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AGNES PAWELKOWSKA
Conference Host and Moderator
International Trade Specialist, Ukraine Desk
U.S. Department of State
Agnes Pawelkowska is an International Trade Specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) Office of Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.
For over 15 years prior to joining DOC in 2022, Agnes worked on numerous trade and business development projects. In 2009, she founded Green Gate Consulting, LLC of Alexandria, VA to assist European companies in entering the U.S. market and U.S. companies in finding trade partners in Europe.
She previously worked on a USAID/USDOC EcoLinks trade assistance and export promotion program involving
matchmaking, as well as development, management and implementation of international programs, study tours and conferences in Europe and the United States.
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Among her business development projects have been organizing and accompanying representatives of the Greater Richmond Partnership on a trade mission to Poland and representing the Virginia Economic Development Partnership on a trade and business development trip to eight Polish cities where she held seminars on the U.S. market and on Virginia business opportunities.
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She has authored a number of articles in Poland on business opportunities for European companies in the United States and performed market research for her company’s clients and the Polish Government through EU-funded contracts.
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Agnes holds a Master’s degree in International Commerce & Policy from George Mason University, as well as a Master’s degree in International Trade and Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Gdansk University in Poland.
BRIDGET A. BRINK
U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine
Ambassador Brink was nominated by President Biden to be U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine on April 25, 2022, confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate on May 18, 2022, and arrived in Kyiv on May 29, 2022. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Ambassador Brink served as U.S. Ambassador to the Slovak Republic from August 15, 2019, until her confirmation as Ambassador to Ukraine.
She previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the Department of State, with responsibility for issues related to Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and the protracted conflicts in Europe. She also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassies in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and in Tbilisi, Georgia.
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During her twenty-five years in the Foreign Service, Ambassador Brink has spent most of her career advancing U.S. policy in Europe and Eurasia. She was the Director for the Aegean and the South Caucasus at the National Security Council and served in the State Department as the Deputy Director for Southern European Affairs, Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs, and Cyprus Desk Officer. She began her career in Belgrade, Serbia.
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Originally from Michigan, Ambassador Brink joined the State Department in 1996. She holds Master’s degrees in International Relations and Political Theory from the London School of Economics and Political Science as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Kenyon College. Ambassador Brink speaks Russian and has studied Georgian, Serbian, and French. She is married with two children.
OKSANA MARKAROVA
Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States  
Ambassador Markarova recently met with the Secretary on February 18 and DAS De Falco on March 22.  Oksana Markarova was named Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United States by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on February 25, 2021, and arrived in Washington, DC on Apr 20, 2021.  She served in Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance in 2015-2020 as First Deputy Minister and Government commissioner on investments, and then (from 2018-2020) as Minister of Finance. 
During her time at the Finance Ministry, she was a co-author of Ukraine’s macroeconomic revival program, conducted unprecedented fiscal consolidation leading to reduction of Ukraine’s budget deficit to GDP of 2% and debt-to-GDP ratio to below 50%. She negotiated and coordinated two IMF programs and other IFI cooperation programs for Ukraine.   
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During her tenure as Minister, she and her team has also created the UkraineInvest government promotion agency, the “Ukrainian Startup” fund, and an eData ecosystem of government public finance portals, including spending.gov.ua and openbudget.gov.ua, which opened most public finance data to the public and boosted Ukraine’s standing in major international data transparency ratings.   
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Prior to her career in public service, Ambassador Markarova spent 17 years working in private equity and financial advisory roles, including with a leadership role in the “ITT” investment group, the Western NIS Enterprise Fund, Chemonics, and the World Bank. She also founded the Archidata startup electronic archive company in between her government service positions in 2020.   
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Ambassador Markarova serves on the Boards of Ukraine House DC foundation in Washington, D.C., the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, and the Ukrainian Development Foundation, and supports Ukrainian Catholic University and the Ukrainian Press Museum-Archive.   
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She holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Environmental Science from Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine and an M.A. in public finance from Indiana University in Bloomington. She is married with four children and a grandson.  
MARISA LAGO
U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade
Marisa Lago is the Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade. She was appointed by President Joseph R. Biden and sworn in on Dec. 28, 2021, to lead the federal government’s efforts to assist American businesses entering or expanding into international markets, enforce fair trade policies, promote travel and tourism to the United States and U.S. products and services overseas, provide in-depth trade analyses, develop strategies that will shape the future of international trade, and engage in commercial diplomacy across the globe.
Under Secretary Lago has a distinguished career in public service with expertise in international markets, trade, financial regulation, and enforcement. Before joining ITA, she led the New York City Department of City Planning and the City Planning Commission. In the Obama-Biden Administration, she served in the Department of the Treasury as Assistant Secretary for International Markets and Development.
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Lago has also served as the Director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority and Chief Economic Development Officer for the City of Boston, President, and CEO of the Empire State Development Corporation, Director of the Office of International Affairs for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and Global Head of Compliance for a major investment bank.
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She received a Bachelor of Science in Physics from The Cooper Union and her Juris Doctor cum laude from Harvard Law School.
YULIA SVYRYDENKO
First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine -
Minister of Economy of Ukraine
Yulia Svyrydenko was appointed Minister of Economy of Ukraine on November 4, 2021, following the resignation of Oleksiy Lyubchenko, after serving on the official staff of President Zelensky.
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Yulia supports U.S.-Ukraine cooperation and has publicly called for increased cooperation in agriculture, nuclear and renewable energy, and the aerospace sectors. She started her career in 2008 in the private sector.
She served in leadership capacities for several organizations specializing in economic development, trade, and agriculture in Ukraine. She graduated from the Kyiv National University of Trade and Economics and received a master’s degree in management of Antimonopoly Activities.
Yulia spoke with the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Svyrydenko on October 11 regarding the importance of Ukraine critical raw minerals. Earlier, you met her in Kyiv, Ukraine on July 26, 2024, and joined the Secretary’s August 30 meeting with the First Deputy Prime Minister at Commerce HQ.
TETYANA PROKOPCHUK
Vice President, the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine
Tetyana Prokopchuk is the Vice President of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Ukraine. She has been a part of AmCham Ukraine team for 11 years.
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Tetyana's areas of competence include, in particular, strategic B2G direction of AmCham activities, policy, and advocacy of member companies' interests at the highest level.
Her experience, professional expertise, and strategic approach have been recognized and acknowledged both within the Chamber and by external stakeholders in the Government and business community.
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Tetyana is the leader and ideological inspirer of a personal development and business-networking AmCham Ukraine platform - Women’s Executives Leadership Development Initiative (WELDI). AmCham Ukraine is a part of the EMPOWER HER initiative that aims to promote the role of women in international business and trade.
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As AmCham’s Vice President, Tetyana is actively involved in programs to support women's leadership and development in Ukraine. Last year, she cooperated with the U.S. Department of Commerce on a joint program titled Empowering Ukrainian Women Entrepreneurs Through Trade and a program with the U.S. Department of State on a program titled Empowered Women's Leadership. This year, Tetyana continues cooperation with the U.S. Department of Commerce on a joint Mentoring Ukrainian Women to Success program.
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You met with Tetyana Prokopchuk during your latest visit in Kyiv, Ukraine on July 26, 2024 during AmCham’s lunch and the later meeting with a small group of selected Ukrainian women-led businesses (members of AmCham).
MARY ANN ROBINSON
Senior Manager Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs 
U.S. Department of State
Since June 2021, MaryAnn Robinson has managed the Western Hemisphere and South-Central Asia portfolios of the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs in nearly 100 countries worldwide, from program initiation to implementation and alumni networking.
AWE provides female business owners with the knowledge, networks, and access needed to start and scale successful enterprises. The program harnesses the power of private-public partnerships and alumni networks to help U.S. embassies reach their economic, outreach, women, peace, and security goals. Through AWE, women entrepreneurs participate in a facilitated entrepreneurship program supplemented with localized content, as well as networking and mentorship opportunities. The program equips women with the tools needed to create and grow their own businesses, raise capital, and effectively network with other successful business owners.
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Before joining the AWE program, MaryAnn held other positions at the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs since joining the State Department in 2018.
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Her earlier career includes work in the private sector, as well as teaching English. MaryAnn graduated from College of Charleston with a BA degree in International Studies.