Source: Government of Sweden
On 10 July, Minister for EU Affairs Jessica Rosencrantz led Sweden’s delegation to the annual international Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC), which was held in Rome this year. The delegation included Swedish government agencies, companies and organisations.
“The support to Ukraine is vital. This is about supporting the Ukrainian people’s fight for peace and freedom, and ultimately the security of the whole of Europe. Together with Team Sweden, I am proud to show the breadth and long-term approach of Sweden’s support – from battle tanks and clean water to support for reconstruction and reform on the path to EU membership. Sweden is standing by Ukraine every step of the way, and I urge more countries to follow suit,” says Ms Rosencrantz.
Several of Sweden’s initiatives to strengthen Ukraine were highlighted during the conference. During a signing ceremony, Ms Rosencrantz confirmed Sweden’s billion-krona contribution to the EU’s Ukraine Facility to strengthen energy infrastructure and recovery, announced fresh support totalling SEK 135 million for cybersecurity initiatives via the Tallinn Mechanism and pledged further robust support for the second half of the year.
“Ukraine is defending both its own freedom and ours. That’s why we have made Ukraine the single largest recipient of Swedish development assistance, and now we are increasing that support further with an extensive reprioritisation of Sweden’s 2025 development assistance budget. With our support, we are clearly confirming that Sweden stands behind Ukraine,” says Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa.
Joint Nordic initiatives were also highlighted during the conference. These included the signing of an agreement for a water purification project in Lviv with the city’s mayor, the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), underpinned by Swedish and Danish development assistance.
“Sweden and the Nordics are taking the lead on support to Ukraine. Clean water is vital and the signing of a new water purification project in Lviv is an important signal from the Nordic countries that support to Ukraine addresses these needs and is of the highest priority,” says Ms Rosencrantz.
In conjunction with the conference, Ms Rosencrantz also participated in a ministerial meeting with the Ukraine Donor Platform under the leadership of European Commissioner Marta Kos, meeting with Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna, and participated in a panel debate on Ukraine’s EU reforms.
Approximately 3 500 people participated in the conference, which brought together heads of government, ministers, diplomats, government agencies, companies, international banks, development assistance and financing bodies, and organisations from civil society from Ukraine, the EU and G7 countries, including host country Italy. Sweden’s delegation included the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Business Sweden, the Folke Bernadotte Academy, the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, Swedfund, municipalities and Swedish companies.
Other agreements and events at URC2025:
- Swedfund has reached agreement on a loan for a major Ukrainian food producer. The investment is included in a EUR 100 million funding package led by the EBRD in which Swedfund is investing EUR 20 million.
- Swedfund also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine to deepen cooperation within the health care sector. It also participated in the launch of the Power Women project, which aims to strengthen women’s skills and participation in the energy sector and contribute to the green reconstruction of Ukraine.
- The International Coalition for Supporting Science, Research, and Innovation in Ukraine was launched through the Rome Declaration for Science, Research and Innovation in Ukraine. Sweden is participating from the start of the initiative, which aims to support the reconstruction and development of Ukraine’s ecosystem for research and innovation, which can in turn contribute to strengthening the reconstruction of other sectors.
- Swedish municipality Kalmar and Ukrainian municipality Poltava affirmed their cooperation with a twinning agreement.