Today's Contents
Just The Facts:
- Ukraine's MHP makes binding offer to acquire Spanish poultry producer Uvesa
- US disburses $20 billion Ukraine loan to World Bank fund
- Ukraine signs $266 million maintenance and parts deal with the US for F-16s
- Zelensky tells Trump of Ukraine's need for security guarantees, sources say
- Kherson region secures €4 million for water supply reconstruction
Here's What They Think:
- Financial Times: Investors need to ready response to potential Ukraine peace
- Wilson Center: Ukraine peace plans fail to punish, deter Russia
Sober Second Thought:
- Ukrainians believe nuclear weapons and NATO are the best security guarantees, survey finds
Ukraine's MHP makes binding offer to acquire Spanish poultry producer Uvesa
MHP, Ukraine's largest poultry producer, has submitted a binding offer to acquire Uvesa Group, a leading poultry supplier in Spain, for an undisclosed sum.
MHP has submitted a tender offer addressed to all shareholders of Uvesa, MHP said in a stock filing. The acquisition is subject to 50.01% approval from shareholders and regulatory approvals.
"This acquisition is another strategic step in the journey of MHP, which is consolidating its position as an important player in the global food industry, whilst also securing a strategic long-term investor for Uvesa Group," the company said.
Besides raising and processing poultry, Uvesa raises and processes pigs and owns various animal feed manufacturing centers, according to its website. The company, which says it has more than 1,500 shareholders, didn't immediately comment on its site on the takeover offer.
In September, the Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) acquired a 12.6% stake in MHP. The company is one of Ukraine's leading exporters of vegetable oils. It exports over 60% of its production to more than 70 countries, with key markets in the Middle East, the European Union, and Africa.
In 2023, MHP received $480 million in financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and two other international development organizations. The financing aimed at refinancing debt, boosting output, and expanding MHP's agricultural waste-to-energy facilities.
US disburses $20 billion Ukraine loan to World Bank fund
The US Department of Treasury said on Tuesday it has allocated to a World Bank fund a $20 billion loan to benefit Ukraine, as part of the $50 billion package by the G7 group of countries backed by profits from frozen Russian assets.
"These funds — paid for by the windfall proceeds earned from Russia's own immobilized assets — will provide Ukraine a critical infusion of support as it defends its country against an unprovoked war of aggression," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said.
The funding has been transferred to the World Bank's Facilitation of Resources to Invest in Strengthening Ukraine Financial Intermediary Fund, through which it will make available to Ukraine, the Treasury Department said in a press release.
The G7 group — the US, Canada, Japan, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and the EU — reached an agreement on the $50 billion loan package for Ukraine in October. The package was first announced in June.
The EU, which initially pledged up to €35 billion before the G7 partners announced their contributions, last month committed to allocating €18.1 billion after the US agreed to provide the $20 billion, while the UK, Canada, and Japan committed smaller amounts.
Zelensky tells Trump of Ukraine's need for security guarantees, sources say
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky used his first meeting with US President-elect Donal Trump to talk of Ukraine's need for security guarantees in any negotiated peace deal with Russia, Reuters reported, citing two unnamed sources.
The news comes amid concerns in Kyiv that Trump's goal of a swift end to the war would come on Moscow's terms.
Reuters spoke with five people who are familiar with the meeting's content. Four said Trump repeated that he wanted an immediate ceasefire to start negotiating the end of the war. One source added that Trump seemed respectful, friendly, and in a listening mode.
"Some key points were mentioned during the meeting – for example, it was said that peace needs guarantees because a ceasefire alone isn't enough, Putin could break it again, as he has done before, without proper guarantees," an unnamed source in Zelensky's office stated, adding that Trump "is thinking about all the details."
French President Emmanuel Macron — who hosted the meeting in Paris — and Zelensky were in agreement, but avoided not seeming like they are cornering Trump, one official said. The duo were outlining the situation in Ukraine, while highlighting that, without US support, it could be difficult for Ukraine, the official added.
Another source said that Macron explained to Trump that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not the same in 2024 as in 2017, when Trump was first in the White House.
Separately, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that peace talks between Ukraine and Russia could begin this winter, Le Monde reported.
"Our (EU) presidency will notably be co-responsible for what the political landscape will look like, perhaps how the situation will look during (peace) negotiations, which could begin – though there are still question marks – in the winter of this year," Tusk told reported. "Today (Tuesday) I will have the chance to talk about this with President Volodymyr Zelensky."
Ukraine signs $266 million maintenance and parts deal with the US for F-16s
Ukraine has signed a deal with the US government worth $266.4 million for sustainment services and related equipment for the f-16 fighter jet.
The sale contract includes maintenance support, minor modifications, and spare and repair parts, among other equipment.
"This proposed sale will improve Ukraine’s capability to meet current and future threats by further equipping it to conduct self-defense and regional security missions with a more robust air defense capability," said the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in a press release.
The contractors will be Belgium-based Sabena, US-based Lockheed Martin, and US-based Pratt and Whitney.
Separately, Ukrainian-made Peklo drones have successfully completed the first trial, said President Volodymyr Zelensky during a speech, adding that the first batch was already delivered to the military.
"The Palianytsia missile has entered serial production," Zelensky stated. "The new Ruta missile is undergoing successful trials, and the long-range Neptune will soon become a terrifying reality for the occupiers."
Ukraine's Kherson region secures €4 million for water supply reconstruction
Ukraine's southern region of Kherson has attracted €4 million in international aid for the reconstruction of water supply systems, Head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration Oleksandr Prokudin said on Tuesday.
Prokudin made the announcement following a meeting with representatives of VNG International - the International Cooperation Agency of the Association of Netherlands Municipalities.
The project involves the restoration of the water supply and drainage facilities in Visokopillia, Novovorontsov, Chornobaivka, and Kherson communities, Prokudin wrote in a post on Telegram, adding that the initiative will be continued in 2025 thanks to the additional funding.
The water supply issues in Kherson stem from severe damage to infrastructure caused by the ongoing war and the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in June 2023.
The destruction of the dam has endangered over 80 settlements in southern Ukraine, while the reservoir's draining caused a severe centralized water supply shortage, worsened by continued Russian attacks on hydraulic infrastructure, according to UNDP.
Financial Times: Investors need to prepare response to potential peace in Ukraine
Money managers need to start contemplating what their response would be to a possible peace in Ukraine as this "potential positive wild card in unloved European markets" is being overlooked by investors who are mostly focused on the US, a member of the Financial Times editorial board, Katie Martin, wrote in an op-ed.
Wilson Center: Ukraine peace plans fail to punish, deter Russia
Proposed peace plans for Ukraine that are being floated in the media don't address punishing Russia or creating mechanisms to deter it in the future, which may lead to the reignition of the war with potential targets also including Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, or Poland, Ukraine's MP Halyna Yanchenko wrote in an op-ed for the Wilson Center.
Ukrainians believe nuclear weapons and NATO are the best security guarantees, survey finds
Ukrainians are nearly equally divided on the best security guarantees for Ukraine, with 31.3% supporting the development of nuclear weapons and 29.3% favoring gradual NATO accession, an annual survey commissioned by Kyiv-based think tank New Europe Center showed.
Other potential security options are significantly less favored. Only 11.2% support a defense alliance with the US, 8.9% trust in UN peacekeepers, and just 6.4% believe in the effectiveness of European troops in Ukraine.
64.1% of Ukrainians believe negotiations with Russia are pointless without concrete security guarantees from the West, arguing that Russia would resume the war after a brief pause, according to the opinion poll. Meanwhile, about 30% support negotiations regardless, citing Ukraine's limited resources for a prolonged conflict.
Nearly 40% of Ukrainians think that Ukraine should negotiate only after Russia withdraws its troops to at least the positions before the start of full-scale invasion in February 2022.
New Europe also asked respondents to assess the possibility of certain concessions in peace talks with Russia. Compared to last year's survey, a certain softening of the respondents' position was recorded. For example, this year, 53.2% believe that it is unacceptable to refrain from the reclaiming of the occupied territories. Last year, that figure stood at 76.2%.
70.3% of Ukrainians support the idea of Ukraine's gradual accession to NATO, while more than a third of Ukrainians (34%) believe that Ukraine will become a member of the EU within the next 5 years, the survey found.
The majority of Ukrainians (57.2%) believe that the Western partners are not doing enough to ensure Ukraine's victory, while nearly 40% are convinced that the allies are doing everything possible for Ukraine to win.
Among foreign leaders, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Polish President Andrzej Duda lead in terms of Ukrainians' trust, with both having virtually the same score, of 65%.
The relatively high level of trust among Ukrainians in the US President-elect Donald Trump is notable, especially compared to trust levels for Joe Biden, which declined to 55.2% from 81.8% last year, and similar ratings in European countries.
For instance, Trump was trusted by 16% in France, 30% in the UK, and 37% in Hungary—the most favorable European rating—yet still lower than the 44.6% trust level among Ukrainians. This strong support likely stems from expectations of a more decisive and clear policy toward Ukraine, according to the New Europe Center.
The survey was conducted from Nov. 15 to Nov. 27. The sample for the opinion poll consisted of 1,000 respondents.
UkraineInvest, the Ukrainian government investment promotion agency, posted that its leadership met with the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine to discuss working "together to improve the investment climate in Ukraine and attract American investors, especially those with capital investments."
German development Agency GIZ Ukraine agreed to help provide medical equipment for the hospital’s pediatric surgical and anesthesiology services to improve the quality of care and expand the scope of surgical interventions.
The USAID Energy Security Project (ESP) announced that it delivered two cogeneration units, with capacities of 530 kV and 350 kV, to ensure heating for 20,000 residents in 114 multi-story residential buildings and critical infrastructure facilities, including "7 kindergartens, 4 schools, 4 higher education institutions, 5 dormitories, and 8 social facilities in Lutsk."
UNDP Ukraine said it bought modern portable air quality monitoring equipment and organized training for engineers from the departments of ecology and municipal services in Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, and Okhtyrka in Sumy Oblast.
Dentons Ukraine promoted an article exploring "recent developments in war-risk insurance products for investments in Ukraine, highlighting key initiatives and the draft law."
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