VEON and Kyivstar welcome former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Ukraine

VEON Ltd. a global digital operator that provides converged connectivity and online services, announces that a high-level delegation including the former U.S. Secretary of State and Kyivstar Supervisory Board member Michael R. Pompeo have recently visited the Kyivstar team in Kyiv, Ukraine.

Mike Pompeo joined the Board of Kyivstar, VEON’s wholly owned Ukrainian subsidiary, at the end of 2023. Last week, he visited Kyiv in person to attend the first Kyivstar Board meeting of the year, along with a larger VEON delegation.

Addressing Kyivstar employees in a widely attended townhall, Secretary Pompeo and Kaan Terzioglu, VEON Group CEO and Chairman of the Kyivstar Board, reiterated their support for Kyivstar’s work and the resilience of the team in overcoming a recent major cyberattack and restoring critical services to Ukraine within days.

“The work of Kyivstar in supporting communication makes Ukraine stronger, and allows Ukraine to continue the fight. Ukraine must win, and the essential work that Kyivstar is doing to keep the country connected is an integral part of ensuring this victory. This is of a great importance to global security, and is also important to me as a person who also cares deeply about the future of Ukraine as well as about the security of United States of America,” said Mike Pompeo, former U.S. Secretary of State and Kyivstar Board member.

“VEON is deeply committed to Ukraine and we demonstrate this commitment every day with the work of Kyivstar. I am very proud of the team’s achievements over the past year, overcoming significant odds, including a major cyberattack. Kyivstar is a crown jewel in our portfolio, and VEON will do everything to make it successful, contributing to the success of Ukraine. I am very happy to see that our international investor base is also supportive of this commitment,” said Kaan Terzioglu, VEON Group CEO and Chairman of the Kyivstar Board.

“Kyivstar’s mission is adapted to the realities of war which now approaches its second year. Our first priority is to provide critical services to all Ukrainians, help save lives and make life better for Ukrainians at home and abroad. We move forward despite all obstacles and keep investing in Ukraine’s present and future. Secretary Pompeo’s decision to join our Board is proof that we are on the right track,” said Oleksandr Komarov, Kyivstar CEO.

VEON, an Amsterdam-headquartered and Nasdaq- and Euronext Amsterdam-listed company, is the parent and the 100% owner of Kyivstar. Kyivstar is Ukraine’s largest telecommunications operator with 24 million mobile subscribers and more than 1.1 million home internet subscribers as of September 2023. Beyond connectivity, it contributes to the digitalization of Ukraine with the digital health platform Helsi, TV platform Kyivstar and cloud services to Ukrainian businesses, among others.

CT Bureau