Ukraine and Slovakia discussed cooperation projects in the field of transportation and energy

The First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine, Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko met with the Vice Prime Minister for Recovery, Resilience Plan and Use of EU Funds of the Slovak Republic Peter Kmec and members of the Slovak government. She reported on the meeting on her Facebook page, UNN reports.

This meeting is part of the preparations for the upcoming meeting of the governments of Ukraine and Slovakia. We discussed very specific projects that could potentially be implemented through the Pillar II investment mechanism under the Ukraine Facility.

Details

According to the report of the Ukrainian Minister of Economy, during the talks with the Slovak side, they raised such important topics as the development of cooperation in passenger and freight rail transportation, the modernization of Ukrainian-Slovak checkpoints for pedestrian and automobile traffic, and the prospects for strengthening Ukraine's energy capacity.

Svyrydenko noted three projects that are already underway:

• Accelerating the reconstruction of the Mukachevo - Velke Kapushany interconnector. The Minister emphasized that the connection of national power grids will contribute to the stability of the Ukrainian energy system. 
• Launch of the Kyiv-Kosice passenger rail service. According to Svyrydenko, the railway infrastructure on the Ukrainian side is ready to provide passenger service. The railway infrastructure on the Slovak side is expected to be ready.
• Modernization of the automobile and pedestrian checkpoints. Namely, the completion of the reconstruction of the passenger area of one of the checkpoints, which will allow to separate the movement of buses and trucks and thus increase the cargo flow.

All of these projects are crucial for the development of Ukraine and Slovakia and are possible only with close cooperation between the governments. Their implementation is a contribution to our economic self-sufficiency, as these steps will help us expand our export capacity and improve logistics.

Speaking about this meeting, Yulia Svyrydenko also appealed to Ukrainian entrepreneurs to join the creation of projects for Pillar II. She promised that now is a good time to expand, modernize, or start a business.

I also encourage Ukrainian businesses to prepare their projects for Pillar II under the Ukraine Facility. Both private companies and state-owned and public companies investing in priority sectors will have access to funding. Funding will be provided by international financial organizations (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), European Investment Bank, etc.): either directly or through Ukrainian banks. This is a good chance to expand, modernize or start a business. There are enough funds, so quality projects are already waiting.