The agreement, signed on April 30, establishes a joint investment fund between Kyiv and Washington and grants the U.S. special access to projects developing Ukraine's natural resources.
Ukraine is considering moving away from the U.S. dollar and closer to the euro as a benchmark for the hryvnia, National Bank Governor Andrii Pyshnyi told Reuters.
The Atesh partisan group claims it disabled communication at several Russian military facilities when it allegedly destroyed equipment at a transformer substation in the village of Mogiltsy in Russia's Moscow Oblast.
"The Russians are asking for a certain set of requirements, a certain set of concessions in order to end the conflict. We think they’re asking for too much," U.S. Vice President JD Vance said on May 7, according to Politico.
EU ambassadors began talks this week on a 17th sanctions package that targets Russia’s military-industrial complex, Moscow’s shadow shipping fleet, and related support networks.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during the United Nations General Assembly in New York, U.S., on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023. (Photo credit: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his speech at the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 19 that Russia's war against Ukraine poses a threat to global security as the Kremlin weaponizes energy and food against nations across the world.
The president stressed that by blocking Ukraine's grain exports and attacking Ukrainian ports, Russia seeks to escalate global food shortages and blackmail the world into recognizing its conquest of Ukraine's territory.
"It is a clear Russia's attempt to weaponize the food shortage on the global market in exchange for recognition for some if not all captured territories," Zelensky said.
The president turned his criticism also toward Kyiv's partners who continue to block Ukraine's grain imports despite the already dire situation caused by the Russian blockade.
"It is alarming to see how some of our friends in Europe play with our solidarity in a political theater," he said, adding that these nations are inadvertently "helping to set the stage for" Moscow.
Though Zelensky did not name any concrete countries, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary announced they would keep their restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports despite the EU's decision not to prolong the ban.
Just as the Kremlin weaponizes global food supplies, it does so with energy, including oil, gas, and nuclear power, Zelensky continued.
Russia is spreading its "unreliable nuclear power plant" technology abroad and uses other countries' nuclear plants as "dirty bombs," Zelensky added, referring to Russia's terrorism threats against Ukraine's occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
Zelensky called for the nuclear disarmament of Russia due to its aggressive behavior, commenting that "terrorists have no right to hold nuclear weapons."
The president reminded that Ukraine itself gave up its nuclear arsenal upon agreement with the world's powers in the 1990s.
Ukraine's head of state called for unity among the world's nations in countering Russian aggression.
According to Zelensky, more than 120 nations and organizations supported Kyiv's peace formula, which he said could serve as a template for future conflict resolution and ensure that the wars are solved on the terms of the defending party.
The president invited the U.N. leaders to attend the Global Peace Summit, which is to be held this fall.
Zelensky added that he is also aware of attempts at closing "shady" deals with Russia "behind the scenes," warning U.N. leaders against trusting the Kremlin.
"Evil cannot be trusted. Ask (Yevgeny) Prigozhin if one can bet on (Vladimir) Putin's promises," referring to the Wagner Group's owner who died under mysterious circumstances in a plane crash only months after making a deal with Putin to end his armed rebellion.
The U.N. General Assembly has convened this week with Russian aggression against Ukraine as one of the points on the agenda. Shortly before Zelensky's speech, his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden delivered his own address, calling the world leaders to stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression.
Presidents of Ukraine and the U.S. are also scheduled to attend the U.N. Security Council meeting on Sept. 20 to discuss the principles of the U.N. Charter.
After his New York trip, Zelensky will head to Washington, D.C. to hold a bilateral meeting with Biden, senior members of Congress, and other American political and military leaders.
Zelensky's visit comes just as the White House seeks approval from U.S. lawmakers for $24 billion in additional funds to bolster Kyiv's struggle against Russia.
Some members of Congress grow increasingly critical of the level of support that Washington provides to Ukraine.
Zelensky has previously visited the U.S. in December 2022, meeting Biden and addressing Congress members.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Martin Fornusek
