EU chief travels to Kyiv with promise of fresh energy funds to get Ukraine through winter

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen is traveling to war-ravaged Ukraine on Friday with the promise of 160 million euros ($180 million) in fresh energy funds to get the nation through the winter.

Von der Leyen told reporters that 100 million euros ($112 million) of the funds would come the proceeds of the Russian assets held in the EU because of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. “It is only right that Russia pays for the destruction it caused,” she said.

The European Union estimates that about half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has been destroyed, making the job of heating homes, hospitals and schools increasingly difficult as temperatures dip ahead of the third war winter that the nation will face.

Von der Leyen said Russia knew full well that bombing energy stations was hitting Ukraine where it really hurts. Morale to keep on fighting can be significantly sapped if millions shiver in the brutal winter for months on end.

“We may see huge implications,” said Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency. “People will look to move around, to go to the places where they can have shelter and heating.”

That makes international help all the more necessary, said von der Leyen.

“As Ukraine’s friends and partners, we must do all we can to keep the lights on. And as winter is approaching, well, we must keep the brave people of Ukraine warm, while we also are keeping the economy running,” she said.

Many of the upcoming efforts will go into repairing the damage done. Lithuania, for example, is dismantling a thermal power plant to ship it piece by piece to Ukraine for rebuilding there. With continued electricity exports from EU countries, von der Leyen said it would cover about a quarter of the nation’s energy need in the coming months.

The EU is trying to decentralize energy production through the use of solar panels and other new technologies in Ukraine to make it more difficult for Russian attacks to have a direct impact on the energy grid. It would also help Ukraine become a greener economy, she said.

Overall, the EU estimates that it has provided Ukraine with at least 2 billion euros ($2.24 billion) in energy support since the February 2022 invasion. Von der Leyen said she will meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv to discuss energy issues on Friday.