During a telephone conversation with U.S. President Joseph Biden on Sunday, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky invited him to pay a visit to Ukraine, according to the website of the Ukrainian head of state.
“I am convinced that your arrival in Kyiv in the coming days, which is decisive for stabilizing the situation, will be a powerful signal and will contribute to de-escalation,” Zelensky said.
During the conversation, they also talked about increasing the financial and energy stability of Ukraine against the backdrop of current challenges.
Zelensky said that the Ukrainian side understands all the current risks, ready for any development of the situation. “We will stop any escalation towards Ukraine. The capital of Ukraine, Kyiv, other cities of our state – Kharkiv and Lviv, Dnipro and Odesa – are safe and under reliable protection,” he said.
The President of Ukraine noted the steps taken by the U.S. and other partners that continue to provide effective support to Ukraine. “We expect that, among other things, it will help prevent the spread of panic,” Zelensky said.
He thanked Biden for U.S. support and noted the importance of providing effective security guarantees to Ukraine. “We are ready to discuss them in different formats,” Zelensky said, emphasizing that there can be no security in Europe without the security of Ukraine.
Issues related to Ukraine and Russia’s actions continue to be in the focus of the United States administration, regardless of where its employees are, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.
“That remains front and center in what we’re doing and indeed what I continue to do even as we’re heading to Australia,” Blinken told reporters accompanying him to Canberra aboard the plane.
“I’ve been on the phone during a chunk of this trip talking to various counterparts with some focus on Russia-Ukraine. I spent some time talking to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan as well,” he said.
“And this is part of, as we’ve tabulated, with foreign counterparts something like 200-plus engagements just in recent weeks – phone calls, video conferences, in-person meetings, where we have been working to coordinate all of our partners in standing up to this Russian aggression directed toward Ukraine,” Blinken said.
“We have been engaged in a two-track strategy where we have, on the one hand, been pursuing diplomacy, but at the same time building up strong deterrence to dissuade Russia from taking aggressive action,” the US Secretary of State said.
U.S. President Joe Biden intends to appoint Bridget Brink, who currently represents Washington in Slovakia, as the country’s ambassador to Ukraine, CNN said on Monday.
The appointment will take place when the Ukrainian side gives formal confirmation, the television channel said.
The United States has not had a permanent ambassador to Ukraine since 2019. At the moment, Kristina Kvien serves as Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.
Brink has been representing the United States in Slovakia since August 2019. She served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 2015 to 2018. She also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassies in Uzbekistan (2014-2015) and Georgia (2011-2014).
A delegation of U.S. congressmen, led by head of the International Committee of the House of Representatives Gregory Meeks, left for Ukraine on Tuesday, The Hill reports.
Both Democrats and Republicans are participating in the trip.
The visit of members of Congress to Ukraine will be the third trip to the country by legislators from the United States in recent months. Earlier last week, a delegation of the Senate visited Ukraine, and in December last year, a delegation of the House of Representatives headed by Ruben Gallego visited the country.
Meeks himself said on Monday that he supports the diplomatic path chosen by the U.S. president to reduce tension on the border between Russia and Ukraine, and also criticized Russia for the lack of signs of de-escalation.
Export of Ukrainian agricultural foods to the countries of the European Union in 2021 grew in monetary terms by 33% compared to 2020, to $8.3 billion due to an increase in the supply of agricultural products to foreign markets and its rise in price, according to a posting on the website of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club (UCAB) on Wednesday.
According to UCAB, the peak months for the export of agricultural products from Ukraine to the EU were December ($1 billion), October ($0.98 billion) and November ($0.97 billion). The lowest export rates were recorded in July ($0.48 billion), April ($0.49 billion) and March ($0.5 billion).
In 2021, nine quotas for duty-free exports to the EU have also been fully used, namely for honey, cereals, flour, starch, processed starch, processed tomatoes, grape and apple juice, chicken eggs, poultry meat (parts), and processed cereal products.
“Compared to 2020, the situation has changed with the use of quotas for the supply of sugar and corn to the EU, or rather with their incomplete use. As for sugar, last year the quota was used by 87% due to a shortage in the domestic market of this product. At the same time, the quota for corn was used by only 5% due to increased demand for this type of grain and the availability of more attractive export channels for Ukrainian farmers,” UCAB said, quoting its analyst Svitlana Lytvyn.
In addition, UCAB said that as of January 18, 2022, Ukraine has fully used the first-quarter quotas for the export of eggs and poultry meat to the EU, as well as the annual quota for the export of honey.
As reported, Ukraine in 2020, within the framework of a free trade area (FTA) agreement with the EU, fully used 11 quotas for duty-free export of agricultural products, while in 2019 there were 12 of them.
The visit of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Ukraine and Germany will take place on January 18 to 20, according to a statement released by the U.S. Department of State on Tuesday.
“In Kyiv, Blinken will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to reinforce the United States’ commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Department of State Spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement.
According to the document, on January 20, Blinken will travel to Berlin, where he is scheduled to meet with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
In turn, the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine said that on January 19, Blinken will pay a visit to Ukraine at the invitation of Foreign Minister Kuleba.
“The visit will be a continuation of close coordination between Ukraine and the United States in order to deter Russia from further aggression,” the ministry said.
It is noted that Kuleba and Blinken will hold talks on the further implementation of a comprehensive containment package for Russia, practical support for Ukraine by the United States, and active diplomatic efforts to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian armed conflict.”
The parties will also discuss issues of strategic partnership between Ukraine and the United States in the areas of security, trade, investment and others.
