Jacek Piechota, president of the Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce said the Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce together with the Polish Chamber of Commerce appealed to all economic entities in Poland for the creation of a fund to help Ukraine.
“We are asking for any kind of help, any support, but of course, in this situation, primarily financial help is needed. Today, the Entrepreneurship Council will meet and we will discuss together to whom and what exactly the help will be directed”.
Russia has launched an invasion of Ukraine. On the night of Wednesday to Thursday, Polish time, President Vladimir Putin announced the commencement of the military operation. According to local media, all major Ukrainian cities, except Lviv, were currently under attack.
Poland is the second most important trading partner of Ukraine after China. The total value of Polish investments is about $ 1 billion and about 6,000 companies with Polish capital. Tens of thousands of entities, mostly small and medium-sized companies, trade with Ukrainian partners.
For the time being, the Chamber has not been yet informed by Polish companies operating in Ukraine about their plans and the possibility of further operations there. “I have no signals about the specific decisions. Everyone asks, but nobody knows the answer to the question “what’s next” – adds Piechota.
Trade grew at an impressive pace until Russia invaded. At the beginning of February, Piechota forecasted that this year the trade had a chance to significantly exceed the level of USD 11 billion in turnover. After 10 months of 2021, it was $ 10.4 billion. Last year, the total turnover between both countries increased by nearly 45%; Polish exports increased by almost 25% while Ukrainian exports increased by as much as 80%.
The Polish-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce (PUIG) is one of the oldest bilateral chambers of commerce in Poland. It has been operating since 1992 for the development of Polish-Ukrainian economic and cultural relations. Today, the Chamber has over 230 members, including Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, owned by PKO BP Kredobank, Ukrainian International Airlines and the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński