Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky believes that Ukraine can build warships on its own, and not just order them abroad.
At a press briefing in Ochakiv on Wednesday night following the examination of three warships returned by Russia, the head of state told reporters that a contract between Ukraine and France on the production of a batch of patrol vessels and technical support services for them is important to Ukraine, however support for domestic shipbuilding should be a priority.
“I’ll be honest, this contract was prepared before my presidency. Today I support this contract. Anyway, our own production is more important to us, [we should] support Mykolaiv and the region so that professionals, who have left because nothing had been constructed here for many years, return home,” the president said.
Zelensky added that Ukrainian Navy Commander Ihor Voronchenko presented him a shipbuilding development strategy.
“We are planning to build corvettes. We have a plan, although you know that any plan should have a real deadline and be supported by the budget,” he said.
In turn, Voronchenko recalled that Ukraine is planning to build four corvettes by 2028.
As reported, a new version of the Corvette State Program approved by the government in November 2017 provides for the construction of four corvettes for the Ukrainian Navy by 2028. The construction of the lead ship will be finished in 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called on investors to invest in Ukrainian people, who are the main capital of the country, and reiterated that he personally guarantees protection to each investor. “You are in a phenomenal country. Without modesty, I’ll say that this is one of the most interesting and attractive startups on planet Earth. Yes, for 28 years important reforms were imitated, built a shadowy opaque system. As a result, Ukraine has become a kind of economic underdog. But the new Ukrainian government is too ambitious to put up with such a very unattractive status, and when they say that our chances are low, when they underestimate us, all this adds us adrenaline, determination, strength for a powerful economic leap,” he said, speaking at the Kyiv International Economic Forum on Friday.
Zelensky said that people are the main capital of Ukraine.
“This is the very one Made in Ukraine that we are proud of and which gives us a competitive advantage. After all, the modern global economy is actually an economy of talents. Economic growth in the world is mainly thanks to innovation, while Ukrainians are ready to become pioneers, Ukrainians are able to look to the future and understand the needs of tomorrow. Ukrainians are very talented, hardworking, courageous, ambitious, creative, and this is exactly what your investment needs,” he said, addressing investors.
The president said that Ukraine is well aware that the country needs equal rules of the game for everyone, cleansing the judiciary, overcoming corruption, digitalizing processes, reforming education in accordance with the challenges of the 21st century, laws that are vital for the economy, even when they are unpopular.
“Every day, together with the government and parliament, we are putting all these bills into life,” he said.
Zelensky called on investors to invest in Ukrainians, in Ukrainian youth, in Ukrainian startups, small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine.
“And remember: today, Ukraine is a rough diamond that needs to be cut with internal reforms and external investments to become a real diamond not only in the center of Europe, but throughout the world. And I, as president, guarantee that I am ready to personally protect your every investment, every penny that you invest in each of our Ukrainians,” he said.
The president also said that the video shown before the opening of the forum said that, according to the forecasts of futurologists, until 2050 there will be two main players in the world: China and India, but it was also said that “futurologists are sometimes mistaken.”
“When I decided to run for the post of the president of Ukraine, there were also two other leaders, but futurologists are sometimes mistaken. Therefore, we all have to do everything this time so that futurologists are also mistaken, and among the two columns where India and China are, Ukraine too occupies pride of place,” he said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has instructed to eradicate total corruption in the field of state architectural and construction control and urban planning by the end of 2019, a president’s press service reported. Zelensky set the appropriate task to Minister of Development of Communities and Territories Olena Babak during a meeting with the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada and the Cabinet of Ministers in the President’s Office.
The head of state noted the need to switch rendering of the administrative services in construction to an electronic format and introduce automatic registration in the register of approval documents.
As the President’s Office reported, Zelensky commissioned Minister of Justice of Ukraine Denys Maliuska to change the software of real estate and business registers to stop unauthorized access. Besides, by the end of June 2020, Maliuska must ensure the formation of the legislative framework for the operation of an electronic notarial system.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has appointed Andrew Mac, the head of Ukrainian law firm Asters office in Washington, as his non-staff adviser (by consent). The head of state signed relevant decree on November 5, according to the president’s press service.
Andrew Mac specializes in cross-border transactions involving the U.S., Ukraine and CIS entities being an expert in mergers and acquisitions, corporate and competition law, corporate compliance, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and Bribery Act, capital markets and state regulations.
He has deep hands-on experience in coordinating complex cross-border disputes, as well as in advising Ukrainian and CIS businesses in their U.S. partner interactions.
Andrew Mac is a licensed advocate both in Ukraine and the United States. He is a member of American Bar Association and Ukrainian-American Bar Association.
Asters was founded in 1995 as Shevchenko Didkovskiy and Partners and renamed to Asters during rebranded in 2008.
In 2010, Kyiv Post recognized Andrew Mac one of the most influential foreigners in Ukraine.
Tax reform in Ukraine will start in 2021, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said during the RE:THINK. Invest in Ukraine investment forum in Mariupol.
“We will carry out a serious tax reform, which will begin in 2021,” he said.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko believes that Ukraine and Belarus may jointly apply for hosting the Olympic Games in the future.
“The President of Ukraine offers us to think together about whether we can even apply for hosting the Olympic Games. We can do it, two countries can,” he said, speaking at the Second Forum of Regions of Ukraine and Belarus in Zhytomyr on Friday.
