The war is far from over in Ukraine, but for some cities in ruins, it is already time to think about reconstruction and the future.
The Association of Mayors of France (AMF) and the mayor of the Ukrainian locality of Irpin, Oleksandr Markouchine, signed a "declaration of intent" in Paris on Tuesday which allows French municipalities to participate quickly in the refoundation of this " martyred city.
Solidarity with Ukraine "Rebuild Irpin" Call for the mobilization of municipalities and intermunicipalities #Collterr ▶️https://t.co/EyqxkUUhNA pic.twitter.com/Y6zB36zgkR
—AMF |
mayors of France (@l_amf) June 28, 2022
"We are announcing today (Tuesday) a strong desire to participate at the local community level in the reconstruction of Ukraine," said AMF President David Lisnard alongside the mayor of Irpin, city of the suburbs of kyiv devastated in the first weeks of the Russian invasion which he presented as a “martyrdom and heroic city” for having “stopped the attack” on the Ukrainian capital.
Priority to social infrastructure
“The idea is that French communities, municipalities in France and intermunicipalities participate (in reconstruction) through legal, administrative and technical engineering, as well as through the mobilization of financial resources and that of companies in our territories” , added the LR mayor of Cannes, who went to Ukraine at the start of the war.
Read alsoRussian offensive: in the ruins of Irpin, Emmanuel Macron salutes the “heroism” of the Ukrainians
"The city of Irpin won, but the price was very heavy", acknowledged Oleksander Markouchine, who insisted on the need to rebuild "before winter" certain infrastructures of the city where went there is two weeks President Emmanuel Macron, accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.
“One of our biggest problems is social infrastructure, schools, kindergartens.
If they are not rebuilt, the children cannot go to school and the inhabitants cannot return,” said the mayor, who estimated the most urgent needs at 50 million dollars.
According to the AMF, 75% of the city was damaged, "with more than 12,000 buildings affected and 885 buildings completely destroyed".