YOU AND YOUR COLLEAGUES ARE INVITED TO ATTEND THE

U.S.-Ukraine Trade and Investment Agribusiness Forum in Minneapolis, Minnesota - 

WASHINGTON - The Minnesota Trade Office, Minneapolis, MN in partnership with North Dakota Trade Office, Fargo, North Dakota is sponsoring a U.S.-Ukraine Trade & Investment Agribusiness Forum in Minneapolis, MN on Monday, May 15, 2017 from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon at the offices of the Dorsey-Whitney LLP law firm, 50 South 6th Street, Suite 1500, Minneapolis.  Valeriy Chaly, Ambassador of Ukraine to the USA, Washington, D.C. will speak at the Forum on Monday morning and also at the Global Minnesota event at 6 p.m.

US_Ukraine_Ag_Trade_Forum_Minnesota Agenda.pdf

Business and civic leaders from the Minnesota-North Dakota area will be in attendance.  There will also be 30 representatives from agribusiness's in Ukraine in attendance at the Forum. .  You and your colleagues are invited to attend.  After the Forum session on Monday morning the Forum will continue with a 2 and 1/2 day tour of several agribusiness's in Minnesota and North Dakota which will be attended by the agribusiness representatives from Ukraine. (See additional information below)
FORUM AGENDA - Monday, May 15, 2017 - 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon

8:00-8:30 a.m. Forum Registration and Continental Breakfast at the
Dorsey-Whitney LLP, 50 South 6th Street, Suite 1500, Minneapolis, MN 55402

1.  8:30-9:00 a.m. Opening Remarks:
     1. Chris Bercaw, Partner, Welcome on behalf of Dorsey-Whitney LLP
     2. Dr. Nikolay Megits, Regional Trade Manager, Minnesota Trade Office, Minneapolis, MN
     3. Gabrielle Gerbaud, Executive Director, Minnesota Trade Office and Chief Protocol Officer for the State of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
     4. Valeriy Chaly, Ambassador of Ukraine to the USA, Washington, D.C. 

2.  9:00-10:10 a.m. Panel 1: Trade and Investment Opportunities in Ukrainian Agro Sector

     1. Ed Dieter, Deputy Director of the Minnesota Trade Office – Panel Moderator
     2. Morgan Williams, President, U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Washington, DC
                Topic: Ukraine's Land Reform Will Increase Trade and Investment Opportunities.
     3. Philip de Leon, Director of Public Affairs and International Development, AGCO, Washington, D.C.

                Topic: U.S. companies and Ukraine: partnering to achieve Food Security.
     4. Howard Dahl, Amity Technology, President and CEO, Fargo, ND

                Topic: My 25 year adventure in Ukraine.
     5. Van Yeutter, Cargill, VP of Corporate Affairs., Washington, D.C.

                Topic: Cargill’s experience of doing business in Ukraine.

10:10-10:30 a.m. Coffee Break & Networking

3.  10:30-11:40 a.m. Panel 2: Financing Options of Investment and Trade with Ukraine

     1. Curtis L. Hanson, Principal, Trade Acceptance Group – Panel Moderator
     2. Bob Pelka, Past V.P of Wells Fargo Bank.

              Topic: Can past export/trade success between US manufacturers and Ukrainian buyer be repeated?
     3. Tracey Webb, Head of the Insurance and Financing Division, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), Washington, D.C.

              Topic: Supporting U.S. Private Business Investment in Ukraine

11:40-12:00 p.m. Networking and closing of morning session

RSVP: To register your attendance at the Monday morning session in Minneapolis, May 15, of the U.S.-Ukraine Trade & Investment Forum in Minneapolis, Minnesota please send an e-mail to Morgan Williams, mwilliams@usubc.org. 

4.  6:00 P.M. - AMBASSADOR OF UKRAINE IN THE USA, VALERIY CHALY, SPEAKS AT GLOBAL MINNESOTA EVENT, Ukraine at the Crossroads - 6 p.m., Monday, May 15, 2017 

Caught between East and West, Ukraine has been a flashpoint in the increasingly tense relationship between Russia and the United States. In a conversation with former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Global Minnesota board member Ross Wilson, Ambassador of Ukraine Valeriy Chaly will discuss the internal and external forces that will affect not only Ukraine’s future but also the stability and security of the entire region. 

LINK FOR REGISTRATION for Global Minnesota event: https://www.globalminnesota.org/event/ukraine-crossroads-conversation-ambassador-chaly/

5.  AGRIBUSINESS TOUR:  The U.S.-Ukraine Trade & Investment Agribusiness Forum will continue on Monday afternoon, Tuesday the 16th and Wednesday the 17th with tours to several Agricultural Machinery and Grain & Oilseed Processing Technology businesses in the Minneapolis and Fargo, North Dakota area. You can find the complete agenda for the entire forum including the agribusiness tour in the attachment to this e-mail.  The tour will be attended by the agribusiness representatives coming from Ukraine.  This program has received support from the SABIT program of the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Commercial Service at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.

The agribusiness tour will include visits to Crown Iron and Carter Day, Minneapolis; RDO Equipment, Moorhead, MN; Amity Technology and Titan Machinery, Fargo, ND (Amity and Titan are members of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council, USUBC, (www.USUBC.org); Brandt Holdings Company, Fargo, ND and FAST, Glenwood, Minnesota.  If you have an interest in attending any of the two and one-half agribusiness tour on Monday afternoon, Tuesday and Wednesday, shown in the e-mail attachment, please also notify Morgan Williams by sending an e-mail to mwilliams@usubc.org.

INVITE: U.S.-UKRAINE TRADE AND INVESTMENT AGRIBUSINESS FORUM 
AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY AND GRAIN & OILSEED PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY 
Minnesota Trade Office, Minneapolis, MN in partnership with North Dakota Trade Office, Fargo, North Dakota

Monday, May 15, 2017, 8:00 a.m., Minneapolis, MN, law offices of Dorsey-Whitney