KYIV (Reuters) - State-owned Ukrainian Railways has set up a new freight operator to operate in Europe to improve trade and logistical connections, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Thursday.
Railway routes to the West have offered a lifeline for Ukraine and its economy since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, helping millions of people flee to safer areas and serving as a link for foreign trade and humanitarian aid.
Kubrakov said the new operator, "Ukrainian Railways Cargo Poland", would provide services for transporting freight, coordinate with European rail operators, freight owners and border crossings, and control Ukrainian rolling stock abroad.
"Today, the European direction of rail transportation for Ukraine is a matter of fast logistics and support for the Ukrainian economy," Kubrakov said on Facebook.
"Creation of a European operator will enable significant improvement in managing cargo transportation in the European direction. At the same time, we are modernising border infrastructure, increasing its capacity."
Difficulties using Black Sea shipping routes during the war have underlined the need for Ukraine to improve cross-border railway connections as an alternative to sea routes.
Ukraine has rerouted most of its exports by rail and road. The government is also working with neighbouring Poland to bring railway gauges in western Ukraine into line with European standards to eliminate infrastructure bottlenecks.