Russia damages over 680 port infrastructure facilities since start of full-scale war – Kuleba

Russian troops have damaged and destroyed 686 port infrastructure facilities and 150 civilian vessels since the start of the full-scale invasion, said Deputy Prime Minister for Reconstruction - Minister of Communities and Territories Development Oleksiy Kuleba.

"The enemy has struck Ukraine's railway infrastructure more than 4,700 times, damaging nearly 24,000 facilities. Since the beginning of the year alone, 266 strikes on rolling stock and railway facilities have been recorded," the press service of the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development quoted his speech at a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada's committee on transport and infrastructure.

Kuleba emphasized that despite the attacks, 173 million tonnes of cargo have been transported through the Ukrainian sea corridor, including more than 103 million tonnes of agricultural products. Six Ukrainian seaports are currently functioning stably.

Among the key results of the sector, the minister highlighted a 20% growth in international passenger rail connections with the EU, construction of the European-gauge railway Chop-Uzhhorod and signing an agreement with Alstom for the supply of 55 electric locomotives.

In the road transport sector, priorities, according to him, remain extending "transport visa-free" status with the EU until 2027, scaling up the "eQueue" project and launching electronic consignment notes. In addition, implementation of modular solutions allowed 10 border crossing points to be modernized, providing savings of about UAH 1.5 billion.

The deputy prime minister also called on lawmakers to support draft law No. 5651-2 on preferential travel to create a transparent compensation mechanism and noted the importance of draft law No. 14174 "On Safety and Interoperability of Railway Transport," which was adopted in the first reading.

The deputy prime minister also noted that preparation of the Civil Aviation Development Strategy until 2030 is currently underway and airports' readiness to resume operations is being maintained.