The Solidarity Forum is a part of the work of these organizations on establishing partnerships between the French and Ukrainian municipalities.
The aim of this local solidarity forum between France and Ukraine was to:
- Highlight specific challenges of local governance during wartime in Ukraine;
- Present best examples of local support by France, the challenges that were encountered and addressed;
- Encourage the creation of new municipal partnerships between France and Ukraine.
A few important messages from the participants of the event:
👉 Viacheslav Nehoda, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Communities and territories of Ukraine: “The Forum is of paramount importance for implementing the reform of local self-government and decentralization of power in Ukraine, especially regarding the establishment of partnerships between Ukrainian and European municipalities and the exchange of best practices of local self-government. Thanks to the French government, French people, and municipalities for the support they have provided since the first days of Russian aggression. I am sure that we will win together for the sake of the protection of local democracy and the principles of humanity.”
👉 H.E. Etienne de Poncins, Ambassador of France to Ukraine: “France considers partnerships between municipalities an important tool in the future reconstruction of Ukraine. Believe me, we understand very well that in Ukraine there are regions that suffered more from the war, and also there are regions where the situation is different. We call for the establishment of strong cooperation and the continuation of this cooperation at the local level between Ukrainian municipalities and the French ones.”
👉 Thibaut Guignard, Co-Presidents of the Commission “Europe”, Association of Mayors of France (AMF): “We are used to cooperation through the central level, but we would like to cooperate directly with Ukrainian municipalities so that twin cities projects are implemented faster.”
👉 Fabrizio Rossi, Secretary General of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions: “This forum allows us to multiply our international experience. If we become parts of a united team, our ability to help Ukraine recover will be incredible!”
👉 Oleksandr Slobozhan, Secretary General of the Association of Ukrainian Cities: “Today, our municipalities are in a very tough situation, energy infrastructure is being systematically destroyed by missile strikes, and there is a great need to restore both housing and public buildings. Now it is very important to help municipalities within the framework of partnerships and twinning. Today's event is designed to establish just such relationships. In addition to material, financial and technical assistance, solidarity between communities is also important.”
👉 Ivan Dyriv, Mayor of Dolyna municipality, Ivano-Frankivsk region, Ukraine: “Today, it is right to talk about horizontal cooperation and I am grateful to our French colleagues who go for such cooperation. The war showed that such international cooperation is important because foreign colleagues can lend a shoulder in a difficult moment.”
👉 Dimitri Oudin, Reims Deputy Mayor in charge of commemorations, international relations, twinning and events: “Given that the first partnership agreements between cities were concluded after the Second World War, the context now resonates with the current partnership agreements. We are starting cooperation with Chernihiv, which has a population of about 200,000 people, approximately the same as in our city, Reims. Many online meetings between the mayors of the two cities have already taken place. And we came to cooperation on 4 levels, which we will implement in 2023: youth and sports, culture and art, historical memory and documentation of damage, as well as waste management and water supply."
👉 Bastian Veigel, Director of U-LEAD with Europe, in his concluding speach expressed his gratitude to the French municipalities, which already joined U-LEAD with Europe "Bridges of Trust" initiative - Reims, Porto Vecchio, Libourne, Lorient, Val-au-Perche, Creil - and ensured the full support of U-LEAD with Europe to the further interested partners.