Shmyhal: Ukraine and the US may sign an agreement on subsoil in the near future

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal. Photo: Government press service

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal has confirmed that Kyiv and Washington are finalising the details of an agreement on cooperation in the subsoil sector, and the document could be signed within a day.

He said this on the air of the national TV marathon United News on Wednesday, 30 April.

Shmyhal was asked to comment on media reports that the agreement could be signed in the near future. In response, the prime minister said that work on the text was in its final stages, and that First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko had already flown to the United States to complete the negotiations.

«As soon as all the final details are finalised, I hope the agreement will be signed in the near future, within the next day. And, accordingly, we will get the first step,» said Denys Shmyhal.

Shmyhal stressed that this is an equal, high-quality international agreement «on joint investments in the development and recovery of Ukraine.

«All the fundamental points have been agreed upon, and the government has worked out the text of the agreement. In fact, the approvals of the main ministries have already been collected, so the Government is technically ready to approve this agreement at any time, as soon as we receive the final information from our colleagues in Washington, and we will be ready to sign it,» the Prime Minister added.

The Prime Minister also said that after the signing of the main agreement, two more technical agreements are planned to be signed — on the establishment of the Investment Fund and the mechanism for its financing.

Earlier, the media reported that the draft agreement between Ukraine and the United States on subsoil had already been finalised and could be signed as early as Wednesday, 30 April.