
Frozen Russian assets must fund Ukraine’s reconstruction – Deputy Finance Minister
“We, as members of the government, along with the President and Parliament, insist that frozen Russian assets should be handed over to Ukraine for reconstruction. We urgently need to rebuild a significant amount of state assets and public infrastructure — such as highways and railways — to attract private capital,” Kava stated. He added that these funds should also be used to compensate Ukrainian citizens affected by Russian aggression.
According to Kava, rebuilding large-scale infrastructure during an ongoing war is essential for several reasons.
“For us to continue fighting, the Ukrainian economy must keep functioning. We need to support internally displaced persons — about eight million Ukrainians have relocated from currently occupied areas or regions near the frontline to safer locations. It’s also crucial to develop infrastructure in those places. Moreover, there are de-occupied areas where bridges and roads must be rebuilt to restore internal connections. All this must be done now, without waiting for the war to end,” he explained.
Kava sees the return of displaced people and the creation of conditions by the state as a top priority. He also mentioned several support programs for citizens who wish to return.
“There are programs for supporting small businesses. For example, we have a program that allows entrepreneurs to take out loans at below-market interest rates. The government covers the difference to create favorable conditions for starting a business. We’ve seen many cases where people returned from Czechia or Poland, and this program helped them a lot. We also have a program that allows Ukrainian youth to enter universities in Ukraine without any additional hurdles — so they can return and study in Ukraine instead of European countries,” Kava listed.
As previously reported by Ukrinform, since the beginning of this year, the EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development) has supported 26 reconstruction projects in Ukraine, focusing on infrastructure, energy, housing, and veteran reintegration. The EBRD is also coordinating with the Ukrainian government and the EU to create a unified project pool for transparent recovery management.