When the war began, Russia cut off fuel supplies to Ukraine and attacked oil storage and stations. At that point, Ukraine had less than two weeks' worth of fuel.
Here's a story of a company that adapted, survived, and ensured Ukraine's essential fuel supply 1/
OKKO, now a market leader, has flourished under the new CEO Vasyl Danylyak, a personal friend of mine, guiding it through wartime transformation.
Today, at the Kyiv School of Economics we're publicly discussing for the first time the case we have written about OKKO 2/
But the story of the company is that of people
When the missiles struck on day one, OKKO's managers didn't abandon their jobs, but acted. With the Russians everywhere, they checked on their teams and prepared evacuation plans 3/
The case highlights manager Olena, who asked her colleagues, "Can I count on you?" and everyone answered yes
I still get emotional recalling those days. That type of determination was everywhere; people had families to save but wouldn't abandon their jobs 4/
But some people did flee. At Andriy's station near Kyiv, only 3 people stayed. Andriy, however, took charge of 2 sites, running between two sites through war-torn streets to oversee operations. "As we focused on our duties, customers calmed," he recalls 5/
Iryna, near the shelled Chernihiv, took charge of 4 stations, fueling the military defending the city. "We are not afraid!" she declared. Though without an official title, she led
Chernhiv later was encircled by the Russians but never fallen 6/
By keeping stations open, OKKO teams kept Ukraine moving. “That our reality now,” Oleksandra thought
Despite the risks, they served customers with positivity, still remembering - I kid you not - to say OKKO's values: "Service with a smile." 7/
Across OKKO, exceptional teams banded together, communicating constantly to adapt. Lawyers & marketers ran stations. Drivers risked their lives delivering fuel. Some died.
Everyone became everyday heroes. Later OKKO created a campaign “Our Heroes” to tell their stories 8/
I could discuss the company's strategy and changes in supply chain management, including finding new suppliers worldwide and bargaining over shipping slots to keep the country running. 9/
I witnessed oil depots attacked and oil tankers driving at night through hidden routes to evade Russian surveillance.
But I think the story is people! Thank you for being human! 10X
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I told WSJ that given the leverage the US seems willing to exert, Zelenskyy would need to consider the peace proposal seriously, even though the current version would be impossible for Ukrainians to accept
The real question is whether Ukraine can get a better deal. 1/
I warned that Ukraine faces a huge budget deficit for the coming year, which Kyiv will need Western aid to fill:
We don’t have money for the spring. We have a domestic political crisis, and Europe and the US are not that willing to continue to fund us. 2/
Zelenskyy would likely be able to convince the country — and the Rada, which would have to approve the plan — on some unpopular points. His ability to sell this is much higher than people think. 3/
“They decided to kill us with cold,” — says courier Adam Davidenko.
In Chernihiv, residents endure 14 hours without electricity a day, lighting their homes with head torches as Russia tries to plunge Ukraine into darkness with waves of Shahed drones, The Guardian. 1/
Valentyna Ivanivna cooks and washes dishes wearing a headlamp, saying it’s “impossible to plan anything without power.”
Lifts don’t work, water stops above the fourth floor, and daily life collapses into a cycle of outages starting before dawn. 2/
People crowd into “invincibility points” — warm tents with sockets, Starlink and tea — to charge phones and feel human.
Pensioner Liudmyla Mykolayivna scrolls TikTok while reading detective novels by torchlight at night. 3/
Washington is pressuring Kyiv harder than ever before, threatening to cut intelligence and weapons unless Ukraine agrees with US-brokered peace deal by next Thursday.
One source said, “They want to stop the war and want Ukraine to pay the price.” — Reuters. 1/
US delivered 28-point plan that backs key Russian demands — forcing Ukraine to cede more territory, shrink its military, abandon NATO membership.
Framework mirrors concessions Washington now expects Kyiv to accept. 2/
Senior US military officials met Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Thursday to push plan forward and secure rapid sign-off.
US delegation described talks as successful and called for aggressive timeline for Ukraine’s signature. 3X
Putin: After the Alaska talks, the U.S. paused negotiations on Trump’s peace plan because Ukraine rejected it.
That produced a new 28-point version. We have the text, but the U.S. didn’t discuss it with us.
[Ukraine obviously rejects capitulation.]
1/
Putin: Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine was discussed before the Alaska meeting. The U.S. asked us to accept certain compromises and “show flexibility.”
In Anchorage we confirmed that, despite difficulties, we agreed to those proposals and were ready to show that flexibility.
2/
Putin: The U.S. still cannot get Ukraine to agree. Ukraine says no. Ukraine and its European allies “dream” of a strategic defeat of Russia because they lack real battlefield information.
[Ukraine will defend its land and sovereignty and no one can force another choice.]
Zelenskyy: Our choice is our dignity vs risking losing [the US] support.
It is a 28-point “peace” vs an extremely hard winter.
We asked to live without freedom, dignity, and justice. We are asked to trust [Russia], which has betrayed us already twice. 1/
Zelenskyy: [The US] asks to give an answer if we agree to this.
But I already answered in 2019 when I became president and swore an oath to protect Ukraine, its sovereignty and independence, people's rights, and justice. 2/
Zelenskyy: We will work on diplomacy. We will rely on EU support. We will not allow Russia to depict us as dealing with the peace process. But we will not betray Ukraine. 3/