Poland stands to get an economic boost from helping Ukraine, prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday as he headed for a historic meeting of the two governments' cabinets to seal economic cooperation and help Ukraine's reconstruction.
A staunch ally of Kyiv, Poland has been one of Ukraine's biggest financial supporters since the Feb. 24 invasion, but Morawiecki said helping Ukraine could also benefit Poland's economy.
"Today we are preparing several agreements between specific ministries, which will help Ukraine and give Poland an economic impulse," Morawiecki told a news conference in the town of Borodianka near Kyiv.
Agreements on streamlining border traffic and customs controls, cooperation between businesses, and on reopening an idled power line to export electricity to Poland from Ukraine were among those signed on Wednesday in Kiev.
According to Ukraine's government portal, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took part in the opening of the extraordinary meeting.
He said the meeting of the two governments in this format was historic for both states.
"I want to note the priority of relations between Ukraine and Poland. I believe that due to Russia’s war against Ukraine our relations have moved from warm and neighborly to a new stage-strong and historical relations," the president said, according to the website.
Other topics
Kyiv and Warsaw have been discussing imports of electricity from Ukraine, which would support the stability of the Polish power system and allow Ukraine to benefit from synchronization of the transmission grid with the European Union network.
Power utilities are already supplying equipment including cables and transformers to help restore electricity supplies in areas of Ukraine affected by the war.
"It's matter of months, as soon as Ukraine wins the war, and will certainly win it, we will be ready to buy electricity from Ukraine," Morawiecki told a news briefing in Kiev after a meeting of the two governments.
Morawiecki said earlier Poland would become a shipper of Ukrainian grain and other goods and an economic hub for Ukraine. Poland's railways stand to benefit from transporting Ukrainian grain to Baltic sea ports.
With Russia controlling or effectively blockading Ukrainian Black Sea ports, grain shipments have stalled since the invasion began, while Moscow has blamed Western sanctions for disrupting exports of both grain and fertilizer.
Newsmax contributed to this report.