Ukraine intends to increase its exports even further in the approaching fourth year of the war begun by Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday in his daily video broadcast.
The country had already succeeded in boosting exports by 15% in 2024, said Zelensky, emphasising that securing export routes across the Black Sea was crucial for foreign trade.
The president put the value of last year’s exports at more than $41 billion.
According to the economics ministry in Kiev, Ukraine’s main exports include sunflower oil, maize, wheat, soya and iron ore.
Due to the Russian occupation of industrial areas in eastern Ukraine in particular, the agricultural sector has long replaced the metallurgical industry as the main export sector.
Ukraine has been fending off a full-scale invasion by Russia since February 2022.
Previously, in 2021, Ukrainian goods exports totalled the equivalent of almost $70 billion, according to the national statistics office.
However, even before the war, Ukraine was the poorest country in Europe in terms of per capita income, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In his address, Zelensky described Syria as a new partner and held out the prospect of resuming diplomatic relations with the country following the fall of the al-Assad regime in December.
Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha had recently travelled to Damascus together with Agriculture Minister Vitaliy Koval to hold talks with Syria’s new rulers.
Trade relations are also to be intensified with Lebanon and African countries, Zelensky said.
