Today's Contents
Just The Facts:
- Zelensky has proposed free trade agreement to Trump, Ukraine's trade envoy says
- Ukraine aims to maintain post-war EU trade benefits, trade envoy says
- Japan and Sweden-funded autotransformers arrive in Ukraine for Ukrenergo
Here's What They Think:
- Politico: Trump still has a chance to be remembered as a peacemaker
- Foreign Policy: Russia has started losing the war in Ukraine
Sober Second Thought:
- War drives surge in food insecurity across Ukraine's frontline regions: FAO, KSE, WFP assessment
The Rebuilder's Social:
- DiXi Group announces launch of Green Finance Catalogue. Government posts abut progress in demining technology. Vestas turbines about to be delivered to Tyligulska Wind Power Plant.
Zelensky has proposed free trade agreement to Trump, Ukraine's trade envoy says
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has proposed to US President Donald Trump that their two countries conclude a free trade agreement (FTA), Interfax Ukraine reported on Tuesday, citing Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative Taras Kachka.
"To the best of my knowledge, President Zelenskyy addressed this proposal to President Trump in that letter. Accordingly, this will be the next phase of our discussions," Kachka said at a conference in Kyiv, as quoted by Interfax.
Kachka emphasized Ukraine's strong interest in pursuing such an agreement, even though the US is not one of its largest trading partners.
"We are interested in FTAs with all G7 countries. We already have agreements with the United Kingdom, Canada, and the European Union. What we still need are the United States and Japan," he said.
Kachka said earlier that Ukrainian exports to the US increased by 67% in 2024, reaching $869 million and representing 2.08% of Ukraine's total exports. Meanwhile, imports from the US totaled $3.4 billion, accounting for 4.95% of Ukraine's total imports.
Kachka also said he believes that the creation of the US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund offers a solid foundation for negotiating a bilateral free trade agreement.
"That's why I think the United States might find this interesting. But we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves – we are still at the very beginning of this journey," he noted.
Ukraine aims to maintain post-war EU trade benefits, trade envoy says
Ukraine is hoping that the European Union (EU) will retain a temporary suspension of tariffs and quotas on agricultural trade with the war-torn country after June 5, after the expiry of the so-called Autonomous Trade Measures (ATM) is set to expire, Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative Taras Kachka.
"I believe we'll do everything in our power to ensure that, at least as of June 6, there are no de facto changes," Interfax Ukraine quoted Kachka as saying at a conference in Kyiv on Tuesday.
The EU granted the ATM to Ukraine after Russia's full-scale invasion to help the country manage the higher costs of its exports through the bloc.
Kachka noted that the European Commission planned to launch a review under Article 29 of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) agreement between Ukraine and the EU, with the goal of enhancing market access for both Ukrainian goods in the EU and EU goods in Ukraine, for the period after the ATM ends.
"And while everything has gone according to the European Commission's plan regarding the ATMs, the review under Article 29 has been delayed somewhat due to a variety of external circumstances. Still, I hope we'll reach a decision swiftly – if not by June 6, then as soon as possible afterward," Kachka said.
Earlier this month, Reuters reported that the EU could temporarily reintroduce tariffs and quotas in its trade with Ukraine if a new deal is not ready to start when the ATM ends.
Ukrainian officials and farming organizations have warned that allowing the ATM to expire without an alternative plan could result in a €3.3 billion loss in exports and a 2.5% decline in gross domestic product, Politico reported earlier.
Japan and Sweden-funded autotransformers arrive in Ukraine for Ukrenergo
Three high-power autotransformers, two funded by Japan and one by Sweden, have been delivered to Ukraine's state-run energy transmission system operator Ukrenergo, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said on Tuesday.
The autotransformers will secure a stable electricity supply to over 5.5 million Ukrainians, the UNDP said in a press release. Each delivered unit weighs more than 230 tons, exceeds 10 meters in length, and stands over 3 meters high.
"Autotransformers are critical to the operation of electric power transmission system. Over three years of the full-scale war, Russia has carried out more than 45 large-scale attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, resulting in the loss of a significant amount of equipment, including autotransformers," said Ukrenergo's Acting Chairman Oleksii Brekht.
According to Ukraine's Energy Ministry, over 63,000 energy facilities in Ukraine have been damaged since the Russian full-scale invasion in February 2022, while the World Bank estimated direct damage to energy and extractives to be over $20 billion.
Politico: Trump still has a chance to be remembered as a peacemaker
There's still a chance to end the war in Ukraine in a way that works for everyone and gives US President Donald Trump the legacy of a peacemaker - to make that happen, he needs to focus on putting pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin and making sure the US negotiates from a strong position, Daniel Kochis, a senior fellow at the Center on Europe and Eurasia at Hudson Institute, wrote in an op-ed for Politico.
Russia won't choose to end the war on its own if it thinks it's winning, and the fighting will only stop if the Kremlin is forced to see that continuing the war is too costly and pointless, Kochis argued.
Foreign Policy: Russia has started losing the war in Ukraine
Ukraine has become a major problem for Moscow - Russia's military is stuck, suffering heavy losses with no clear path forward, and while the Kremlin can try to control the narrative and hide the worst of the war from the Russian people, that will not do the job for long, Michael Kimmage, director of the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington, wrote in an op-ed for Foreign Policy.
What Putin can't cover up as easily is Russia’s weakening economy, Kimmage argued, noting that the costs of the war are catching up with Russia. Even though the change is happening slowly, the signs are clear that Russia is starting to lose, he wrote.
War drives surge in food insecurity across Ukraine's frontline regions: FAO, KSE, WFP assessment
Nearly one-third of households in Ukraine's frontline and bordering (FLB) regions are food insecure, with many forced to adopt negative coping strategies such as cutting back on healthcare, education, and food consumption, according to an assessment conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Kyiv School of Economics (KSE), and World Food Programme (WFP).
The situation is especially difficult for those living within 30 kilometers of the frontline, where food insecurity rates spike significantly. In these zones, households report reduced access to supermarkets, soaring food prices, and diminished agricultural yields.
Overall, 38% of all surveyed households identified food as their primary need, surpassing even healthcare, with female-headed households being 50% more likely to be food insecure than male-headed ones.
Agriculture, which is a key part of Ukraine's economy, is under serious threat, according to the paper. Forty-three percent of agricultural households reported a decline in food production in the past year, driven by military activity, mined fields, rising input costs, and labor shortages.
Over 13% of agricultural land has been rendered unusable. Nearly 70% of farming households say they urgently need inputs like seeds and fertilizers. Most of these households (82%) now farm solely to feed themselves, signaling a sharp retreat from market-based production.
The war has devastated Ukraine’s economy, shrinking GDP by 29% in 2022 and pushing 7.1 million more people into poverty. In FLB oblasts—such as Donetska, Zaporizka, and Khersonska—poverty is exacerbated by high unemployment and loss of male laborers to conscription, as per the assessment.
Up to 40% of working-age individuals are economically inactive, and 35% of households rely solely on pensions, social benefits, or humanitarian aid. For many, income has declined or stagnated, even as food prices have risen by nearly 50 percent since 2022, the authors wrote.
Financial vulnerability is widespread. Thirty-eight percent of households are in debt, often due to essential costs like energy and medical care. Nearly half of all households spend more than 50% of their income on food. Many are resorting to crisis-level strategies such as depleting savings or reducing spending on health and education. Among agricultural households, 20% have slashed input purchases, jeopardizing future harvests.
The assessment, which surveyed over 5,200 households between August and October 2024, reveals a sharp demographic shift in war-affected areas. Nearly 77% of Ukraine's internally displaced people originate from FLB oblasts. Some oblasts have lost over half their population. Women, elderly persons, and single caregivers now make up a significant share of the population, according to the report.
Social Media Posts
Catalogue of Green Finance
DiXi Group, the Ukrainian think tank, announced the upcoming launch of The Green Platform, a digital catalogue of available green financing programs for businesses and communities.
"The Green Platform will be available on the Made in Ukraine website and will include:
🔰 a catalogue of loan, grant, and investment programs;
🔰 personalized search tools tailored to the needs of businesses, enterprises, or communities;
🔰 an informational section on green transformation, examples of implemented projects, and useful resources for getting started."
Tyligulska Wind Power Plant to receive Vestas turbines soon
Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's first deputy prime minister and economy minister, highlighted that the Tyligulska Wind Power Plant in Ukraine's Mykolaiv region is about to receive delivery of the first Vestas turbines.
The delivery is part of a $450 million agreement between DTEK, the largest private investor in Ukraine's energy sector, and the Danish company Vestas signed at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos in January.
Progress in Mine Clearance
Ihor Bezkaravainyi, deputy minister of economy of Ukraine, posted about progress in Ukraine's National Mine Action Strategy and Operational Plan adopted a year ago.
"I don't want to give formal figures. But I've got to admit that there's real progress. We are developing a register of contaminated areas, approved standards for the use of drones and satellite imagery, and successfully piloted the GRIT prioritization system, developed in collaboration with tech giant Palantir Technologies."
And More Progress in Mine Clearance
Demine Ukraine, the government platform to accelerate demining, posted about advances in technology helping clear mines, including the CETUS and BEETLE drones that collect data through multispectral and thermal imaging cameras from DEF-C and transmit it to IRIZI Demining software.
"Before the full-scale war, non-technical surveys were based mostly on visual inspection, map analysis and local interviews. Today, technology allows for much faster and safer surveys," Demine Ukraine wrote.
URN Daily: Sense Bank and Ukrgasbank for sale? And US seeks to cancel $4.7 billion of Ukraine's debt
