Throughout this week, Slawomir Pichor, the Head of EUBAM, and his team had a series of meetings in Kyiv with the Mission’s key partners. The purpose was to address their immediate needs and lay out the Mission’s forthcoming efforts to assist with these requirements.

During the meeting with Andrii Nadzhos, the Director of the Directorate General for the EU and NATO from the Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the representative from the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers and the Ukrainian Border Authorities, parties discussed the near future tangible actions EUBAM is taking to help both the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine in effectively managing their shared border and to respond to the existing challenges.

In discussions with Vladyslav Suvorov, the Head of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, the primary emphasis was identifying the precise technical support requirements. Notably, EUBAM has the opportunity to support border authorities in both Moldova and Ukraine with technical assistance component integrated directly into its budget.

In Kyiv, the Head of EUBAM also met with Andrii Paschchuk, who currently serves as the Acting Director of Ukraine’s Economic Security Bureau. Their discussions mainly revolved around strategies to combat smuggling and the illicit manufacturing of cigarettes. Furthermore, the sides reached a mutual understanding to conduct collaborative training sessions and involve representatives from the Economic Security Bureau in events organized by the Mission.

While in Odesa, Slawomir Pichor held meetings with the First Deputy Head of the Odesa Regional State Military Administration, Borys Voloshenkov and Serhii Hrynchyshyn, Acting Head of Odesa Customs House. These talks focused on the Mission’s upcoming initiatives to assist the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes. To enhance agricultural cargo transportation, these initiatives address critical challenges and administrative hurdles at the Ukraine-Moldova border.