U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Assistant Administrator for Europe and Eurasia Thomas O. Melia and U.S. Department of State Coordinator of U.S. Assistance to Europe and Eurasia Alina L. Romanowski will travel to Ukraine on January 25-29.
Their trip will include meetings with Ukrainian officials, civil society leaders and the private sector to discuss how U.S. assistance is helping Ukraine respond to development, economic and humanitarian challenges, and to assess further assistance needs going forward.
This will be Assistant Administrator Melia’s first visit to Ukraine in his new capacity. During the trip, he and Coordinator Romanowski will visit the eastern Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv, Slovyansk, and Kramatorsk to meet with local leaders and discuss support for the people of eastern Ukraine.
In Kyiv, they will hold meetings with government, Rada, and civil society leaders to identify how to help Ukraine strengthen its democracy, continue combating corruption, improve governance, develop civil society, bolster the economy and energy security, and provide humanitarian support to those affected by the conflict in the eastern regions.
Coordinator Romanowski also will visit the Chornobyl nuclear power facility to observe efforts to return the site to an environmentally safe and secure condition.
In Fiscal Year 2015, the United States planned approximately $334.2 million dollars in foreign assistance for Ukraine focused on economic development, peace and security, health, democracy, human rights, and governance, and education and social services. Approximately $513.5 million dollars in U.S. foreign assistance is planned for Ukraine in Fiscal Year 2016. Learn more about U.S. assistance to Ukraine at http://www.foreignassistance.gov.