Gallego Travels to Odesa, Calls for U.S. to Stand by Ukraine

Senator Speaks at Black Sea Security Forum, Tours ADM Grain Facility, Superhumans Prosthetics Center, and Novoodeska Energy Substation ODESA – This weekend, Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) traveled to Odesa, Ukraine to attend the Black Sea Security Forum (BSSF) and conduct site visits to critical infrastructure supporting Ukraine’s wartime economy and recovery. On Saturday, prior to addressing the forum, Senator Gallego conducted a walking tour of Odesa to view the city’s historic sites and the visible impact of ongoing Russian bombardment. Senator Gallego delivered the closing remarks at the BSSF reception in the evening. Speaking on the forum’s theme, The End Game , Senator Gallego emphasized the global stakes of the conflict: “Ukraine is winning this war. Ukraine will win this war, and Ukraine needs to win this war—not just for its people, for its culture, for existence, but for the freedom-loving countries of the world, and for the United States. It’ll be a moral stain upon our country if we are not here at the end of the day when Ukraine can truly say that they’re free and they’re sovereign. Now, more than ever, we know that we are interlinked. We need Ukraine just as much as Ukraine needs us, with everything that they have learned about how to stop brutal countries that violate the rules-based order. We need the fighters of Ukraine to teach the United States how to fight for the next war, and not just try to play catch up.” On Sunday, Senator Gallego toured the Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) export facility at the Odesa Seaport alongside ADM Managing Director Oleksii Kosobokov and Terminal Director Andrii Slusarenko. Russian drone attacks have repeatedly struck ADM’s nearby Chornomorsk terminal, most recently in April and May 2026. The Senator discussed what U.S. policy tools could help protect American commercial operations and sustain Ukraine’s ability to generate its own export revenue. Senator Gallego then visited the Superhumans Center in Odesa, a cutting-edge prosthetics and trauma rehabilitation facility preparing to open its Odesa location on June 22, 2026, alongside its existing Lviv center. Senator Gallego discussed gaps in Ukraine’s long-term rehabilitation capacity and the role of continued U.S. support for war recovery beyond the battlefield. The Senator concluded his site visits at the Novoodeska Substation, a high-voltage transmission node serving the Odesa region’s ports, grain export infrastructure, and wartime logistics. Senator Gallego examined the substation’s vulnerabilities and discussed what U.S. assistance could most effectively improve grid resilience ahead of the next wave of Russian attacks. Read more on the Senator’s work on Ukraine: Gallego, Grassley Introduce NOPE Act to Strengthen Russia Sanctions Senate Democratic Leaders Release Joint Statement on Trump Administration’s Weakening of Sanctions on Russian Oil in Attempt to Dampen Economic Impacts of Trump’s Iran War Gallego Travels to Finland, Calls Out Russian Aggression Gallego: “America does not stand with dictators, and we never will.”