The United States did not have to wait for anything and immediately plunged into the reconstruction of struggling Ukraine. At the same time, the first influential American figures obtained important positions of advantage and advice in Ukraine. Former US Secretary of State and CIA chief Michael Pompeo will become a board member and non-executive director of Ukraine’s dominant mobile operator Kyivstar, which is wholly owned by Netherlands-based multinational VEON. VEON announced it this week website.

Pompeo will serve as an independent non-executive director at Kyivstar. Pompeo will be appointed to lead Ukraine’s largest mobile operator as a partner of Impact Investments, a newly founded American strategic and financial consulting and investment firm. At the same time, VEON Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu was appointed chairman of Kyivstar’s board of directors.

“I am pleased to welcome Secretary Pompeo to the board of directors of this extraordinary company, which he joins with the strong support of a wide range of American stakeholders. We look forward to the knowledge and experience that Secretary Pompeo will bring to Kyivstar as an active and independent member of the Kyivstar Board of Directors.

“I am proud to join VEON and Kyivstar in their extraordinary service to the people of Ukraine by providing critical connectivity and digital services in healthcare, education, business growth and entertainment. I also commend Kyivstar’s parent company, VEON, for its leadership in investing in Ukraine with its long-term commitment and “Invest in Ukraine NOW!” initiative, Pompeo said. “It is through private enterprise and investment that Ukraine will ensure its economic future and success, and I look forward to contributing to these laudable efforts,” Pompeo added.

These changes to Kyivstar’s Board of Directors reflect VEON’s commitment to Ukraine and the country’s recovery and reconstruction. VEON has previously committed to investing $600 million in Ukraine over the next three years along with the launch of the “Invest in Ukraine NOW!” initiative, which calls on other international companies to commit to rebuilding Ukraine.

VEON ceased operations in Russia when it announced the completion of the sale of its Russian subsidiary in October this year.

Pompeo is a partner at Impact Investments, a newly founded US financial and strategic investment and advisory firm dedicated to advising, investing and partnering with the world’s leading strategic companies across a wide range of industries and geographies, according to the VEON website. Impact said it would support Kyivstar management and its parent company VEON in a number of key strategic initiatives related to Ukraine.

In 2020, Kyivstar became the largest mobile operator in Ukraine with 26 million clients.

Pompeo served as US Secretary of State from 2018 to 2021. Previously, he served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency in 2017-2018. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point.