Shmyhal, Grodzki discuss strengthening Ukraine's defense capabilities

As the Government portal informs, Shmyhal and Grodzki also touched upon the cooperation within the framework of joint initiatives and strengthening trade and economic relations.

The Head of the Government of Ukraine thanked the Senate of the Republic of Poland for adopting the resolution "On Support for Ukraine" on February 4 this year and thanked Poland for providing economic, military, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

"The unity of the world around our country shows an understanding of the threats posed to world democracy. To date, strong Ukrainian army is crucial to the security of Ukraine and Europe," Shmyhal said.

He also welcomed the enhanced coordination between the defense ministries of the two countries and stressed the need to enhance cooperation within the strategic dialogue of defense ministries.

"We see significant potential for cooperation not only within the Lublin Triangle but also within the Lithuanian-Polish-Ukrainian brigade. Participation in this initiative is an important tool for our countries to strengthen our defense capabilities," Shmyhal said.

The Prime Minister of Ukraine confirmed his intention to visit Warsaw on March 14 this year to take part in the first meeting of the Lublin Triangle heads of government.

Shmyhal also praised a positive trend in trade between the two countries. According to him, the volume of trade in goods and services totaled $10.9 billion in 2021 (up 36% compared to 2020).

"Poland is one of the main trade and economic partners and the largest investors in Ukraine's economy. We welcome the positive developments in increasing the number of road haulage permits and appreciate Poland's support in the project to build border crossing points at the common border," he said.

For his part, Grodzki assured that Poland was ready to assist Ukraine in meeting the criteria for joining the European Union and NATO.

The Polish people are absolutely united in supporting Ukraine, and this visit to Kyiv is proof of Poland's solidarity, the Marshal added.

As reported, on February 17, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and Poland launched a new trilateral format of cooperation aimed at responding to threats to European security and strengthening economic cooperation between the countries.

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