President Volodymyr Zelenskyy set a task for the government to develop a full-fledged long-term program for the revival of Ukraine's research fleet. The Head of State said this during a meeting of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in Odesa.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine has begun to rebuild its research fleet, which is why today's meeting of the Congress is taking place at the Odesa Seaport.
"We pass on the James Clark Ross icebreaker to the scientists of our Vernadsky Research Base. So far it has such a name. But most importantly, it was purchased by the state. This is the first time. I don't consider it a feat, but the news is really good. Ukraine is a member of prestigious world clubs of space and Antarctic states. And today Ukraine is returning or is beginning to return to the World Ocean," the President said.
According to him, this provides Ukraine with great opportunities to research ocean resources and participate on an equal footing in global projects. The President stressed that the World Ocean is the area where the most scientific discoveries are taking place in the 21st century, and in order to have a worthy place in this space, our country must build its ships.
In view of this, Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that he expects from Minister of Education and Science Serhiy Shkarlet a full-fledged, large-scale program of revival of the research fleet of Ukraine for a period of 5-10 years.
"We suggest setting such a high bar, it is not easy, but pretty logical. 36 research vessels, 12 of them ocean, ice class. Why so much? This is a very symbolic figure. Everything is simple. This is the number of ships in Ukraine's research fleet in 1991. When I became President, when our team came, there were zero research vessels in Ukraine. In 30 years, 36 ships have been lost," he said.
The Head of State also called on the regions to join the development of this program, especially those with a shipbuilding tradition, relevant staff, educational institutions and production facilities.
