A political scientist Peter Zalmayev has said much remains to be done between Malawi and Ukraine to realise the full potential of the two countries’ political and economic relations.
Zalmayev, who is also director of the Eurasia Democracy Initiative (EDI) with offices in New York, USA and Kyiv (Ukraine’s capital) and a television host, observed that the economic relations have been affected by the Ukraine-Russia war.
The Ukrainian-American personality is on a five-month 40-country Ukraine promotion world tour of the South Pacific, Australia, Papua New Guinea and Africa.
Said Zalmayev: “Bilateral trade [between Malawi and Ukraine], which was steadily growing and reached over $50 million per annum before the war had dropped to about $14 million in 2024.
“This is yet another impact the war has had, affecting the livelihoods of ordinary people involved in our bilateral trade. The sooner the war ends the faster we shall be able to restore and increase our economic ties.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ukraine quoted Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on its website after his visit to Malawi: “We appreciate Malawi’s firm and consistent stance on Russian aggression against Ukraine as well as its support for the Peace Summit communiqué.”
Last year, Ukraine gave Malawi 19 200 metric tonnes of maize through the “Grain from Ukraine” initiative to support 863 000 households that were affected by hunger.
