in Ukrainian shipyards. In recent weeks, British military surveillance aircraft have been monitoring Russian troop movements near Ukraine’s border.

As well as working with Ukraine to defend itself against future threats, I am pleased that the UK Government is supporting Ukrainians affected by the ongoing conflict in the east of the country. The then Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced £5m of humanitarian aid to Ukraine to provide food, water, medical supplies and psychosocial support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.

The British Government is also providing advice on how to rehabilitate veterans who have been psychologically affected by their service. Last year, Ministers pledged an additional £600,000 to support the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission, which reports on ceasefire violations and the impact on civilians.

However, the UK-Ukraine relationship goes beyond military and security matters. When he visited the UK last year, President Zelensky joined Prime Minister Boris Johnson to sign a new Political, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership Agreement.

That agreement provides for cooperation not only on defence, but on trade in goods and services, intellectual property, government procurement, climate change, human rights, money laundering and cybercrime.

I was particularly delighted to see extensive trade provisions in the partnership agreement. There are significant opportunities for our two countries to trade more freely. Total trade in goods and services between the UK and Ukraine was £1.5 billion in 2019, accounting for just 0.1 per cent of total UK trade, so there is huge potential for growth – especially in sectors such as food and agriculture, where Ukraine is a major exporter and the UK a net importer.

President Zelensky described the partnership agreement as “a new page for Ukrainian–British cooperation and an unprecedented event for Ukraine.” From the UK’s perspective, on this special anniversary of independence, the agreement is a clear and unequivocal demonstration of our investment in F Ukraine’s stability, security and prosperity.

URKAINE

Friendship and understanding

By LORD RISBY OF HAVERHILL Chairman, British Ukrainian Society

I LORD RISBY is the Chairman of the British Ukrainian Society, a post that he has held since 2007, as well as the secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Ukraine. He is also currently the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Algeria and Lebanon. He served as MP for Bury St Edmunds from 1992 to 1997, and for West Suffolk from 1997 to 2010. He holds an MA in Economics from Magdalene College, Cambridge.

n its long history Ukraine has seen some turbulent times, but finally became an independent country 30 years ago. We share the pleasure of so many millions of Ukrainians that this milestone is indeed something to celebrate enthusiastically. What has really blossomed, in part out of our feeling of support for a country whose territorial integrity has been violated, is the extraordinary breadth and depth of our bilateral relationship.

Ukraine has long been a friend of the United Kingdom. In the aftermath of the Second World War, around 32,000 Ukrainians chose to make their home here; many had served in the Allied forces in various combat roles. Their descendents remain in the UK and form part of its rich and diverse tapestry. The two countries have other similarities, with long histories in seaborne trade, so much so that two of the greatest British and Ukrainian trading ports are twinned, Odessa and Liverpool. Similarly the industrial cities of Birmingham and Zaporizhzhia have been twinned since 1973. Since 1991, both nations have signed 34 agreements, with undoubtedly many more to come.

The British Ukrainian Society continues to do its part to strengthen the ties between our two countries, even during the recent lockdown. We were particularly delighted to host an online event with Ambassador Vadym Prystaiko. There is no organisation like the British Ukrainian Society in any other European country, with its focused mission to strengthen ties of friendship and understanding between our two countries.

Ukraine does not take its independence for granted and neither do we. With the annexation of Crimea and the continuing challenge to its sovereignty in Eastern Ukraine, nothing can be left to assumption or chance.

We must continue to react appropriately against any aggression towards Ukraine and its territorial integrity. The British Government, and Parliamentarians in both our Houses of Parliament, have unwavering support for Ukraine’s right to complete independence.

Since 1991 the Ukrainian community in the United Kingdom has grown and continues to thrive. We have numerous young Ukrainian professionals working in our top companies, law firms and international organisations, and more come to study at our universities. There is an active diaspora that continues to maintain ties with Ukraine through cultural events, language classes, religious services and a network of

Ukrainian community schools. There are interest groups, including charities that assist groups in Ukraine such as orphans, the many war displaced, members of the Ukrainian military and also fundraising for students who want to access higher education.

In the course of getting to know Ukraine over the past 14 years, I can personally confirm that the relationship between the United Kingdom and Ukraine has never been stronger, or more dynamic, than it is today. The individual Ukrainians I have had the pleasure of meeting here are professionally driven and proud of their country of birth. We have sought to highlight Ukraine in the Palace of Westminster with debates, seminars, and commemorations of the Holodomor. Parliamentary contact is in place between parliamentarians in both countries. This is a vital element in our bilateral relationship. And in 2022 there will be a year of Ukrainian culture in the United Kingdom and concurrently a year of British Culture in Kyiv.

Underlying this, in October last year, President Zelensky made an official visit to the United Kingdom.

During his visit he met with members of our Royal Family and led a ministerial delegation to Portsmouth to discuss British offers of assistance to develop the Ukrainian navy and shipbuilding. Britain and Ukraine underlined their commitment to future defence cooperation by signing a Memorandum of Intent aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales. Since then there has been the clearest possible indication by us of our mutual commitment to the freedom of international waterways, underlying the absolute strategic importance of the Black Sea. Most significantly, President Zelensky and our Prime Minister signed the historic Political Free Trade and Strategic Partnership Agreement to cement trade and defence ties between our two countries. This ushered in the welcome appointment of the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Ukraine, my colleague Catherine Meyer, to fill that role. The objective is to boost trade and investment opportunities, heralding the future growth of business activity.

The future of our two nations’ friendship will no doubt be positive as Britain and Ukraine step up their commitments to each other and continue to expand trade. A strong and prosperous Ukraine is good, not only for Britain, but also for the whole of Europe. F

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UKRAINE

Thirty years of independence

By RT HON. LORD OXFORD OBE The Earl of Oxford and Asquith

I LORD OXFORD joined Her Majesty’s Diplomatic Service in 1980 as a career diplomat, serving until 1997. As well as postings in London at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and to the Cabinet Office, he served as First Secretary at the British Embassy in Moscow from 1983 to 1985, and Counsellor at the British Embassy in Kyiv from 1992 to 1997. In 1992, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for diplomatic services. He holds an MA degree from Balliol College, Oxford.

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first visited Ukraine in February 1984, with my wife, on a visit from the British Embassy in Moscow to the then Soviet Union. It was just a week after Andropov had died and the snowy streets of Kyiv were subdued, except outside the doors of the ‘Leipzig’ hotel near the Golden Gates. The hotel’s restaurant where we had planned to lunch was still closed at 1.30 pm and a group of Ukrainian young men were protesting, kicking on the doors, demanding to sign the ‘Book of Complaints’ on account of the late opening. To our surprise the building was soon unlocked and we were all let in. I remember thinking that Kyiv, then, must be a very different city to Moscow where no one ever got their way by kicking doors in public view. This little episode of open defiance against obstructive authority has remained with me, from long ago, as a characteristic vignette of Ukrainian social and political life.

I returned to Ukraine soon after the collapse of the USSR and finally took up residence in Kyiv in October 1992. I recall driving in from Slovakia via Uzhgorod and feeling on the way an unfamiliar experience of thrill and relief that no longer was there a shadowing traffic police or KGB presence to stop me eating a picnic in a forest clearing of my own choice and timing. As I entered L’viv where I had planned to spend the night a man carrying three buckets of pears asked for a lift into the city: he told me where to find a hotel and by way of recompense for the ride gave me one of the full buckets: a most generous payment, but he said in Ukrainian how very unusual it was to find an Englishman in L’viv who spoke ‘literary Russian’ (not meant as an undiluted compliment, I suspect). Later I was joined in Kyiv by my wife and family, and soon one of our daughters was accepted by Lyudmila Fyodorovna Kudryavtseva, the wonderful headmistress of School no.25 (imeni Belinskoho), where our daughter was excellently taught for three years and even achieved a mathematical prize for the Starokievskiy rayon.

I mention these small personal memories, which could be many times expanded, simply to record that the post-Soviet atmosphere of independence in Ukraine was quite exceptionally open, welcoming of new experiences and people and full of fresh exuberance. One acquaintance of mine described it as a short walk, apprehensively blinking, over the boundary of the dark side to the light side of the moon.

Of course that was not everyone’s experience and the moonwalk was not so short. Thousands of ordinary people lost their jobs, professors of nuclear physics lost their salaries and status overnight and had to reinvent themselves (one friend of mine re-skilled himself as a founder of church bells), beggars multiplied on the streets and in stations. I still retain a full collection of ‘kupony’ and ‘karbovantsy’ indicative of the massive inflation of the 1990s. These scenes could shock new visitors to Ukraine. I recall one senior British diplomat arriving from London in 1993 complaining that it was a long way for him to come to discuss relations with a new country that would certainly not last a further three months. 30 years later, that has clearly proved a poor judgment, but even at the time it struck me as an imperceptive statement. Because, what started to develop in Ukraine throughout the 1990s was that a younger generation, deprived of any capital except their own brains, set about acquiring new qualifications, perhaps in Kyiv, L’viv, Dnipropetrovsk, often in London, Frankfurt or New York: jurisprudence, business management, finance, journalism, new engineering and manufacturing skills, and soon they returned to Ukraine to set up their own enterprises.

Yes, some of the old Soviet mega-enterprises, especially in the east and south (coal, steel, shipping) retained a monopolistic control of their sectors, but gradually the engines of the new Ukrainian economy started to spread out through the whole country. In Russia, so dependent on the exploitation and export of natural resources, the national economy has been relatively easy to control through Moscow; but in Ukraine it is much harder for the capital city to dominate the economy and, consequently, the natural energies of its people have had greater opportunities for release and expression. In Ukraine, long before Russia, town started to trade with town, the countryside with the town, region with region, and slowly, slowly, some prosperity began to spread across and throughout the land, just as watercolours will imperceptibly start to infiltrate the paper they have been applied to. In my view this is a process that has become largely resistant to any potential authoritarian urge to achieve long term manipulation of or constraint on economic dynamism by political pressure, whether internal or external to Ukraine. Much has been written about the Maidan revolution of 2014 but a critical factor or

’trigger’ was not so much Yanukovich’s rejection of the EU Association trade agreement in itself, as the unexplained disappearance and detention of a large number of Ukrainian student protestors in the days and nights before the main uprising itself. This was as much a protest against illicit rule and arbitrary control as it was an embrace of ‘European’ values expressed in a commercial treaty.

The other ‘myth’ or propagandist stereotype that has unravelled and shown itself to be an illusion over the 30 years that I have observed Ukraine is, to my mind, the proposition that Ukraine is a land ‘divided against itself’, divided by ethnicity, history, language and religion. This is largely a supposition based on false premises. If you travel into the countryside 10 miles outside many an eastern Ukrainian city, Izyum let us say, you will hear Ukrainian spoken; most Ukrainian families will have had an aunt or cousin or great-grandparent living somewhere in or connected to Russia; in many respects there is now more dissension within the various Orthodox churches of Ukraine and Russia than there is between Orthodox and Catholic Ukrainians. In L’viv these days you hear Russian spoken on the streets much more commonly than 30 years ago, no doubt partly the result of refugees from the Donbass, but also because of conscious efforts on the part of the L’viv authorities and universities to encourage exchange programmes between the younger generations of eastern and western Ukraine.

There is perhaps a psychological division or split still enduring within the country but that is between the cultures of the old cradle-to-grave Soviet mentality of the giant industrial conglomerates and the new nimbler,

more entrepreneurial economic structures – but these latter are taking root everywhere, reflecting especially the remarkable Ukrainian skills in digital technology, from L’viv, Vinnitsya and Ternopil to Kharkiv, Sumy and Dnipro. Most countries can in some sense be described as ‘divided’ but, Crimea and the Donbass notwithstanding, I would assess Ukraine in 2021 as more united, consolidated, independent and opposed to dissolution than when I first lived there in 1992.

In summary, I cannot think of a comparable period in the history of the Ukrainian nation when such large scale developments have led to the evolution of such a cohesive and comprehensible entity. Through the work of Ukrainian statesmen, parliamentarians, diplomats, lawyers and many others Ukraine is now a fully recognised participant in international and military cooperation, in international trade and organisations, and democratic parliamentary exchanges. To be sure there are some major functions of a successful modern state that are still due for significant further reform and evolution: the independence of the judiciary as a whole, including the procuracy and appellant courts, investment protection, civil service discipline and probity: but 30 years is probably the longest term of genuine independence that ‘Ukraine’ has yet known.

And to end on a personal note, I believe that we can all feel nothing but pleasure and pride that Ukraine and the United Kingdom have worked together throughout these years, overcoming initial caution and doubts, to build that high degree of confidence and cooperation that now obtains between our governments and F parliaments, businesses and private citizens.

Ukraine is now a fully recognised participant in international and military cooperation, in international trade and organisations, and democratic parliamentary exchanges

Maidan Nezalezhnosti, or ‘Independence Square’ in central Kyiv

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UKRAINE

Babcock and Ukraine

By DAVID LOCKWOOD OBE Chief Executive Officer, Babcock

I DAVID LOCKWOOD has been CEO of Babcock since 2020. He was previously CEO of Cobham plc from 2016 to March 2020 and prior to that he was CEO of Laird PLC from 2012 to 2016. His career includes senior management roles at BT Global Services, BAE Systems and Thales Corporation. He received an OBE for services to industry in Scotland in 2011. He holds a Degree in Mathematics from the University of York and is a chartered accountant. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Royal Society of Arts and Commerce.

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Babcock sign a tripartite Memorandum of Implementation in Odesa with the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the UK Government.

n June 2021, Babcock proudly signed a tripartite Memorandum of Implementation (MoI) in Odesa with the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the UK Government to lead the delivery of the Ukrainian Naval Capabilities Enhancement Programme (UNCEP). This builds on an earlier agreement signed in October 2020 between the two nations and is the next step forward in this major naval enhancement programme which Babcock will lead as the prime industrial partner.

The scope of the agreement aligns with our wealth of experience and capabilities including the enhancement of existing naval platforms, the delivery of new platforms including fast missile craft, a modern frigate capability, naval base infrastructure, and the training of naval personnel.

It also involves working together to regenerate Ukrainian shipyards by developing, implementing and completing a Shipyard Regeneration Plan.

Babcock will work collaboratively with British and Ukrainian industrial partners to assist the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence in delivering these projects. We bring deep technical expertise to these projects and will ensure ownership and expertise through technical and knowledge transfer, enabling Ukraine to develop a modern naval fleet and support capability.

Exporting and understanding the needs of our Global customers With an established history of designing, building and supporting some of the world’s most complex ships including small combat boats, rescue craft, offshore patrol vessels and aircraft carriers together with our coupled with the management of modern shipyard facilities, we are hugely excited to support the ambitions within the Ukrainian Naval Capabilities Enhancement Programme.

Our global portfolio of maritime operations positions Babcock as the perfect partner for Ukraine.

Decades of support to international navies means that we have a deep understanding of the global ship design, build and support market together with the costs and capability drivers that are critical considerations for international navies.

Today, there is an increasing desire from nations such as Ukraine to develop and grow an in-country capability, capacity and infrastructure to support their maritime ambitions. Working closely with the UK Government, we are offering Ukraine a comprehensive package of support to meet these needs.

Building new naval vessels in Ukraine will bring significant benefits to the Ukrainian economy, create valuable new jobs and equip the local workforce with

new capabilities and facilities that will reinvigorate Ukrainian shipbuilding for years to come.

Technology and knowledge transfer rooted in experience At Babcock we offer a broad choice of support. We develop and deliver our own designs that can be built in Babcock’s facilities as well as supporting the design and build of vessels at our customer’s chosen location, via technical collaboration. This can include licences and materials to build a vessel as well as assistance with facility upgrades and construction support through to technology transfer.

Our work on the UK Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth Aircraft class carriers and the new Type 31 frigates are testament to delivering cutting-edge vessels from modern, technology-led facilities; an ambition that we share for Ukraine.

Delivering the Royal Navy’s largest ever warships was a truly UK-wide wide effort. Playing a critical role in the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, we worked collaboratively with industry, Government and the Navy to deliver this historic project. Invigorating the UK supply chain was a key focus during this programme and similarly for Ukraine working with local companies across programmes will help to deliver jobs, skills and wider economic benefits.

Building on the success of the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, Babcock’s Team 31 brings together the best of the UK’s shipbuilding capability.

As part of ongoing investment at Rosyth, a new Assembly Hall has been built. This provides a modern, future-ready facility designed to assemble two vessels side by side. Free from weather disruption, the facility

will enable productivity gains due to improved access and digital connectivity.

Digital transformation is at the heart of our delivery of Type 31. Investment is enabling integration of technology, knowledge and production, with new working practices to create a dynamic, effective and efficient, digitally enabled shipbuilding capability.

These investments provide a modern blueprint for ship build and support and provide a working touchstone for the Ukraine.

We also assist in workforce planning to enable customers to deliver programmes whilst minimising risk.

This can include transferring our skills development knowledge and experience from our leading UK apprenticeship and graduate programmes to support the growth of the next generation of talent in Ukraine.

In-service support A key tenet of the Ukraine framework is the enhancement of existing platforms. In the UK, our Type 23 warship life extension programme is an example of our engineering prowess. Undertaking technical analysis to review and mitigate the risks for the customer, Babcock is enabling the Royal Navy to double the intended design life of the frigates whilst ensuring they are combat ready.

Our Global support capability includes; deep maintenance and life extension of surface warships, upgrading, overhauling and managing equipment and systems and the management of naval bases in the UK, New Zealand and the Duqm Naval Dockyard joint venture in Oman.

Babcock stands ready to forge a game-changing F approach for maritime support in Ukraine.

Building new naval vessels in Ukraine will create valuable new jobs and equip the local workforce with new capabilities and facilities that will reinvigorate Ukrainian shipbuilding for years to come

Babcock’s concept of its new fast missile boat, which will be built for the Ukrainian navy

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UKRAINE

Banking on the future

By RAFAL JUSZCZAK Chief Executive Officer, Alfa-Bank Ukraine

T

RAFAL JUSZCZAK is a graduate of the University of Gdansk with Master’s Degree in History and the Graduate School of Management (Ecole Supérieure de Commerce) in Rouen with a Master’s Degree in Banking and Finance. Most of his career was built in the financial sector of Poland including PKO Bank Polski and First Ukrainian International Bank as well as Citibank, Poland (Bank Handlowy w Warszawie SA). Prior to being appointed to AlfaBank Ukraine in 2019 he was the change-manager of Alfa-Bank’s operation in Belarus, reshaping that organisation.

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Alfa-Bank’s ‘You can’ campaign invited people to share smiles on Kyiv’s largest advertising screen

he bank ceased to be just a financial instrument long ago. It can and must make a person’s life better, reducing time spent on routine processes. And everyone is important in such a philosophy. It is necessary to communicate and seek coordinated decisions, whether that’s with a client, a partner or the State. We have built a strategy based on dialogue and support. For example, a project with an electronic database of documents, Diia (a project of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine) makes it possible for people to register in Sense SuperApp within five minutes (electronic documents are pulled in automatically). This is an opportunity to keep pace with ideas being implemented by the state, allowing Alfa-Bank to make its own contribution to economic and technological innovations.

The digital world has become real We all have been living in the digital world for a long time. It’s just that those who are quick to spot

such global changes can choose even more drivers in digital packaging. That is, they are equipped to become stronger. Our bank feels such strength and has already harnessed it, evolving from perfecting business processes to mastering the art of impressing a client and always being there for them.

Of course, the question arises: how does an organisation take a new look at the ordinary and find a genuinely fresh idea? Our digital bank, Sense SuperApp, is a perfect example. And not even because it is technological, personalized and offers much more than expected from a financial instrument. But because it makes life easier, which is the key feature of a good product.

Technological does not mean soulless. On the contrary, technologies enable us to be closer, to communicate more often, to be there 24/7. This is the principle our chats follow. We offer a brand new form of communication without scripts, and the support is there wherever the client is: on the website, in the application, messengers, networks, App Store, Google

About Alfa-Bank Ukraine

A

lfa-Bank Ukraine is a major Ukrainian commercial bank with inter national capital and is part of the private investment holding company ABH Holdings SA, with their headquarters in Luxembourg. According to the data of the National Bank of Ukraine, Alfa-Bank Ukraine belongs to the group of banks of foreign banking groups, is a systemically important bank, and is also among the top 10 financial institutions in the country in terms of assets. As on 1 January 2021, the bank’s retail network included 210 branches and 706 ATMs. The bank provides services to 1.5 million people and legal entities, and maintains a staff of over 7,000 employees.

Play and Google Maps – no matter. We have been successfully using Zendesk, a single international class platform for chat support, since last year.

The future is always about partnership. About the creator and the end user. About partners moving in the same direction. To be a partner who is always there for the customer, in their pocket, ready to help without burdening them with unnecessary things is our main challenge. Thus, we have recently launched the Chameleon credit card with the shortest terms and conditions and the longest, endless grace period.

Such steps influence the market, because they raise

the stakes. Last year Alfa-Bank Ukraine and one of the largest mobile operators of the country, Kyivstar, allowed joint access to banking and mobile accounts through Sense. This is the first partnership of its kind in Ukraine. Both companies have been holding top positions in their sectors for more than 20 years, and now they have become partners for one purpose – to provide their clients with individual offers, with a higher speed of operations and easy servicing through a single point of access.

Innovative technologies help to create “smarter” and more convenient cities by means of simple, safe and fast digital solutions. Such ideas are implemented with the support of the state. Now inhabitants of even relatively small cities will be able to pay their public transport fares with an up-to-date and convenient method using a proximity bank card, smartphone or any other device with NFC technology.

By making people’s lives simpler and easier through technology – we ourselves benefit from partnerships and opportunities. Sense SuperApp is created for people striving for more. In addition to thoroughly organised operations, the bank provides an opportunity for clients to complete a wide variety of specific tasks from the same place, which saves time for the things that are really important in their lives. The bank and its products and services are functioning as an ecosystem.

Sense SuperApp personalized digital bank is the first in Ukraine to offer remote authentication via video chat,

A bank can and should make people’s lives better, reducing the time spent on routine processes

AHUB for customers to work or relax. A new level of client service

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UKRAINE

The world is changing. We are changing.

And it is necessary not to fit in, but to adjust circumstances and rules to one’s vision.

This includes not only work but life in the times of coronavirus which is forever with us

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When an office became a home

unique personalization of the interface, drag’n’drop payment technology and its own Sense Now media outlet inside the digital bank. There are a lot of other features within the app, sometimes unusual, but technologically simple and pleasing to use. But this is only the beginning of our journey. Our team’s ambitions are high.

Our team is made up of ordinary people with extraordinary dreams We are certainly different, and we think differently. I am glad that this thinking draws attention, and most importantly – clients note that. Sense is approaching a million users, and less and less do we see paper money. I like that our team not only implements plans, but also sets a new framework for itself. We are continuing to develop those offers which make processes easier and faster.

The world is changing. We are changing. And it is necessary not to fit in, but to adjust circumstances and rules to one’s vision. This includes not only work but life in the times of coronavirus which is forever with us. The past experience taught us to be attentive to ourselves and to those close to us, but not to forget to act thoughtfully and to remain mentally fit and in control of our senses.

Digital ceased to be a trend long ago. Now, it’s a sign of our times. This dictates a departure from primitive sales, and places the emphasis on the skill of impressing a client and becoming part of their everyday lives.

Everyone is important in such a philosophy.

Ecosystem is not just a fashionable thing to mention, but a critical topic these days. It allows you to satisfy

Alfa-Bank Ukraine in numbers • 28 years of Alfa-Bank’s track record in Ukraine • 200 branches and 690 ATMs of the bank work all around Ukraine • 1.5 million individuals and legal entities are served by the bank • 7,000 people employed by the bank • 1 million people became users of the Sense SuperApp digital bank in just nine months • 250,000 of them have already merged their accounts with Kyivstar mobile accounts many of your needs with the help of one device, solve all problems quickly in order to spend time on more important things, the things that matter. That is why our new mobile application offers not just a set of features, but a lifestyle. Let’s be honest: if you have a phone and access to the Internet, then brands know a lot about you. It’s not about access to information, but about the way it will be used. How to become a partner without burdening a person with things unnecessary for them.

I believe that it is possible to copy any product, but this would make it impossible to be different. What is definitely impossible to copy is work with a client, a personalized approach and open dialogue. This is the direction in which we take confident steps, while also innovating, scaling up, and building the client base.

Even where the roads are already paved, one can seek new paths. Modern life teaches this principle to us. And F our team readily follows it.

UKRAINE

Lovin’ the Jazz in Lviv

The City of Lviv in western Ukraine, about 70km from the Polish border, has been host since 2011 to one of Europe’s largest international Jazz Festivals. The Leopolis Jazz Fest attracts top international artists, is attended by over 100,000 people.

L

viv is favourite place of tourists in Ukraine. People come to the city to enjoy a romantic weekend, visit a coffee festival, celebrate Christmas and just to walk along old streets of the city centre.

In the last week of June, Lviv becomes a jazz capital. Ukrainian jazz lovers do not have to go to Europe to listen to jazz “superstars”, but can enjoy them in Ukraine at the Leopolis Jazz Fest.

The international Leopolis Jazz Fest has been held annually on the last weekend of June in Lviv since 2011. The Leopolis Jazz Fest is one of the largest jazz festivals in Europe. In 2016, it was recognised by the renown British periodical The Guardian as one of the best jazz festivals in Europe.

For the 10 years of its existence, the Leopolis Jazz Fest has become a visiting card of the country and a top cultural event in Ukraine. The festival is annually visited by more than 100,000 guests from Ukraine and abroad. Over five days, more than 200 musicians from around the world perform on the three stages of the Leopolis Jazz Fest.

The headliners of the festival are world-class jazz stars and Grammy winners, many of whom are coming to Ukraine for the first time.

Foreign guests are attracted because of its high-level organisation and stellar line-up, not to mention the affordable prices (the cheapest ticket for 1 day of the festival is about US$25).

Below: One of the stages for the Leopolis Jazz Fest is located in the very heart of old Lviv. Rynok Square is surrounded by magnificent architecture as well as many cafes and restaurants with open terraces, which allow spectators to watch the performances while drinking a cup of famous Lviv coffee.

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UKRAINE

Above: The dense greenery of the Park of Culture and Recreation, named after Bohdan Khmelnitskyi, hosts the main concert stage dedicated to Eddie Rosner. In different years, various famous people have performed on this stage: Diana Krall, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Bobby McFerrin, Kenny Barron, George Benson, Avishai Cohen, Ahmad Jamal, Marcus Miller, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jamie Cullum, Charles Lloyd, Pat Metheny, Chucho Valdes, Wynton Marsalis, Seal, Kamasi Washington and many others.

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Above: Every year, Ukrainian performers take the stage alongside foreign jazz stars. The INSO-Lviv Academic Symphony Orchestra of the Lviv National Philharmonic has already become a traditional participant of the festival. In 2016, INSO-Lviv opened the Leopolis Jazz Fest with pianist Vadym Neselovskyi at Rynok Square. In 2017, he performed with Avishai Cohen on the Eddie Rosner stage, and in 2018 with the Lars Danielsson Group.

Left: The stage in the courtyard of Potocki Palace is ensconced on the lawn of the architectural monument. The palace is a prototype of the so-called “Entire cour et jardin” residences of King Louis XIV, built in the “baroque classicist” style, featuring a precise layout and rich exterior design. Every summer, the palace walls witness performances by the most progressive young jazz musicians at the Leopolis Jazz Fest.

Below: The festival has a whole network of picnic zones where you can watch the festival concerts on large LED screens with good sound. These zones always have their own special atmosphere: food courts, souvenir stands, master classes, a children’s carousel and other attractions that provide entertainment for the audience while they wait for the concerts. Every day, about 10,000 guests come to the largest picnic zone, the Jazz Picnic stadium, to enjoy a true celebration of music.

Right: In addition to concerts of jazz musicians from around the world, jam sessions, master classes and autograph sessions of world jazz stars are held during the festival. Occasionally, performances take place at night clubs featuring performers such as Eurovision winner Jamala improvising with multiple Grammy Award winner Robert Glasper or Bobby McFerrin’s son, Taylor McFerrin.

The art director and presenter of the main stage of the festival is the famous Ukrainian radio host Alex Kogan. He always tells festival guests interesting and sometimes funny stories about musicians. For example, that George Gershwin’s Summertime from Porgy and Bess is a jazz standard inspired by the Ukrainian folk song “Oi, khodyt son kolo vikon” (Oh, a dream is walking in front of the window).

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UKRAINE

Investing for the long-term

By LUCIO GENOVESE Chair, Ferrexpo

F LUCIO GENOVESE is a chartered accountant by training and a graduate of Witwatersrand University in South Africa and has over 30 year of experience in the metals and mining sectors including at Glencore International, where he was CEO of the CIS region, Firestone Diamonds, Mantos Copper and Nevada Copper. He was appointed Chair of Ferrexpo in August 2020.

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Ferrexpo operates a fleet of CAT793D trucks, weighing up to 380 tonnes when fully loaded

errexpo has been mining, processing and selling high quality iron ore pellets from the Ukraine to the world for over 40 years, and have built ourselves to be the third largest exporter of iron ore pellets in the world In 2020, we exported to countries in Europe and Asia, including Austria, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Vietnam and the United States.

Over the years, the communities surrounding our mines have contributed greatly to the success of this world-class asset, and we are a major employer in central Ukraine, with a workforce of over 10,000 people, who are predominantly recruited from our local communities. We understand that our role as a good corporate citizen is to ensure that this relationship with our workforce and communities is sustainable for many years ahead, with relationships that are beneficial to all parties involved.

The safety and wellbeing of our workforce has always been of paramount importance to us, an aspect that has been highlighted by the recent global pandemic.

In response to COVID-19, we acted swiftly, setting up a dedicated Response Fund in March 2020, as well as taking significant measures to protect our workforce.

Our workforce represents Ferrexpo’s DNA and their safety and wellbeing are key to all of our future plans, and we are proud of our continued strong safety performance, which is at a level significantly ahead of our peers in Western Australia.

Investment in technology helps us to maintain our global competitiveness as well as offer safety benefits. In December 2020, we successfully deployed autonomous trucks in our Yeristovo mine, becoming the first mine in Europe to successfully invest in this modern technology.

Our investment in our operations in Ukraine has also seen us increase the quality of our iron ore pellets, and we have recently commenced sales of high grade direct reduction pellets, which represent the pathway for steelmakers to produce carbon free steel.

The company operates three mines in the Poltava region of Central Ukraine, the Poltava, Yeristovo and Belanovo mines, with investment in Yeristovo leading to this being the first mine to open in Ukraine since independence. The Company also has a third mine in development, Belanovo, where initial mining activities are underway.

The global shift towards Green Steel, which is steel produced without any carbon emissions, represents the largest single development in the steel sector in modern times. Currently, global steel production accounting for 7 per cent of global carbon emissions, representing more than all of the emissions from world’s cars put together. Whilst this poses a significant problem for the steel industry, it also presents Ferrexpo with a significant opportunity, as the iron ore pellets we produce in the Ukraine represent the pathway to a global Green Steel future.

In the more immediate future, Ferrexpo’s iron ore pellets already help reduce carbon emissions in the steel industry by 40 per cent for every tonne of sinter fines replaced with pellets. Ferrexpo is therefore well positioned in both the near-term and long-term to support the global steel industry in its transition to a carbon-free future, all of which would not be possible without the significant level of investment in Ukraine that the group has made to date.

With this in mind, we believe we are a company that has already played a major economic role in the first 30 years of Ukraine’s independence, and Ferrexpo’s operations will play an even greater role going forward.

With over 50 years of reserves remaining and a continued drive to remain globally competitive, we will ensure we nurture these natural riches for the benefit of our local communities and Ukraine as a whole for F many decades ahead.

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