Administrator Samantha Power at a Press Conference in Kyiv, Ukraine

ADMINISTRATOR SAMANTHA POWER: Hi everybody. Thank you all for coming out this evening. Let me first just thank Ambassador [Bridget] Brink for her incredible leadership of the U.S. team here in Ukraine, and all of the work that her team put into what has been a very action packed several days. As she mentioned, we were able to get to Odesa on a very important day for Odesa, in the immediate wake of Putin's decision to withdraw from the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

There were cruise missile and drone strikes just before we arrived and then just after we departed. We got to see a port that just several weeks ago would have been bustling with ship traffic, with hundreds, if not indirectly thousands of Ukrainians employed in the export and port business. Instead because of Putin’s reckless, devastating decision, the port was largely empty. And to see that up close really brought home the human stakes of this defenseless decision.

But for visitors to get that kind of access, to be able to travel around the country, given that it's still a war that is affecting so many people in this country, I'm really grateful for the support that we got from Ukrainian authorities and from our own Embassy team and security officials. So grateful for that and grateful to have the chance now to go back home to President Biden and describe not only events in Kyiv and the work that we're doing, but also in Odesa, in Bucha, in Irpin where we traveled today. So very pleased to have had these exposures and this range of conversations with Ukrainians.

The global media has focused understandably a lot on the United States and our allies’ security assistance to Ukraine. But there is another battle that is going on here in Ukraine that the Ukrainian people are waging – and that is the battle for Ukraine's democratic and prosperous future.

The Ukrainian people, not far from here, in the Revolution of Dignity, raised their voices because they wanted an open, transparent democracy. They had had it with repression and kleptocracy. They expect their leaders to continue to reform and to transform this country even as the war goes on.

On this trip, I met with civil society leaders, who we are very glad to support at USAID and they are doing the difficult and essential work to continue to advance the anti-corruption drive, to continue to hold political leaders and officials of all kinds, and even those in the private sector, accountable. And I spoke today with President Zelenskyy about ways that his government can continue to support these reform efforts.

The Ukrainian people want independent energy. They don't want to be dependent on their neighbors for energy access, or to be able to get through winter. And so on my first day here in Kyiv, I visited a heating plant, and I saw the damage that still persists months and months later, from missile attacks on the heating plant. This was of course done at a time when Ukrainians were trying to get through chilly months, and the United States surged support during the winter and has continued support since to make sure that the lights and the heat could stay on through the winter.

But in the process of doing that emergency work, we are also making investments together in the long term energy resilience that the Ukrainian people want. And I heard stories, and maybe some of you feel this as well, of Ukrainians who feel that actually paying their energy bill has come to feel like an act of patriotism. Just the very fact of paying for energy, in part, to create that independence, that that is a contribution to the larger, larger cause. I saw actually in visiting as well, the heating plant, the people who have been referred to as the soldiers of light, those who carry out repairs, when critical energy infrastructure is struck by Russian forces. And they believe rightly, that their effort to keep the lights and the heat on is part of Ukraine's larger struggle. Struggle in the present, and struggle for the future.

The Ukrainian people want to continue this incredibly important tradition of being the breadbasket of the world. When I was in Odesa, I spoke with a group of Ukrainian farmers, some of whose land has continued to be mined because of the Russian occupiers, and their decision to mine some of Ukraine's most arable land, some of whose land was flooded with the explosion at the Kakhovka Dam.

But I also talked to the Ukrainian port authorities about the challenges again that they will face in the wake of the Black Sea Grain Initiative withdrawal.

I shared how USAID is investing again though, in a diversified export future, where we are working to expand alternative routes for exports, through Danube River ports, through facilitated road and rail access, through everything from logistic infrastructure enhancement, to customs and regulatory harmonization. There is so much to be done now, that is about building a more resilient economy and an even more productive agricultural sector in the future.

The Ukrainian people also want to be known for innovation, and tech savvy. This is not a side of Ukraine that everyone around the world is familiar with yet. But just this morning, I got to see Ukraine's incredible Diia app, which I'm very familiar with by now. The Diia platform, of course, used as a kind of state in a smartphone. It is the envy of countries all around the world for its efficiency, and for the simplified means of access, and for the coverage across Ukraine, as more than 19 million people use the Diia platform.

But what I saw today in Bucha was how that platform is being used for so-called e-recovery. For individuals whose homes were destroyed by the Russian occupiers in the early days of the full scale invasion, and who now want to get home before winter. Want to make sure that their roofs have been repaired, that the bomb damage, and sniper fire, that the walls have been repaired, and that their children can go to school without fear this coming school season.

And so seeing this app, this technological innovation that has really accelerated its use, while the war has gone on, to see it used as families gain access to resources to carry out those repairs, and also see how it is an anti-corruption tool. That is one that could be employed all around the world to help citizens elsewhere track how state funds are being spent.

We at USAID are working with Mykhailo Fedorov, the deputy prime minister, to bring these technological tools to other parts of the world, just as we are working to bring Ukrainian grains to other parts of the world. But the fact that Ukraine's tech sector has grown by six or seven percent since this war started, speaks to the investments that are being made today that are building a more prosperous future and building more economic opportunities for young people for tomorrow.

Finally, and relatedly, Ukraine wants an economy that is integrated with Europe. That was part of what the Revolution for Dignity was all about. And so before I leave, and get on my fourth train, I think of the last four days this evening, I would like to make another final announcement here, and that is something that I just discussed with President Zelenskyy and is a major priority of his, which is support for Ukraine's economy and support specifically, as well, for small- and medium-sized enterprises and entrepreneurs.

USAID is going to work with the U.S. Congress to invest $230 million in new resources in Ukrainian businesses. This will include everything from technical assistance to businesses who want to scale and expand their operations, technical assistance to help them meet EU regulations so that they can export more of their products and their services into Europe and create more jobs for more Ukrainians.

And at the same time, and this is something President Zelenskyy stressed, we know that businesses won't be able to grow if they don't have access to affordable capital. This has been a major issue in this difficult war time period. Many financial institutions are deeming investments in Ukrainian businesses too risky. So we are going to be expanding our use of tools, like low interest loans, or grants to businesses, first loss guarantees that will lower the risk of investing in Ukraine. And we will work together to draw more investment and more private sector involvement here in Ukraine, which is again, an investment in the resilience of today, but also in the economy of tomorrow.

This new commitment is just one of many that the United States has made to the Ukrainian people this week. All told over the past few days, we have announced nearly $1 billion in new assistance to do everything from meet urgent humanitarian needs, to modernizing Ukraine's agricultural sector, to providing the mental health support that the Ukrainian people will need to continue to withstand Putin’s brutal onslaught.

We see these commitments, I want to stress in closing, as an investment in Ukraine's future and the fundamental principle, which is the principle that most torments Vladimir Putin, which is that Ukrainians are the only ones who will get to decide that future. It is for the Ukrainian people to build their democracy and their economic opportunity going forward. We also believe that these investments are an investment in the world's future, because the world is going to be less dangerous, less hungry, and more free when Ukraine emerges from the war, stronger than ever.

Thank you so much. I'll take your questions.

QUESTION: Thank you very much for being here today in Ukraine. You mentioned Ukraine, I would like to ask you, what do you think should be the international response from the international community considering what’s happening with the grain deal right now?

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Well, I think countries and leaders near and far should be condemning publicly the decision to withdraw from an initiative that was all about getting food out of Ukraine to the rest of the world. Two-thirds of the wheat that came out of the Black Sea Grain Initiative export channel went to developing countries.

That is an enormous amount of wheat and I saw firsthand in places like Somalia, Kenya, and Lebanon over the course of the last year, just how dependent those economies are on the import of Ukrainian wheat. So, you know, this is not a time for countries to stand back and lament this development. This is a chance for them to come out publicly or better yet, engage Russian diplomats on the cost of this decision for global food prices. Now, we saw an initial spike in those prices in the first day. It could be that the prices will stabilize at a certain point. But let's be clear prices, prior to Putin's decision, were going down every day from unprecedented highs. So no matter what, when you have less supply in the global marketplace, you are not going to optimize in terms of continuing to lower those prices. And I think that is a really important message for developing countries, countries in sub-Saharan Africa who are big importers of this wheat for them to be sending that message.

I also know that a lot of diplomacy is being done right now. And the Ukrainian Government certainly is giving a lot of thought to what its next steps are in the Black Sea port region. I know that President Erdogan, who has invested so much of his time and his leadership in bringing about this global public good, which is the Black Sea Grain Initiative, that this is something of great concern, I'm sure to him and his team. So you know, we are going to give diplomacy a chance. But USAID is not standing still. We already, over the course of the last year, working with European donors, and above all with Ukrainian officials and engineers. Already we have seen these alternative routes – via the Danube, via road, via rail – go from roughly three million, little more than three million metric tons of commodities as export routes each year to roughly three million export tons of commodities each month. That's not enough. Let me be clear, it would not compensate for the loss of Black Sea ports, which were at five million metric tons a month in agricultural exports before the full-scale invasion. But we know that we can increase throughput even more in these other channels. And of course, we're very focused on Ukrainian farmers and their livelihoods because already it has been much more expensive in the war time to bring their goods to market.

So, we need, as USAID, to continue to support them to get access to financing, to seeds, to fertilizer, and to storage, because now there will be questions about where their harvest will go in light of the fact that Putin has introduced, recklessly, this uncertainty. But again, to be clear, there's no neutrality on using food as a weapon of war. Every single person who believes that there should not be hunger in the world should take a stand on a step that was taken for no reason – in order to create more hunger in the world – every leader, every citizen should unite on that message.

QUESTION: James Waterhouse BBC News. Packages like the ones you've announced, will always be welcome here in Ukarine. The industry theme with grain, is that the Danube options, the land options are far more expensive, they scratch the surface. It’s feared there will be fewer farmers in the winter, working on less land which is [inaudible]. Is Ukraine’s status as Europe’s breadbasket a thing of the past, or at least on hold while [inaudible].

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Well, again, I would not discount what it means to bring 33 million metric tons of agricultural commodities to the global market by these other routes. I think that you know more than three million metric tons each month, over the period where we've been building out these routes is important. You're absolutely right, that it is more expensive. But we also have to look at how Russia has been acting as part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative – over recent weeks, every day allowing fewer and fewer inspections, fewer and fewer vessels coming in – that also made it more and more expensive for Ukrainian farmers to be using, even what should be, a much more cheap and bulk route for export.

So, your core premise is accurate, which is that there was a tremendous toll being placed on Ukrainian farmers and their margins are getting smaller and smaller. But you know, I do think, that's where we, who have such respect for not only the farmers themselves, but for Ukraine's long standing role as a breadbasket, we have to step in. I mean, I announced in Odesa, no small commitment, a $250 million investment. We have achieved, I think we've reached about a third of Ukraine's registered farmers with seed, fertilizer, finance, storage support. And that was with $100 million investment, on top of which we brought in tens of millions of dollars of investment from the private sector. We are not only making this $250 million investment to try to help offset some of these additional costs in what we know is going to be a temporary phase.

But we have called on the private sector, foundations, other donors to match us. I do think that we can make a dent in offsetting some of those costs and the more that we can scale these exports, the more that neighboring countries are able to dredge their ports, make room for Ukrainian exports, the more that these procedures get streamlined and simplified, I think we will be making a dent in the problem that you identified. But there's no substitute for peace. There's no substitute for full-scale de-mining. There's no substitute for what the Ukrainian army is in the midst of right now which is taking back territory from the aggressor. But that's why the efforts that USAID is undertaking are happening in parallel to those of the Rammstein group and other parts of the democratic world's investment in security.

QUESTION: You mentioned [inaudible] reforms during the wartime, you mentioned also that you had a meeting with President Zelenskyy and you discussed the question of reforms. What should reforms should be done in ten years? Tell us a little bit more about this.

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Well, I think that first of all, it has to be said that even in the midst of war, significant reform has occurred and it is made a big difference. You have journalists able to operate here with much greater freedom, not only than in years past in Ukraine, but also in a lot of wartime situations in other parts of the world. You have, and I sat down and met with a number of anti-corruption leaders including Transparency International and others, who every day are publishing reports that get passed along to parts of the government that are gathering more and more discretion to do investigations and to exercise independence. You see, judges now have the chance for an infusion of new judges, and much more attention to judicial integrity, and to the kinds of background checks that are very, very important to have to know that judges are not experiencing conflict of interest.

Energy sector is incredibly important to see reformed. Obviously, it has a long way to go. But the recent remit legislation I think is a really important start. And something that can be built upon as you start to see more and more independent oversight of state-owned enterprises. But the bottom line here is that there are a set of reforms that I think are broadly familiar to Ukrainians, that some of the anti-corruption and other organizations have been asking for for a long time. And, USAID is invested in a dialogue with the government and with members of parliament about how to accelerate, you know, what are broadly known to be the package of reforms that, for example, the IMF, has written into its facility with the Government of Ukraine. So, there's no mystery really about what is on that list. The same with European Union that has spelled out I think, in some detail.

But the one thing I want to stress is that for the Ukrainian people, you know, it is really not enough to wait for government to carry out reforms. Hopefully, because they've agreed to carry out those reforms, those reforms will happen. But the way reform happens in any country, is that citizens hold leaders accountable and make clear that those reforms matter to them. And one of the things that I've heard from a lot of Ukrainian friends and colleagues is how impatient particularly veterans, and veterans families are going to be to see that the sacrifices that have been made result in the kind of rule of law, the kind of democracy, the kind of checks and balances, that Ukraine’s struggle for freedom and independence was all about. So again, there are things that in our dialogue with President Zelenskyy we discussed and will continue, as will the IMF, and the European Union, and others. But, you know, fundamentally journalists, civil society, citizens, those voices are going to be just as important and, in certainly in the medium and long term, much more important in deepening reform commitments and accelerating the pace of reform because let's be very, very clear, you know, a lot of money and a lot of resources are being invested right now. When Ukraine wins this war, and the full-scale reconstruction occurs, those checks and balances need to be in place for Ukrainians who have lost so much to actually experience the recovery and the rejuvenation that they deserve. And that will not happen. If, you know, people do not have visibility into how money is spent. Or if the anti-corruption bodies are not fully independent. So, now is the time to continue to build a rule of law that will serve Ukraine going forward including in the reconstruction phase.

QUESTION (via translation): She's asking about the position of the kids and the deportation of the children. [cross talk] She is the mother of one of the children.

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: So, first of all, as a mother, there are no words for what you and countless parents and grandparents in this country have gone through. The English language, the Ukrainian language were not meant to capture the gravity and the depravity of people who would steal children from their families, and I am just so sorry.

On my first day here in Kyiv, I met with an organization that has been involved in trying to secure the reunification between families like yours, and children who have been taken away. And they have made only a small dent in this enormous problem, in this travesty, and injustice. But every day they are gaining more information about where those children are and how to match parents and grandparents with information from inside the Russian Federation or from inside occupied territories. So, we are very eager, as USAID, to look at how we can support efforts like that, as well as to support those who do the forensic work, to try again to bring to international institutions, to the International Criminal Court the kinds of measures that would hold accountable – as the ICC is already trying to do – the perpetrators of devastating crimes of this magnitude. So, this is no solace for someone like you who's experiencing something like that, but it's just to say that I know I speak for all who care about Ukraine, that we will be with you to the end in trying to track down your children and bring them home. I’m sorry.

QUESTION: Ms. Power one question, President Zelenskyy said today that we need more Patriots to protect ports in Odesa region. You have been there, so how do you think should USAID help in this case, Ukraine? Maybe provide more Patriots? Here we are standing in Kyiv with missile in sky, above us? Also because of Patriots that protects us. Should they protect also ports in Odesa region?

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Well, I’m the USAID Administrator and have the privilege of supporting Ukraine in the development areas and the humanitarian areas, so I’m not going to weigh in on any particular weapons system or security arrangement. But certainly, I know that this is going to be the subject of conversations, you know the next tranche of security assistance, and what that assistance should be comprised of and as is always the case, battlefield developments and gratuitous acts on civilians and infrastructure are part of what informs the dialogue among allies about which weapons systems to provide. But again, it’s not for me to comment on as USAID Administrator.

QUESTION: So, you discuss the restoration of Ukraine’s energy system. Can you give just a few examples of strengthening our energy [inaudible].

ADMINISTRATOR POWER: Yes, well you know, part of what Ukraine did so bravely in the earliest days of the full-scale invasion was disconnect itself from a dependence on Russian energy, Russian electricity. And I had the chance to talk to the energy minister about that. That is something that USAID has worked for years to support, to try to put Ukraine in a position where it could disconnect itself in that manner.

I think as we look ahead to the future, there are a lot of questions about how, again, in this phase, Ukraine can begin investments in renewable energies given water, and wind, and sun, here that can be employed. So USAID is doing the work around those forms of energy. But in the very near term, it’s July, we’re already looking ahead to winter. Of course, we hope Ukraine will have won the war before winter but we cannot plan on that and so part of what we struggled with collectively this last winter was long lead times for spare parts, for generators, for power stations, for transformers. USAID was deeply involved. We invested about $400 million over this last winter in helping carry out those repairs.

But now, we know what Putin will do in winter. We know that he weaponizes the cold just as he weaponizes food. And so again, with our European friends, Japan, Australia, Korea, and other donors, we are trying to do that planning and that thinking alongside Ukrainian planners who are thinking a lot about that.

I will say the CHP-5 that I visited, you know, just one example is the missile had struck in a fashion that had taken out the roof. Luckily it had missed two very large turbines, but that roof, which is very, there’s a lot of roof damage, that has to be fully repaired and the facility has to be sealed before winter in order for the power station to properly function. But there's going to have to be much more mobile, much more bunkered, you know, concrete over power plants and things in order to protect them from the missile strikes that Putin likely has planned, and that’s, of course, as well a question of the ever more sophisticated air defenses that Ukrainians are deploying as well. So we, at USAID, we work with these soldiers of light to make sure that the infrastructure itself is prepared and our colleagues in the alliance that supports Ukraine, work on the battlefield efforts, the air defense, and other things to try to prevent Russia from being able to inflict so much damage. Thank you.