Ukraine could gain a tariff-free trade zone with the United States after the war, a move that would be “game changing” for the country’s recovery and global investment appeal, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff claimed Thursday.
Speaking at the Ukraine Breakfast on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, Witkoff said US President Donald Trump has discussed the idea of granting Ukraine tariff-free access to the US market once the war ends.
“The president has talked about a tariff-free zone from Ukraine that I think would be game-changing,” Witkoff said, according to Ukrainian media RBC-Ukraine.
“You’ll see industry moving to that area.”
Witkoff said Ukraine would gain a competitive edge by being able to ship goods to the United States without tariffs, encouraging manufacturers and investors to relocate production to the country as part of postwar reconstruction.
The remarks come as Kyiv seeks long-term economic guarantees from Western partners, not only to rebuild infrastructure destroyed by Russia’s invasion but also to anchor Ukraine more firmly into Western supply chains.
Witkoff also added that efforts are underway to bring the war to an end, saying Ukrainians “truly deserve” peace after nearly four years of full-scale fighting.
Trump is set to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on Thursday.
Trump had earlier said that he would meet his Ukrainian counterpart on Wednesday – even telling the conference in Davos that Zelensky “might be in the audience.”
After hinting he might skip Davos altogether, the Ukrainian president is now racing to the Alps for a high-stakes, hastily arranged meeting with Trump – a rendezvous announced by the US president after days of uncertainty over whether it would happen at all.
By Thursday morning, the fate of Ukraine’s war, the unity of the Western alliance and Trump’s own claim to be the world’s dealmaker-in-chief may hinge on a conversation neither side seemed sure would occur.