LIVE - Updated at 10:19
Rishi Sunak tells reconstruction conference in London that other countries must support Ukrainian economy.
Zelenskiy states that he sees now alternative to the green transformation of the economy, and that the war has proved the extent to which energy is a key security issue.
It is green energy that guarantees real energy stability. Ukraine can be and will be one of the key suppliers of clean electricity and green hydrogen to ensure that. The potential of this interest here alone is about $400 billion.
Zelenskiy says that his country is developing strong bilateral alliances with leaders of democratic world, including the United Kingdom, the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia all the EU members.
These alliances provide new power in defence, the economy and global prospects for democracy, he says.
He points out that political and economic stability in Ukraine benefits the whole globe, saying that at least 600m consumers around the world directly depend on Ukraine's agricultural production.
Zelenskiy says that when the country underwent a blockage by Russia, the world was threatened by price rises and social collapse.
He says Ukraine has now partially restored movement of agriculture which is bringing stability and economic benefits around the world.
Zelenskiy thanks the nations that are supporting Ukraine and says that he hopes the conference will now come up with concrete projects. He says Ukraine has succeeded in uniting the European Union like never before, which is reflected in "many political economic sanction and humanitarian decisions".
He adds:
Ukraine has activated all the power of solidarity for which the EU was configured.
The moral leadership in protecting peace "is only possible with Ukraine", he says. Moving onto to Nato, he says:
We are already defending the common space of freedom in the alliance and are only waiting for the alliance leaders to recognise this [political'] reality."
Zelenskiy says that growth and strong investments must be preceded by trust and the plan for Ukraine must be "preceded by confidence that that's what has been rebuilt will not fall". He argues that while no-one has the power to eradicate evil, it can be overcome. He states that the world is watching to see if normal life can be restored in Ukraine. If it is, that will be an "ideological blow" to the aggressor, he adds.
And it's not about bricks, but about life in general. The world is abandoned with ruins reminding us of the wars of the past. And politics in different regions, unfortunately, is abandoned with sick ideas of hate, rage and resentment which point to possible wars in the future. [.] No one has the power to cleanse the depths of human nature from the evil that some sometimes rises to the surface and destroys and kills. But given time, and right now, we are able to protect lives and overcome their ruins. [.] The eyes of the world are looking at us and at whether we will defeat Russian aggression exactly as freedom deserves to win - that is without compromising our values. Also the world is watching to see if we will restore normal life in such a way that our transformation will land an ideological defeat on the aggressor. We protect Ukraine and thus we protect freedom. And when we build Ukraine we will build freedom, country, region, continent, world. It's a global task.
And it's not about bricks, but about life in general. The world is abandoned with ruins reminding us of the wars of the past. And politics in different regions, unfortunately, is abandoned with sick ideas of hate, rage and resentment which point to possible wars in the future.
[.]
No one has the power to cleanse the depths of human nature from the evil that some sometimes rises to the surface and destroys and kills. But given time, and right now, we are able to protect lives and overcome their ruins.
[.]
The eyes of the world are looking at us and at whether we will defeat Russian aggression exactly as freedom deserves to win - that is without compromising our values.
Also the world is watching to see if we will restore normal life in such a way that our transformation will land an ideological defeat on the aggressor. We protect Ukraine and thus we protect freedom. And when we build Ukraine we will build freedom, country, region, continent, world. It's a global task.
Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy is now addressing the conference,
He says:
Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for your kind words about Ukraine and our soldiers. And thanks for your leadership and the support the UK provides to Ukraine. Thank you that we are really united in defending freedom. Dear leaders of politics, business and public opinion. Dear presidents, prime ministers, ministers, heads of international organisations, and of course, dear journalists, when we are talking about recovery we are talking about millions of jobs, billions in corporate profits and GDP. And not only for Ukraine but for all our countries mine and yours. Countries that want, and will, live freely.
Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for your kind words about Ukraine and our soldiers. And thanks for your leadership and the support the UK provides to Ukraine.
Thank you that we are really united in defending freedom.
Dear leaders of politics, business and public opinion. Dear presidents, prime ministers, ministers, heads of international organisations, and of course, dear journalists, when we are talking about recovery we are talking about millions of jobs, billions in corporate profits and GDP. And not only for Ukraine but for all our countries mine and yours. Countries that want, and will, live freely.
Sunak outlines how Ukraine must be supported to fast track recovery and support this "help Ukraine unleash its potential".
He says Russia must pay for the violence it has inflicted on the country.
Sunak says:
It's clear Russia must pay for the destruction that they've inflicted. So we're working with allies to explore lawful routes to use Russian assets. And on Monday, we publish new legislation to allow us to keep sanctions in place until Russia pays up.
The UK's prime minister Rishi Sunak is now speaking at The Ukraine Recovery Conference, saying the conference is "planting the seeds of Ukraine's future".
We covered the trail of his speech below (see 7.47), but here is some more:
Sunak says:
Before this terrible war Ukraine's economy was becoming a huge investment opportunity. It was the breadbasket of Europe, exporting millions of tonnes of food and grain each month. Top five exporter of iron ore and steel, a leader in energy, pushing forward renewables hydrogen and electric vehicles, and the startup nation, which helped spark names like PayPal, WhatsApp and revolute with a thriving tech sector, which actually had a record year in 2022. Because the truth is that opportunity is still there today. In fact, the war has only proved how much Ukraine has to offer. When I visited Kyiv, last November, I saw this for myself. I saw Ukraine's incredible spirit, a spirit yes of strength and defiance. But also of ingenuity and innovation. In a converted office block, I met tech experts, civilian and military, who were working together to find new ways to bolster the country's defences. They were networking mobile phones, so that people across Ukraine could download an app, which would allow their phone to pick up the sound of the showerhead drone feedback the location so that Ukrainian Air Defence could track them and shoot them down during the winter Russia tried to destroy Ukraine's energy grid. By February over 40% of power generation was down. But now because of that incredible ingenuity and defiance, Ukraine has got the grid back online, and they're even able to start exporting electricity back to Europe. As we've seen in backwards and Mariupol. What Russia cannot take, it will seek to destroy. They want to do the same to Ukraine's economy. And the scale of the challenge is real. The war brought a 29% Fall in Ukraine's GDP last year.
Before this terrible war Ukraine's economy was becoming a huge investment opportunity. It was the breadbasket of Europe, exporting millions of tonnes of food and grain each month.
Top five exporter of iron ore and steel, a leader in energy, pushing forward renewables hydrogen and electric vehicles, and the startup nation, which helped spark names like PayPal, WhatsApp and revolute with a thriving tech sector, which actually had a record year in 2022.
Because the truth is that opportunity is still there today. In fact, the war has only proved how much Ukraine has to offer.
When I visited Kyiv, last November, I saw this for myself. I saw Ukraine's incredible spirit, a spirit yes of strength and defiance. But also of ingenuity and innovation.
In a converted office block, I met tech experts, civilian and military, who were working together to find new ways to bolster the country's defences. They were networking mobile phones, so that people across Ukraine could download an app, which would allow their phone to pick up the sound of the showerhead drone feedback the location so that Ukrainian Air Defence could track them and shoot them down during the winter Russia tried to destroy Ukraine's energy grid.
By February over 40% of power generation was down. But now because of that incredible ingenuity and defiance, Ukraine has got the grid back online, and they're even able to start exporting electricity back to Europe.
As we've seen in backwards and Mariupol. What Russia cannot take, it will seek to destroy. They want to do the same to Ukraine's economy. And the scale of the challenge is real. The war brought a 29% Fall in Ukraine's GDP last year.
[more follows]
Sunak ends his address with a message of hope, telling the story of a Ukrainian soldier.
He says:
He was stationed in an empty house, not far from the frontline, surrounded by the destruction of war. When he could snatch a moment of free time, he used it to plant seeds. He was trying to create a plot of vegetables, hoping that by the time the homeowners returned, they would have begun to grow. What a profound expression of hope. And, you know, from that house to this hall, we're doing the same thing. We're planting the seeds of Ukraine's future. Today, we can water them and in time the Ukrainian people will harvest them.
He was stationed in an empty house, not far from the frontline, surrounded by the destruction of war. When he could snatch a moment of free time, he used it to plant seeds.
He was trying to create a plot of vegetables, hoping that by the time the homeowners returned, they would have begun to grow. What a profound expression of hope.
And, you know, from that house to this hall, we're doing the same thing. We're planting the seeds of Ukraine's future. Today, we can water them and in time the Ukrainian people will harvest them.
Sunak goes on to say the business, governments and financial institutions must partner to invest and shore up the country.
He says:
To make this happen. The British government will continue to play its full part. And I'm proud that today we're announcing a multi year commitment to support Ukraine's economy. Over three years, we will provide loan guarantees worth $3 billion we're also launching a new UK Ukraine tech bridge to foster investment and talent, along with support for green energy and more all part of a vast collective effort from allies and partners around the world, including significant new support from the EU, which is also being announced this week. Financial institutions are playing their part. The IMF is putting $15 billion into Ukraine over the next four years as part of a $115 billion commitment by the G7 and its partners and institutions like the EBRD providing seed capital to support private sector led growth. Because above all, we must build a platform for business. Only they can truly crowd in the innovation and investment that Ukraine needs. And that's why we're launching the Ukraine business compact for the private sector to pledge their support for Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction. And I am delighted to announce today that over 400 businesses from 38 countries with a combined market cap of $4.9 trillion has now signed up the City of London has a huge amount to offer. And that deepened liquid capital markets and world class finance expertise. So there is no better place to announce today the New London conference framework for war risk insurance. This is a huge step forward towards helping insurers to underwrite the investments into Ukraine, removing one of the biggest barriers and giving investors the confidence they need to act.
To make this happen. The British government will continue to play its full part. And I'm proud that today we're announcing a multi year commitment to support Ukraine's economy. Over three years, we will provide loan guarantees worth $3 billion we're also launching a new UK Ukraine tech bridge to foster investment and talent, along with support for green energy and more all part of a vast collective effort from allies and partners around the world, including significant new support from the EU, which is also being announced this week.
Financial institutions are playing their part. The IMF is putting $15 billion into Ukraine over the next four years as part of a $115 billion commitment by the G7 and its partners and institutions like the EBRD providing seed capital to support private sector led growth.
Because above all, we must build a platform for business. Only they can truly crowd in the innovation and investment that Ukraine needs. And that's why we're launching the Ukraine business compact for the private sector to pledge their support for Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction.
And I am delighted to announce today that over 400 businesses from 38 countries with a combined market cap of $4.9 trillion has now signed up the City of London has a huge amount to offer. And that deepened liquid capital markets and world class finance expertise.
So there is no better place to announce today the New London conference framework for war risk insurance. This is a huge step forward towards helping insurers to underwrite the investments into Ukraine, removing one of the biggest barriers and giving investors the confidence they need to act.
The UK Ministry of Defence has issued its update on the situation in Ukraine:
Intense fighting continues in sectors of southern Ukraine. However, over recent weeks, Russia has continued to expend significant effort building defensive lines deep in rear areas, especially on the approaches to occupied Crimea.
This includes an extensive zone of defences of 9 km in length, 3.5 km north of the town Armyansk, on the narrow bridge of land connecting Crimea to the Kherson region.
These elaborate defences highlight the Russian command's assessment that Ukrainian forces are capable of directly assaulting Crimea.
Russia continues to see maintaining control of the peninsula as a top political priority.
The UK has backed $3bn of World Bank loan guarantees to shore up Ukraine's economic stability, the government announced today.
In what the government is calling the support "the first bilateral package of multi-year fiscal assistance to be set out by a G7 country".
At a two-day Ukraine recovery conference in London today, Sunak will outline a package which will also include £240m ($306m) of bilateral assistance and an expansion of British International Investment in Ukraine.
The UK's support is backed by the Ukraine Business Compact which consists of more than 400 companies from 38 countries, with a combined annual revenue of over $1.6tn, who today pledge to back Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction.
Virgin, Sanofi, Philips, Hyundai Engineering and Citi are among the companies involved.
The compact will, according to the government, trade, investment, peer-to-peer expertise sharing and responsible business practice in Ukraine, ensuring it can rebuild as a resilient, agile and prosperous economy.
The UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, said:
As we've seen in Bakhmut and Mariupol, what Russia cannot take it will seek to destroy. They want to do the same to Ukraine's economy. The scale of the challenge is real, the war brought a 29% fall in Ukraine's GDP last year, but just look at the streets of Kyiv, despite the threat of attack, people are getting on with their lives - and getting on with business. [.] I'm proud that today we're announcing a multiyear commitment to support Ukraine's economy, and over the next three years, we will provide loan guarantees worth $3 billion.
As we've seen in Bakhmut and Mariupol, what Russia cannot take it will seek to destroy. They want to do the same to Ukraine's economy.
The scale of the challenge is real, the war brought a 29% fall in Ukraine's GDP last year, but just look at the streets of Kyiv, despite the threat of attack, people are getting on with their lives - and getting on with business.
[.]
I'm proud that today we're announcing a multiyear commitment to support Ukraine's economy, and over the next three years, we will provide loan guarantees worth $3 billion.
President of the World Bank Group, Ajay Banga, said:
The UK government's generous guarantees to the World Bank Group will support the people of Ukraine at a critical moment. The World Bank Group is designed to do hard things like helping people rebuild their lives after devastation. With this support, we will keep delivering on that mission and help Ukrainians imagine a life after the war.
The UK government's generous guarantees to the World Bank Group will support the people of Ukraine at a critical moment.
The World Bank Group is designed to do hard things like helping people rebuild their lives after devastation. With this support, we will keep delivering on that mission and help Ukrainians imagine a life after the war.
After more than a year of war in Ukraine, the package is designed to encourage the private sector to use its resources to help speed Ukraine's reconstruction.
To deal with the issue of insurance against war damage and destruction, the prime minister will also launch a framework a range of measures designed to "de-risk" Ukraine to increase investor confidence, including providing guarantees and insurance for reconstruction projects now while the conflict is ongoing through the Multilateral Investment Guarantees Agency.
He will also launch the London Conference Framework for War Risk Insurance at the summit and that some major companies had already signed up to the Ukraine Business Compact, a statement of support for Ukraine's recovery.
In addition Sunak is announcing up to £250m of new capital for the UK's Development Finance Institution - British International Investment (BII) - to support infrastructure projects, energy markets, financial services and agriculture.
Ahead of the conference, a senior Ukrainian official said Ukraine is seeking up to $40bn to fund the first part of a "Green Marshall Plan" to rebuild its economy, including developing a coal-free steel industry.
The total reconstruction bill is likely to be huge, with Ukraine, the World Bank, the European Commission and the United Nations estimating in March that the cost was at $411bn for the first year of the war. It could easily reach more than $1tn.
Russia's defence ministry said its forces thwarted a Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow region, and that three drones had been shot down.
Ukrainian forces are reinforcing positions they have reached in areas of the southern front line after having "partial success" fighting Russian forces, a military spokesperson said today.
Reuters reports:
Ukrainian forces are conducting offensive operations in the direction of the Russian-occupied cities of Melitopol and Berdiansk in the Zaporizhzhia region, general staff spokesperson Andriy Kovalev said, listing names of southeastern villages.
"They had partial success in the directions of Novodanilivka - Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka - Verbove, Vilne Pole - Makarivka, they are consolidating at the achieved boundaries," he was quoted as saying by the Ukraine military media centre.
Ukraine is also fighting to hold back an advance of Russian troops in the east, with "especially heavy fighting" taking place along near Lyman in the Donetsk region, he said.
Ukraine said on Monday it had recaptured eight villages in two weeks of counteroffensive operations in the occupied south but that the Kremlin's forces were trying to regain the initiative in the east by stepping up attacks.
The Ukraine Recovery Conference has started in London this morning. The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, is addressing the conference.
He says:
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. There are over 1,000 public and private sector decision-makers here. Governments representing 61 states, 33 international organisations, over 400 businesses and 130 civil society organisations. After nearly 18 months of Ukraine withstanding the Russian full scale invasion, the international community is coming together today with a shared belief and confidence in Ukraine's future. Russia's full scale invasion has caused untold suffering, but Ukraine is rebuilding now. Recovery offers an opportunity not only to repair what was lost, but stride forward and to rebuild an economy that is more modern, more open, greener and more resilient. When I visited Kyiv recently, I could see the construction equipment from JCB already visible everywhere. This you are see is about unlocking Ukraine's potential, supporting Ukraine's immediate recovery needs and unlocking a private sector led recovery. After the sacrifices and suffering of the war, Ukrainians are planning for a better future. And it is in the interests of the world, that the country they rebuild should be stronger than ever, integrated into global markets, and self reliant.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. There are over 1,000 public and private sector decision-makers here. Governments representing 61 states, 33 international organisations, over 400 businesses and 130 civil society organisations. After nearly 18 months of Ukraine withstanding the Russian full scale invasion, the international community is coming together today with a shared belief and confidence in Ukraine's future.
Russia's full scale invasion has caused untold suffering, but Ukraine is rebuilding now. Recovery offers an opportunity not only to repair what was lost, but stride forward and to rebuild an economy that is more modern, more open, greener and more resilient. When I visited Kyiv recently, I could see the construction equipment from JCB already visible everywhere.
This you are see is about unlocking Ukraine's potential, supporting Ukraine's immediate recovery needs and unlocking a private sector led recovery. After the sacrifices and suffering of the war, Ukrainians are planning for a better future. And it is in the interests of the world, that the country they rebuild should be stronger than ever, integrated into global markets, and self reliant.
Ukrainian forces are gaining some ground towards Melitopol and Berdiansk in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Andriy Kovalev, a spokesman for the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has said according to Reuters.
"They had partial success, they are gaining ground," Kovalev was quoted as saying in a post on the Ukraine Military Media Center's Telegram channel, adding that the gains were near the settlements of Mala Tokmachka and Robotyne, among others.
Ukraine continues to hold back the advance of Russian troops in the east of the country, with "especially heavy fighting" taking place along near Lyman in the Donetsk region, he added.
"Intense fighting" is continuing in southern Ukraine, the UK's Ministry of Defence says in its latest update on the conflict.
It reports that Russia has recently spent "significant effort building defensive lines deep in rear areas, especially on the approaches to occupied Crimea", highlighting Moscow's "assessment that Ukrainian forces are capable of directly assaulting Crimea".
"Russia continues to see maintaining control of the peninsula as a top political priority," it says.
Back to the drones reportedly intercepted in Russia. The country's Tass news agency has reported, citing unnamed law enforcement sources, that another drone was shot down near Lukino village in Moscow region, according to Reuters.
Tass also reported two of the drones were intercepted on their way to the Taman Division of Russia's Ground Forces. The division is based in Kalininets, some 60km (37 miles) from the Kremlin. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. It was not immediately known who launched the drones. In May, drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow, in what Russia said was a Ukrainian attack and one politician called the most dangerous attack on the capital since World War Two. Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.
Tass also reported two of the drones were intercepted on their way to the Taman Division of Russia's Ground Forces. The division is based in Kalininets, some 60km (37 miles) from the Kremlin.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports. It was not immediately known who launched the drones.
In May, drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow, in what Russia said was a Ukrainian attack and one politician called the most dangerous attack on the capital since World War Two.
Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.
More from the ISW analysis, which reports that the Belarusian General Staff has confirmed that Belarus has amended the language of its constitution to renounce its neutrality and non-nuclear status.
Deputy Head of the Faculty of the Belarusian General Staff Colonel Andrey Bogodel stated on June 20 that in order to respond to "external challenges and threats," Belarus has made requisite changes to its constitution renouncing its neutrality and removing the wording on its non-nuclear status.
The move comes after Russian president Vladimir Putin last week said the first tactical nuclear weapons to be stationed in Belarus had arrived.
Responding to the announcement, US president Joe Biden said the threat that Russia could use tactical nuclear weapons was "real".
The Institute for the Study of War highlights Russia's efforts to expand its military recruitment pool in its latest assessment, noting that it has lowered its eligibility requirements once again.
It points to a report by Tass newswire which says that the Duma on Tuesday adopted the third and final reading of a law which will allow citizens with criminal records and those deemed "partially fit" for military service to sign contracts with the military during wartime.
The Russian Ministry of Defence has already recruited about 15,000 prisoners since February, according to the Russian human rights organisation Rus Sidyashchaya, the ISW writes.
The wires have sent through a series of images from the Without Limits clinic in Kyiv, which helps people learn to walk again using prosthetic limbs.
The clinic says it has seen a massive increase in demand since the Russian invasion began in February 2022 and estimates 80% of its patients are former soldiers.
Two drones have been intercepted on their approach to military warehouses in the Moscow region, Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the area, has said according to Reuters.
"Debris was found, no damage or casualties," Vorobyov said, adding that the drones fell near the village of Kalininets.
Russia's channels on the Telegram messaging app, including one with links to the security services, said at least one more drone was intercepted near the village of Lukino.
Ukrainian forces are "very actively destroying the enemy, physically clearing Ukraine," president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said in his latest evening address.
"Protection against terror means the destruction of terrorists. And it is a guarantee that the evil state will never again have the opportunity to bring evil to Ukraine," he continued.
Ukraine is now more than two weeks into its counteroffensive and has made small advances.
General Oleksander Syrskyi, Ukraine's commander of land forces, said on Telegram on Tuesday that his troops were making progress on the flanks of the shattered eastern city of Bakhmut, which fell to Russian mercenaries last month after months of fighting, Reuters reported.
Ukrainian troops, he said, were repelling increasingly intense Russian attacks near Kupiansk in the northeast.
Deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said Ukrainian forces in the south were "gradually, in small steps, but very confidently, making advances. We could even use the allegory that we are carving up every metre of land from the enemy."
Leaders and representatives from more than 60 countries are expected in London from Wednesday for a two-day conference to secure funding to help Ukraine recover from the ravages of war.
The EU will provide Ukraine with $54.58bn in aid for 2024-27, the bloc's president, Ursula von der Leyen said ahead of the summit, while the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, is set to unveil a major package, including $3bn of additional guarantees to unlock World Bank lending, according to his office.
More from AFP:
The International Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023, hosted by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, is the second to be held since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year. The first, in Lugano, Switzerland, in July last year saw Kyiv's allies commit to supporting Ukraine through what is expected to be an eye-wateringly expensive and decades-long recovery. Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmygal told them rebuilding could cost at least $750 billion. The World Bank has since put an estimate of $14 billion on Ukraine's immediate needs for repairing the damage caused by the bitter fighting. But a recent study by the World Bank, the UN, the European Union and the Ukrainian government said the wider recovery of the economy would cost $441 billion. Whatever the final amount, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has likened it to the amount of money needed for the US-led Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe after World War II.
The International Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023, hosted by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, is the second to be held since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year.
The first, in Lugano, Switzerland, in July last year saw Kyiv's allies commit to supporting Ukraine through what is expected to be an eye-wateringly expensive and decades-long recovery.
Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmygal told them rebuilding could cost at least $750 billion.
The World Bank has since put an estimate of $14 billion on Ukraine's immediate needs for repairing the damage caused by the bitter fighting.
But a recent study by the World Bank, the UN, the European Union and the Ukrainian government said the wider recovery of the economy would cost $441 billion.
Whatever the final amount, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has likened it to the amount of money needed for the US-led Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe after World War II.
Hello and welcome to the Guardian's live coverage of the war in Ukraine with me, Helen Livingstone.
Ukrainian forces in the south and east are "actively destroying the enemy", president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said in his latest evening address, more than two weeks into Ukraine's counteroffensive.
Ahead of a major conference in London at which the UK and EU are set to pledge billions of dollars in aid for the rebuilding of Ukraine, Zelenskiy also assured his international partners that "Ukraine uses every weapon and every shell as efficiently as possible and always to protect lives".
He said Ukraine's recovery "will become not only construction projects, but also a global project of protection".
"A rebuilt Ukraine, a transformed Ukraine, a strengthened Ukraine is a carrier of security and a guarantor of security, it is protection against any form of Russian terror and protection against any repetition of Russian aggression," he said.
In other developments:
Ahead of the conference, a senior Ukraine official said the country would struggle to absorb the expected billions of western private and public sector aid for its recovery not due to corruption, but a simple lack of capacity to process and invest such huge sums. "Historically the largest amount of money we have been capable of working with was $6bn a year in 2014," said Mustafa Nayyem, the head of the Ukraine State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development.
Russia has threatened strikes on Kyiv's "decision-making centres" if Ukraine uses western-supplied missiles against the occupied peninsula of Crimea. Sergei Shoigu, the Russian defence minister, said the potential use of US-supplied Himars and UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles against targets in Crimea would mark the west's "full involvement in the conflict and would entail immediate strikes upon decision-making centres in Ukrainian territory".
Ukraine's military intelligence chief has accused Russia of "mining" the cooling pond used to keep the reactors cool at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine's south. "Most terrifying is that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant was additionally mined during that time . namely the cooling pond was mined," Kyrylo Budanov, head of the GUR agency, said on television, without providing evidence.
The Pentagon says that it overestimated the value of the weapons it has sent to Ukraine by $6.2bn over the past two years - about double early estimates - resulting in a surplus that will be used for future security packages. Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said a detailed review of the accounting found an error of $3.6bn in the current fiscal year and $2.6bn in the 2022 fiscal year, which ended on 30 September.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, has called for an acceleration of Black Sea grain shipments from Ukrainian ports under a deal allowing safe wartime exports, a UN spokesperson said as Russia threatens to quit the pact which is due for renewal on 17 July. Guterres was disappointed by a slowing pace of ship inspections, spokesperson Farhan Haq said, and the exclusion of Pivdennyi (Yuzhny) port - one of three Ukrainian ports covered by the Black Sea export deal.
Kyiv has repatriated three Ukrainian prisoners of war from Hungary where they were transferred from Russia without coordination with Kyiv, said Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko, who had previously accused Hunary of ignoring Kyiv's requests for access to the PoWs. Ukrainian diplomats and other relevant Ukrainian authorities were working to try to bring back the remaining prisoners of war, Nikolenko said.
Prosecutors said they had served a notice of suspicion to Kyiv's head of municipal security after three people died in a Russian air attack when they were unable to get into a bomb shelter. The deaths on 1 June caused public outrage and prompted the president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to vow a harsh response.
The destruction of the vast Kakhovka hydroelectric dam has caused ?1.2bn euros of damage, the Ukrainian environment minister Ruslan Strilets has told his EU counterparts. He also warned that mines unearthed by flooding could wash on to other European countries' shores and that "there are things that we can never restore. These are the ecosystems that were washed away into the Black Sea."
The Ukrainian kickboxing champion Maksym Bordus has been killed fighting Russian forces, according to a website that lists athletes killed in the war. Bordus was killed on 11 June in "fierce fighting against Russian invaders", according to Sport Angels, a Ukrainian website set up with the assistance of the Sports Committee, which brings together NGOs and federations from non-Olympic sports.