Ukraine says it held talks with US on supporting defense projects under joint fund
PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — U.S. Patriot missile batteries are seen in Poland on April 10, 2022. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Smith via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)
KYIV - Senior Ukrainian officials spoke with their U.S. counterparts about the possibility of supporting defence projects in Ukraine under a joint investment fund set up last month, Kyiv's first deputy prime minister said on Wednesday.
Kyiv is aiming to shore up support from Washington, which has been its top military backer, as it seeks to end its grinding war with Russia, now in its fourth year.
Yulia Svyrydenko said the discussions included U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and took place during the G7 summit in Canada.
"Talks focused on expanding the fund's mandate to support defense sector projects inside Ukraine," she wrote on social media platform X.
The two countries established a joint reconstruction fund as part of a deal allowing U.S. access to Ukrainian minerals, which Kyiv hopes will pave the way for more support against Russia's full-scale invasion.
Svyrydenko did not specify the nature of the defence projects. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has previously asked the U.S. for a licence to produce critical Patriot air-defence systems used to shoot down ballistic missiles.
He has also said Kyiv is willing to purchase weapons from the United States, which under the Trump administration has not announced any new arms packages for Ukraine.
(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa; Writing by Dan Peleschuk; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Emelia Sithole-Matarise // REUTERS)
