Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Ermak holds meetings in the USA

The head of the office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, arrived in Washington early Tuesday morning local time as part of a delegation that also included Ukrainian Minister of Economy Yulia Sviridenko, representatives of the Ministry of Defense and the office of the president.

As Ermak himself wrote in his Telegram channel, the agenda for negotiations in the United States covers a wide range of issues, including strengthening defense support for Ukraine, the current situation at the front, as well as further sanctions pressure on Russia.

The Ukrainian side intends to pay special attention to discussing the bill of US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, which provides for a significant increase in sanctions against Russia, including the introduction of 500 percent duties on the import of goods from countries that purchase Russian oil, contrary to existing international sanctions. Ukraine counts on support for this bill in Congress as an important tool of economic pressure on the aggressor country.

According to Ermak, the parties also plan to discuss the implementation of a previously signed agreement on the creation of an Investment Fund, which should play a key role in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine. Priority topics include the return of deported Ukrainian children by Russia and international support for this process. It is also planned to discuss mechanisms to counter Russian propaganda, especially in the context of the use of religious themes.

Ermak subsequently wrote that he met with the US Presidential Special Representative for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg. “We discussed the situation at the front, the results of the meetings in Istanbul, the importance of strengthening sanctions against Russia and defense assistance to Ukraine. We also talked about the children abducted by Russia,” Ermak wrote. He also expressed the opinion that Russia is “doing everything not to cease fire” and must be forced to peace by force.

The Ukrainian delegation is also planning a series of meetings with lawmakers from both the Republican and Democratic parties, who consistently support Ukraine, and with representatives of the Donald Trump administration.

Trump has not yet commented on the latest round of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations in Istanbul and the draft of the so-called memorandum of Russian demands. ABC News, citing US sources on Tuesday, reported that administration officials are disappointed but not surprised by Russian demands, which Ukraine considers unacceptable. The White House said Tuesday that Trump remains optimistic about the possibility of a peaceful settlement in Ukraine. At the same time, according to the White House press secretary, Trump does not want to “prolong the conflict.”