U.S. State Dep’t announces four packages of economic aid to Ukraine

This was stated by Richard Verma, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Management and Resources, during a speech at the Center for International and Strategic Studies in Washington, Ukrinform's own correspondent reports.

The Biden administration recognizes that agriculture has been and will remain one of the supporting sectors of the Ukrainian economy, said a State Department official.

In this regard, the U.S. administration, in cooperation with Congress, is allocating $74.7 million to support Ukraine's export-oriented agriculture. According to the Assistant Secretary of State, this is necessary so that Ukrainian farmers and food industry enterprises can play a greater role in the economic recovery of Ukraine.

Verma also noted that the U.S. administration is working with private companies, in particular ADM, Bunge, Cargill, and Louis-Dreyfus, to support the Ukrainian agricultural sector, as well as to get quality Ukrainian products and grains on families’ tables around the world.

In addition, the State Department official announced more than $ 223 million in additional support from the U.S. to restore Ukraine's transportation, infrastructure and logistics. This, he emphasized, is necessary for the ports, railways and other routes to continue operating in Ukraine.

At the same time, the United States will allocate $35 million to the Ukraine Recovery Trust Fund to support the Ukrainian government’s own internal project development fund, implemented jointly with the World Bank, Verma noted. According to him, this will help make the reconstruction process smoother, in partnership between public capital and the private sector.

The U.S. Assistant Secretary of State also announced the allocation of more than $105 million for the education and training of Ukrainians to fill newly created jobs in the recovery and production process.

At the same time, Verma also emphasized that the collective support from the U.S. and other allies and partners is not about charity.

Putin’s war is aimed at restoring a dictatorial, corrupt empire that seeks to undermine the shared values ​​of NATO and the EU around the world, he emphasized.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on Thursday the White House announced that President Joe Biden had decided to allocate a new security and defense package to Ukraine. It will include additional air defense and artillery capabilities, as well as other types of weapons.

Photo: CMU