The Ministry for Communities and Territories Development continues work aimed at expanding cooperation between Ukrainian and foreign municipalities. The Ministry emphasizes the importance of such cooperation in the context of supporting municipalities whose territories were destroyed as a result of the war waged by the Russian Federation.

Thus, on October 19, the France-Ukraine Local Solidarity Forum united the municipalities of the two countries on issues of partnership development and restoration of municipalities’ territories.

The event was organized in cooperation between the Association of Mayors of France (AMF), the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR), PLATFORMA, as well as U-LEAD with Europe. The solidarity forum is a component of the activities of these organizations aimed at establishing partnership relations between the French and Ukrainian municipalities.

Vyacheslav Negoda, Deputy Minister for Communities and Territories Development, put on the agenda of the forum the issue of overcoming challenges for the development of municipalities under martial law, as well as the possibility of support of Ukrainian local self-government bodies by the local authorities of the French Republic.

According to him, during the war, local self-government in Ukraine continues to exercise its powers, while being forced to adapt to new challenges. Additional functions that have fallen to the lot of local authorities since the first days of the war concern both the provision of defense and security in municipalities, and the large influx of internally displaced persons.

“The military invasion of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine and the subsequent deployment of hostilities dealt a serious blow to the Ukrainian economy. Some municipalities found themselves in an extremely difficult situation, others were less affected, but there is not a single corner of the country that has not experienced shocks from the military actions of the aggressor country”, said Vyacheslav Nehoda.

He informed that MinRegion has intensified work on expanding the cooperation of Ukrainian hromadas with foreign municipalities. An analysis of existing partnerships with French communes was carried out, which indicates a great potential for establishing cooperation between local self-government bodies of the two countries.

Why this is important, Vyacheslav Negoda explained using the example, when shelling from the side of the Russian Federation only in the last 9 days damaged more than four hundred objects of critical infrastructure and killed civilians.

He also announced what kind of help Ukrainian municipalities need today to provide people in their territory with drinking water, heat, and light.

The French side, represented by the delegation from the French Embassy in Ukraine, as well as Fabrizio Rossi, Secretary General of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, Christophe Rouillon and Thibaut Guignard, Co-Presidents of the Commission “Europe”, Association of Mayors of France (AMF), and heads of French cities, declared solidarity with Ukrainian hromadas and readiness for further comprehensive support.