When all life in the country came to a halt in the early days of the full-scale attack on Ukraine, Ukrzaliznytsia was one of the few civilian enterprises that continued to operate. Employees and transport of the national railways of Ukraine evacuated Ukrainians from hot spots around the clock and, under shelling, delivered humanitarian aid. Many employees of Ukrzaliznytsia died from the Russian bombardment of trains. Today, the railway of Ukraine is the main artery that continues to connect cities, deliver social assistance, bring high-ranking guests to Ukraine and support the Ukrainian economy.
The European Investment Bank, the EU Bank and Ukrzaliznytsia have signed a €6.7 million support agreement. According to the press service of the Ukrainian side, the urgent grant will be used to "ensure the continued operation of the railway and meet urgent needs for passenger transportation and humanitarian assistance."
This grant was considered for Ukraine before February 24, 2022, but the war put forward other priorities. Thus, the initial financing of the project Modernisation of the Ukrainian railway from the EIB was reformatted into a grant to support the life of the company that supports the country's life.
