As Russia's invasion enters its third year, Washington state's ties to Ukraine are growing stronger.
On Friday, Gov. Jay Inslee signed an agreement formalizing a "sister state" agreement with the Kyiv Oblast region of Ukraine, which is home to the capital city of Kyiv. The agreement commits Washington and its new Ukrainian counterpart to academic and economic cooperation.
Washington is the first U.S state to sign such an agreement with a region in Ukraine.
"We are intertwining our mutual destinies," Inslee said.
Inslee signed the agreement on Friday at a ceremony with Ruslan Kravchenko, the governor of the Kyiv region. In an interview with the Inlander shortly after, the two governors said the agreement will benefit both regions.
"It allows us to build commercial opportunities for Washington businesses, selling goods and products to Ukraine," Inslee says. "There's going to be a huge demand because they have to rebuild the whole country."
As part of the agreement, Kravchenko is developing a database of businesses in Washington and the Kyiv region to help connect buyers and sellers.
Kravchenko says roughly 29,000 buildings in the Kyiv region were destroyed by Russia's invasion. About 17,000 have been restored, Kravchenko says, but there's still more work to do that Washington building companies could help with. He also sees opportunities for Ukraine's sugar industry to partner with Washington candy producers, and for Washington-based companies to work on restoring and decentralizing Ukraine's besieged electrical grid.
"Together with Washington state, we will collaborate to renew and restructure our country," Kravchenko says.
Inslee says the agreement will also expand opportunities for military contracts with companies like the Bremerton-based SAFE Boats, which recently received a $100 million contract to manufacture patrol boats for the Ukrainian navy.
Before he was appointed governor of the Kyiv region in 2023, Kravchenko worked as the chief regional prosecutor in Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv city that saw some of the worst atrocities of the war.
Bucha was captured by Russians early in the invasion, and when Ukrainian forces retook the city in spring 2022, they found mass graves and civilians shot dead on the streets with their hands tied behind their backs. As regional prosecutor, Kravchenko oversaw efforts to search the devastated city and collect evidence of war crimes.
"We were able to collect enough evidence to prove that Russia was out to destroy us," Kravchenko says.
During a ceremony on Friday, Kravchenko presented Inslee with a metal locket showing images of life in Kyiv before the war. Inside the box was a piece of shrapnel recovered from the body of someone killed by a Russian missile.
"This was the killing weapon of Russia against Ukraine," Kravchenko said. "This is the face of evil."
Kravchenko said he hopes the item can go to a museum in Washington to remind future generations.
Inslee stresses that the sister state agreement is about far more than economic collaboration. It's about democracy, he says. He describes the people of the Kyiv region as "some of the most courageous people on earth" for standing against the "atrocities of Vladimir Putin."
Washington's support for Ukraine has long been a point of pride for Inslee. The state Legislature set aside $19 million to support Ukrainian refugees at the start of the war, and Inslee says the new 2024 supplemental budget increases assistance by about half a million.
The state's financial support will have to continue for "frankly as long as this madness by Putin continues and Ukraine emerges victorious," Inslee says.
A total of 24,090 Ukrainian refugees who moved to Washington after fleeing the war have received assistance from Washington's Department of Social and Health Services. About 10% of refugees who came to Washington ended up in Spokane.
"Washingtonians have an instinctual respect for people who show courage," Inslee says.
Inslee says he hopes the agreement will also send a message to Congress showing support for the $60 billion military aid package to Ukraine that passed the U.S Senate but has been held up in the House amid opposition from some Republican legislators.
"The people of Ukraine, the armed forces, they're being outgunned," Inslee says. "I really appreciate the Ukrainian sons and daughters who are doing the fighting, all we need to do is provide the tools. That's the least we can do for democracy right now."
Inslee says he's confident the aid package will pass.
"Anybody who understands the history of Europe has to understand that standing up for democracy — against an imperialist autocrat who wants to break the boundaries of democracies in Europe — is our fight," Inslee says.
When discussing opposition to the aid package, Kravchenko brought up another Washington business he'd like to partner with Ukraine.
"Some individuals are saying we need to raise the white flag," Kravchenko says. "The only white flag [we're] ready to raise is for the Starbucks when they will open up in Ukraine."
Kravchenko joined our interview a couple minutes late on Friday — he had just gotten a phone call from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the global face of the Ukrainian war effort.
Zelensky "was inviting Gov. Inslee to the Congress that will happen in May in Ukraine in Kiev," Kravchenko says.
Leaders from all around the world will be gathering for the meeting of Ukraine's Parliament, Kravchenko explained, and the Ukrainian government would be honored if Inslee gave a speech there.
"I received this from my leadership, and I pass this on to the governor," Kravchenko says. "This will be very meaningful to us after signing this first memorandum between our states."
Inslee didn't make any firm commitments but appeared honored by the invitation.
"I'll have to see if my governor responsibilities allow me to do it, but it is a huge honor," Inslee says. ♦
