Gerus explained that his visit to Roland Garros was a business trip to Paris

Andriy Gerus, a member of parliament from the Servant of the People party, commented on his appearance at the Roland Garros tennis tournament in Paris. 

The lawmaker stated that the trip to France was related to an official business trip, and that attending the tennis matches took place after the official events had concluded.

According to Gerus, a group of MPs from the parliamentary committee on energy was in France to hold talks on supporting Ukraine’s energy sector and the country’s recovery.

The MP reported that during the visit, several meetings were held with representatives of French government agencies, international consultants, and donor organizations.

“France is a very important partner of ours that supports Ukraine in various areas, including energy. We were in Paris on a business trip as a group of deputies from the Energy Committee and held several meetings,” Gerus wrote.

During the talks, the parties discussed:

• energy reforms in Ukraine;
• restoration of the damaged power grid;
• the development of renewable energy;
• international programs to support and finance projects.

According to the MP, France is implementing a €71 million aid program for Ukraine, a significant portion of which will be directed specifically toward the energy sector.

The participants in the talks also discussed the possibility of launching additional generating capacity of nearly 200 MW.

After the official program concluded, the MP attended matches featuring Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk, who are representing Ukraine at the prestigious Roland Garros tournament.

“Elina and Marta are not just athletes. They are people who bring Ukraine to the world and help our children even during the war,” the parliamentarian noted.

In addition, Gerus reported that he attended a match featuring 15-year-old Ukrainian tennis player Polina Sklyar, whom he called “the hope of Ukrainian tennis.”

Separately, Andriy Gerus emphasized that he did not use budget funds for his trip to France.

“The expenses for my business trip were covered out of my own pocket,” the MP emphasized.

As a reminder, during martial law, government officials, members of parliament, judges, prosecutors, and representatives of local government may cross Ukraine’s state border solely for the purpose of official business travel.

He wrote about this on his page.