The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Great Britain to Ukraine met with Maxim Kozytskyi.
On November 2, the head of Lviv OVA Maksym Kozytskyi met with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Great Britain to Ukraine Martin Harris.
This is the first official visit of Martin Harris as the Ambassador of Great Britain to Ukraine.
As Mr. Martin said, he feels like home in Lviv, because this is where the official studied at the Frankish and Ukrainian Catholic Universities. Today, in his new position, his goal is to support the victory of Ukraine.
“Great Britain is the first European country that supplied weapons to Ukraine even before the full-scale invasion. I am proud that we are also the leader of the international community in the correct response to Russia’s aggression. But now we support the Armed Forces, the people, and the economy of Ukraine, so it is important for me to better understand the current situation in Ukraine in general, and in the regions in particular,” said Martin Harris.
The Ambassador emphasized that, in his opinion, it is necessary to talk and work on the reconstruction and restoration of Ukraine not after the victory, but already today.
“It is very important that the economy of Ukraine works and develops and there are favorable forecasts for this development. But I want to better understand how the international community can encourage the process of restoring the state, returning refugees, investing in Ukraine,” added Martin Harris.
He also expressed the opinion that in the future Ukraine and Great Britain will be allies in NATO, in particular, Ukraine will be among the main states that will ensure the security of Europe from external threats.
“Thank you very much for your support and leadership. We would not have survived if we did not have such a powerful partner. Great Britain, among other things, helped us to realize that we can and should win,” said the head of Lviv OVA Maksym Kozytskyi.
The parties discussed the issue of rebuilding Ukraine, in particular through the completion of reforms, including decentralization, development of infrastructure, logistics, etc.
“There is no doubt that reconstruction must begin now. But the completion of reforms is also important. The state must strengthen in order to be interesting to other countries. With a strong army and economy, we will be interesting for building international relations. Capital and investments should come to Ukraine, the market should develop, both internal and external,” the head of the region emphasized.
Maksym Kozytskyi focused on the issue of the development of logistics routes in the Lviv region: the railway connection with Europe, namely the continuation of the construction of a narrow gauge railway to Lviv, the possibility of resuming air traffic, which will only be possible if the air defense in the region is sufficiently strengthened. A sufficient security situation and the development of logistics will make the region attractive for investors, and this in turn will create new jobs for the people who remained and will be an incentive for the return of Ukrainians who were forced to emigrate.
“In addition, we have a developed system of health care and education, which is not available in many countries abroad,” the head of the region emphasized.
Martin Harris noted that today Ukraine protects both Great Britain and all of Europe, and one of Great Britain’s tasks is to supervise the international system in favor of Ukraine.
The parties also participated in the city’s farewell ceremony for servicemen Volodymyr Levytskyi and Yaroslav Melnyk, who died at the hands of the Russian occupiers while defending Ukraine.