Ukrainian leaders are pleading for cash to rebuild an economy battered by a year of war, but said drawing investors to a country where shells are still booming is a struggle.
"Getting foreign investors to come to a country that has a war with a nuclear-powered state is a very complicated task," Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk told an investor conference in Kyiv on April 28.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is providing Ukraine with $17.5 billion in loans over four years. But it estimates the country needs $40 billion to avoid financial collapse, and much of the gap must be filled by private investors.
"My government is out of tools to boost investment and economic growth. Please, invest in Ukraine," Yatsenyuk urged the financiers at the conference.
In a video message, Vice President Joe Biden said that rooting out rampant corruption will be critical to the success of Ukraine's economy.
He said Russia is most fearful of a Ukraine that can't be bribed or coerced.