Mayors from European cities – among whom the Mayor of Athens, Mr Kostas Bakoyannis – travelled to Kyiv, on Friday, August 19, to sign a political agreement to support the sustainable rebuilding of Ukrainian cities.
The accord outlines plans to match rebuilding needs in Ukraine with capabilities of other European cities. The pact is backed by the city network, Eurocities, and signed by Ukraine’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities on behalf of all local and regional authorities in Ukraine.
In a joint statement, the mayors from Florence, Athens, Helsinki, Lyon, Marseille, Oslo, Riga, Tirana and Kyiv said: “We, mayors and leaders of European and Ukrainian cities, condemn the Russian war in Ukraine and call for an immediate withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of peace. We are committed to combining our efforts to prepare and deliver the rapid and sustainable reconstruction of Ukrainian cities destroyed by Russian attacks since 24 February 2022.”
Mayor of Athens: “The reconstruction of Ukraine should start today and should be supported by the whole democratic world”
Referring to the signing of this accord, the Mayor of Athens noted that the whole democratic world should support and contribute to the reconstruction of Ukraine.
As he stressed: “The democratic world should be ready to support this effort with strong will and determination. Athens with all its forces will be part of this common European effort to rebuild Ukrainian cities and support the Ukrainian people.”
Moreover, Mr Dario Nardella, head of the mission as President of the Eurocities, as well as the Mayor of Florence, said: “We want to offer hope, support, and solidarity to the Ukrainian people for a peaceful and democratic future. We, mayors, are the political figures closest to people, and it’s this closeness and solidarity that we brought with us from people all over Europe when we met with President Zelenskyy and our fellow Ukrainian mayors.”
The principles of the agreement
To ensure practicalities in the use of resources and expertise across borders, the mayors, represented on both sides, agreed to a set of leading principles of this collaboration to thus be:
- A shared vision of sustainable urban development, ensuring that reconstruction projects contribute to creating green, energy efficient, healthy, safe/secure, inclusive, prosperous, and liveable urban areas and agglomerations which provide equal opportunities for all citizens.
- Respect for the rule of law, ensuring accountability between partner cities and transparency in transactions, notably in relation to investments. Confirmation of the pivotal role of self-government, supporting devolution and capacity building at local level.
- Engagement of citizens and local stakeholders in the reconstruction process, and consideration of their aspirations for local development
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