US terminates support for Ukraine's energy grid restoration, NBC reports
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The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was instructed by the State Department to terminate initiatives set to help restore Ukraine's energy grid, NBC News reported citing two USAID officials working on the matter.
The termination was finalized prior to President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to Washington.
“It significantly undercuts this administration’s abilities to negotiate on the ceasefire, and it’d signal to Russia that we don’t care about Ukraine or our past investments,” a USAID official told NBC News.
Russia has launched more than 30 mass strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure over the three years of its full-scale invasion, Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said on Feb. 24.
"Each large-scale attack on the energy sector involves 100-200, and now 3,000 different munitions that simultaneously hit power generation facilities, substations, power lines, and gas infrastructure," Halushchenko wrote on Facebook.
Russia continues to target Ukrainian energy infrastructure, testing Ukraine's resolve as the country is enduring another winter.
Material losses from Russian attacks have amounted to "billions of dollars," according to the minister.
USAID has funded a wide range of initiatives in Ukraine, from energy security to civil society development. U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a 90-day freeze on all foreign assistance upon taking office, effectively halting USAID-funded programs worldwide.
Ukraine is working to secure alternative funding sources for critical programs previously supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and has already reached preliminary agreements on some, Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Olha Stefanishyna said on Feb. 7.
"The negotiations are ongoing. Ministers in the Ukrainian government have held meetings on critical programs — Energy, Infrastructure, Digital Transformation, and Justice Ministries," she said at a conference attended by the Kyiv Independent.
Stefanishyna emphasized that urgent funding has already been identified for recovery efforts, energy resilience, and cyber defense projects.
