Ukraine News Updates - September 19, 2025
European Parliament President Visits Kyiv
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola arrived in Kyiv on September 17, 2025. She announced her visit on social media platform X, writing "Next stop - Kyiv." Ukrainian Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk met her at the railway station, calling the visit an "important signal of unity and unwavering support for Ukraine." The official program remains undisclosed, though MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak indicated Metsola is expected to address the Ukrainian Parliament during her stay.
Read more
Ukraine-Czech Republic Strengthen Reconstruction Partnership
Ukraine and Czech Republic agreed to accelerate signing of a government-to-government agreement to facilitate Ukrainian reconstruction projects. Czech Economy Minister Oleksiy Sobolev met with Czech officials including government commissioner Tomáš Kopečný. Czech Republic received €188 million in credit guarantees from the European Investment Fund for reconstruction projects starting 2026. Cooperation includes the "Industrial Ramstein" initiative, water resource management, energy projects, and opening a Czech Development Agency office in Kyiv in Q4 2025.
Read more
Ukraine-Poland Create Joint Drone Working Group
Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal and Polish Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz signed a memorandum establishing a Joint Working Group on unmanned aerial systems in Kyiv on September 18, 2025. The group will facilitate operational knowledge exchange, develop drone application and countermeasure methods, integrate innovative technologies, and strengthen interoperability between Ukrainian and Polish forces according to NATO standards. Ministers also signed a Joint Declaration on enhanced security cooperation and appealed to NATO allies to support the Joint Analysis, Training and Education Center.
Read more
US-Ukraine Establish $150M Reconstruction Fund
The US Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and Ukraine will each contribute $75 million to establish a $150 million joint reconstruction investment fund. Ukraine's Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced the fund's operational launch, with half of Ukraine's contribution budgeted for 2025 and the remainder for 2026. The fund will prioritize investments in natural resources, energy, infrastructure, and critical mineral supply chains. Three projects are planned by end-2026, with Americans showing particular interest in gas projects.
Read more
Ukrainian Eco-Packaging Startup Gets Morgan Stanley Investment
Ukrainian startup S.Lab, which produces eco-friendly packaging, received £250,000 from Morgan Stanley as part of the bank's new Inclusive & Sustainable Ventures initiative supporting 29 global startups. S.Lab creates biodegradable packaging from plant components. CEO Yulia Bialetska said the funding will support production scaling and development of modular container-based production lines capable of producing 15,000 packaging units monthly. The company plans to transition to licensing its eco-packaging technology rather than selling finished products.