Yulia Svyrydenko: Zelensky names architect of Trump minerals deal as new Ukraine PM
Ms Svyrydenko, 39, has been serving as first deputy prime minister and economic development and trade minister since November 2021. She had been appointed to lead the revival of Ukraine's struggling economy only months before Russia invaded in February 2022 and made her task more difficult.
Mr Zelensky met with Ms Svyrydenko on Monday and discussed the 'implementation of agreements with European and American partners regarding support for Ukraine reached during the recent Ukraine Recovery Conference'.
If her nomination is approved by parliament, which appears likely, Ms Svyrydenko will replace Denys Shmyhal, who is poised to take over as the war-torn country's defence minister.
Mr Zelensky is reshuffling his cabinet at a time when Ukraine is seeking to revive its cash-strapped economy and boost its arms industry.
Ms Svyrydenko came to global attention earlier this year when she brokered a minerals deal with the US, fulfilling a crucial demand that the Donald Trump administration had set to help Kyiv negotiate with Russia. The deal helped repair damaged ties between Mr Zelensky and the Trump administration.
She underlined that Kyiv needed the US as a strategic partner in the war and worked with the Trump administration to get the deal done.
She led a Ukrainian delegation to Washington where she signed the deal, called the United States-Ukraine Reinvestment Fund, on 30 April with treasury secretary Scott Bessent.
The deal gives the US preferential access to Ukraine's critical minerals and other natural resources. It also establishes a reconstruction investment fund to which Ukraine is expected to contribute 50 per cent of all future profits from natural resources.
Initial versions of the deal presented by Mr Trump 's negotiators required Ukraine to pay back the aid the US had given it over the course of the war. The eventual deal, according to Mr Shmyhal, made no such demand.
'Another milestone on the path to launching the United States-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund: Ukraine has completed all necessary procedures on schedule," Ms Svyrydenko said after the deal was signed.
The deal helped thaw relations between Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky which had collapsed after they engaged in a shouting match at the White House where US vice president JD Vance also joined in.
The agreement, which sought to balance Washington's demands with Kyiv's control over its natural resources, especially rare earths, and infrastructure, was hailed as a win for Ukraine.
'This agreement is a win-win and it is written in friendly language. It is about investments, investments and investments," Taras Kachka, Ukraine's deputy minister for economic development, trade and agriculture, said at the time.
After the 4th Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome last week saw Kyiv strike agreements worth €11bn for economic and infrastructure development, Ms Svyrydenko said she would pursue deregulation, cut bureaucracy, protect businesses, and reduce non-critical expenditure to achieve the "full concentration of state resources" for defence and post-war recovery.
"The state apparatus has no right to waste the resources and potential of our country," she wrote on social media. "Ukraine deserves to be among the strongest economies in Europe.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron sue far-right podcaster Candace Owens over false claims French president's wife is a man
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron have filed a defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens over the far-right influencer's 'relentless and unjustified smear campaign' falsely accusing Brigitte of being a man. The 219-page defamation complaint filed in Delaware state court on Wednesday accuses Owens of proliferating 'demonstrably false' claims through her platforms, including in an eight-part podcast and on social media, designed to feed a 'frenzied fan base' in 'pursuit of fame,' the Macrons allege. 'These lies have caused tremendous damage to the Macrons,' according to the lawsuit, which names Owens as well her business entities, which are incorporated in Delaware. The false claims have subjected the Macrons to a 'campaign of global humiliation, turning their lives into fodder for profit-driven lies,' the complaint says. 'Owens has dissected their appearance, their marriage, their friends, their family, and their personal history — twisting it all into a grotesque narrative designed to inflame and degrade,' the complaint alleges. 'The result is relentless bullying on a worldwide scale. Every time the Macrons leave their home, they do so knowing that countless people have heard, and many believe, these vile fabrications. It is invasive, dehumanizing, and deeply unjust.' The Independent
The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
Charlie Kirk, who bashed Murdoch media ‘hit job, tapped to host Fox & Friends Weekend
Fox News has tapped MAGA activist Charlie Kirk to guest host the right-wing network's weekend version of its flagship morning program, a network spokesperson confirmed to The Independent . This will be the Turning Point USA founder's first time hosting a show on Fox News. As Axios first reported, Kirk is set to join regular Fox & Friends Weekend co-hosts Rachel Campos-Duffy and Charlie Hurt on the curvy couch this coming Saturday and Sunday. With the dog days of summer upon us, cable news networks are reaching deep into their benches to fill out hosting slots, as this is prime vacation time for anchors and reporters. Therefore, it isn't surprising to see Fox News turn to outside personalities for one-off hosting gigs during this time of year, especially someone with a well-established audience like Kirk, who hosts a radio show and a top-rated podcast. What does make this stand out, though, is that Kirk was one of the MAGA influencers who was highly critical of the Wall Street Journal's bombshell story on the 'bawdy' birthday card Donald Trump allegedly sent deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. According to the WSJ , the card included a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman, with Trump's signature mimicking pubic hair. The report, which Trump immediately described as 'fake,' led to the president suing the Wall Street Journal and its owner Rupert Murdoch, who also owns Fox News. Meanwhile, the story appeared to dissipate the MAGA uproar over the Epstein files, as prominent conservatives who had grown increasingly frustrated with the administration's handling of the saga quickly rallied around the president over their shared disdain of the mainstream media. MAGA podcaster and TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk is set to serve as a guest co-host on Fox & Friends Weekend this coming Saturday and Sunday. (Getty Images) 'This is not how Trump talks at all. I don't believe it,' Kirk tweeted in response to the Wall Street Journal story shortly after it was published. He would go on and share other social media posts from Vice President JD Vance, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, and Donald Trump Jr. blasting the report as defamatory. Kirk would be even more outspoken about the story on his radio show this week, where he fumed that the WSJ 'attempted a terrible drive-by… of our phenomenal president' while applauding Trump for his $10 billion lawsuit against Murdoch. 'As soon as I read this story, I said this is the dumbest, obviously fakest thing. I don't believe it,' he declared. 'Now I quickly, and we quickly, came to the president's defense because this thing was obviously a hit job. Obviously, a drive-by shooting trying to go after President Trump and trying to tie some of the Epstein news to President Trump to try to bring down his approval rating.' Meanwhile, the MAGA backlash against the WSJ as Trump comes for Murdoch has put Fox News in something of a bind, especially considering that the conservative cable giant shares a symbiotic relationship with the president and has helped staff up his administration. Left without the option of doing what is the network's standard modus operandi, which is parroting Trump's attacks on the mainstream media, Fox News has also decided against defending its sister publication and its owner. This has resulted in the network largely ignoring both the WSJ's blockbuster article and the president's lawsuit, mentioning both only a handful of times since last week. Additionally, the network has also devoted significantly less airtime to the Epstein controversy than its cable news rivals and even other right-wing outlets. After the president began ordering his supporters to 'stop talking about' Epstein, Fox News has pulled way back on its coverage of the drama surrounding the administration's handling of the flies, prompting MAGA media competitors to outright mock the 'terrified' network for not wanting to 'p*ss off' Trump. Sharing common ground with Fox News on the issue, Kirk has also sought to heed the president's demand that the MAGA base move on from Epstein and instead concentrated on the various seeming distractions he's tossed out into the ether, such as changing sports teams' names back to racist caricatures or reigniting the 'Russia Witch Hunt' conspiracy and demanding 'Barack Hussein Obama' be charged with treason. After hosting a TPUSA student event that featured young activists railing against Trump over the DOJ memo that concluded Epstein died by suicide and didn't keep a 'client list,' Kirk returned to his podcast that Monday and said he was 'done talking about Epstein' and would instead 'trust my friends in the government.' That announcement came shortly after it was reported that Trump personally called Kirk to ask him to ease up on the criticism of Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had come under intense fire from MAGA loyalists over the memo, particularly because she had previously said she had the so-called 'client list' on her desk for review. Kirk would later backtrack from his proclamation that he was moving on from Epstein, declaring the following day that he had merely meant 'yesterday' when he said 'for the time being,' grousing that the 'fake news' had taken him out of context.
The Sun
7 minutes ago
- The Sun
Wetherspoons boss gives pub pricing update and slams ‘no-sense' tax pressures on boozers
SIR Tim Martin will not increase Wetherspoons' food and drink prices in the coming months, The Sun can reveal. The Spoons boss said he would be able to make the pledge after revealing sales are now higher than before the pandemic, despite slamming the government's "no-sense" tax policies. 1 Wetherspoon increased prices on some drinks and meal deals by up to 30p back in January. However, Sir Tim told The Sun: "We intent to hold prices at least for the summer and autumn." The price promise came as Wetherspoons reported a 5.1% sales boost in 12 weeks to July 20, driven by strong demand for draught beers like Guinness. The chain's shares jumped 3.6% as it announced sales volumes have now exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Demand for New Zealand vino and Italian prosecco has also helped drive its recovery. However, Sir Tim continues to slam the Labour government's unfair tax rules, saying they favour supermarkets and called for equal VAT and business rates for pubs. He said: "The pandemic obviously had a big effect on the hospitality industry and it's taken some to recover. "But we're affected by a difficult regulatory and taxation regions." Sir Tim said that two major taxes need to be adjusted to help keep hospitalty "competitive and attractive for foreign capital". He said: "Pubs must have tax equality with supermarkets. "It makes no sense to give supermarkets favourable tax treatment - pubs pay 20% VAT on food sales and supermarkets pay nothing. "Plus, we're forced to pay 28p of business rates per print versus 2p for supermarkets selling the same product." Despite these hurdles, Wetherspoon is "pushing ahead and investing in the future," with plans to open 30 new pubs next year and invest in gardens and staff spaces as the chain continues to thrive. While the exact locations haven't been revealed yet, these new sites add to several openings announced earlier this year, including one on the former grounds of The London Dungeon. The Sun Wharf on Tooley Street, London Bridge is due to open on September 2. The posh London neighbourhood of Fulham has also welcomed a new Spoons located in the old West London tube station. Fans will be treated to three more openings this year, including a branch in Warwickshire which will open on July 29. Two more sites are also due to open in Paddington and Beaconsfield. Alongside expanding its estate, the chain has also been selling some of its smaller, older pubs. The chain runs 794 pubs in the UK and Ireland. The Wetherspoon boss confirmed he remains "very keen" on the idea of opening pubs overseas through the company's rapidly growing franchise business. The pub giant already operates a few franchised pubs on university campuses and seven pubs within Haven Holiday parks. Sir Tim added that he is "open to anything," including launching pubs in airports and campsites. How can I save money at Wetherspoons? FREE refills - Buy a £1.50 tea, coffee or hot chocolate and you can get free refills. The deal is available all day, every day. Check a map - Prices can vary from one location the next, even those close to each other. So if you're planning a pint at a Spoons, it's worth popping in nearby pubs to see if you're settling in at the cheapest. Choose your day - Each night the pub chain runs certain food theme nights. For instance, every Thursday night is curry club, where diners can get a main meal and a drink for a set price cheaper than usual. Pick-up vouchers - Students can often pick up voucher books in their local near universities, which offer discounts on food and drink, so keep your eyes peeled. Get appy - The Wetherspoons app allows you to order and pay for your drink and food from your table - but you don't need to be in the pub to use it. Taking full advantage of this, cheeky customers have used social media to ask their friends and family to order them drinks. The app is free to download on the App Store or Google Play. Check the date - Every year, Spoons holds its Tax Equality Day to highlight the benefits of a permanently reduced tax bill for the pub industry. It usually takes place in September, and last year it fell on Thursday, September 14. As well as its 12-day Real Ale Festival every Autumn, Wetherspoons also holds a Spring Festival.
