Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, trying to sound optimistic but showing the strain of Russia's war against the nation, called on the West to stand firm against what he called President Vladimir Putin's assault on not only Ukraine but also global security.
In
remarks on Nov. 18 to open a business conference in Kyiv with Norwegian Prime Minister
Erna Solberg, Yatsenyuk said:
“We kindly request that the Western
world be united to stay strong and active in concert and jointly
against the Russian aggression. This is not just about Ukraine. It’s
about the global order and international law that is brutally
violated by the Russian Federation and the Russian president. We have
to do our best to stop this war, to have peace in Ukraine and have
our nation stable, flourishing and not scared of any distortion.
Yatsenyuk
said that he is hopeful for more business deals between energy-poor
Ukraine and energy-rich Norway. He highlighted agreements with
Norwegian oil giant Statoil as well as the prospect of Norway
delivering up to eight billion cubic meters of natural gas a year to
Ukraine via Poland to help lessen dependence on Russian natural gas.
He also
called on Norwegian firms to invest in the upgrading of Ukraine’s
natural gas pipeline and gas storage capacity.
On the
bright side, Yatsenyuk noted that Ukraine’s agricultural sector may
grow 6 percent this year, in contrast to the overall economy which
may show a 7 percent to 10 percent drop in gross domestic product.
Yatsenyuk,
however, acknowledged that Ukrainian trade with the Scandinavian
nation of 5.2 million people is “is still underdeveloped.”
He
didn’t skirt what he called the “bad news” of Russia waging war
against Ukraine and not adhering to the Sept. 5 Minsk cease-fire
agreement. He blamed “Russian-led terrorists” for waging a war
that serves as a “key impediment to making the Ukrainian economy
more stable, more flourishing.”
Solberg,
the first Norwegian prime minister to visit independent Ukraine, said
the nation “has been in the hearts of most Norwegians in the last
year.” She said seminars such as the one sponsored by the
Norwegian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce in Kyiv on Nov. 18 “also
show there is a way forward for being more hope and development to
Ukraine.”
She also
noted that, while ties between Norway and Ukraine go back to the
medieval Viking era, bilateral trade remains weak in almost all areas
except the export of Norwegian seafood to Ukraine. She said 35
Norwegian companies are doing business in Ukraine, but hoped for more
development in the agricultural and energy spheres, especially as
Ukraine strengthens its rule of law.
The two
prime ministers spoke briefly at the start of the business forum in
the Hyatt Regency Hotel and took no questions from journalists before
leaving. Afterwards, Deputy Head of Presidential Administration Dmytro Shymkiv, in charge
of reforms, highlighted the three major areas of reform in the next
three years: 1. rule of law; 2. deregulation and 3. decentralization.
Kyiv Post chief editor Brian Bonner can be reached at [email protected].
