The restoration of local self-government is among the priority tasks in the de-occupied territories. Deputy Head of the Office of the President Oleksii Kuleba stated this in an interview with Forbes Ukraine.

“All de-occupied territories must meet certain criteria: the demining of settlements and the restoration of networks (gas supply, water drainage, power grids). Also, restoration of local self-government at all levels and in each settlement. For example, if a village is de-occupied, it is important that the head of the village is there,” said Oleksii Kuleba.

According to him, the next steps include gathering information and documenting all the destruction that the municipality has suffered.

“Every object is described, regardless of whether it is a private house, a school or an administrative building. This is done by local authorities together with the regional military administration and the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine. A pool of buildings and infrastructure that can be restored quickly is formed. If we talk about larger-scale reconstruction, then sometimes we mean the redevelopment of territories, because a city or a village may be completely destroyed, and it will have to be rebuilt anew. This is a task on the part of the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, regional military administrations, and local authorities.”

Also, Oleksii Kuleba called the creation of proper conditions for life in the de-occupied territories a priority.

“During our trip to the regions, we saw and heard from local authorities that despite the war, people are returning to the de-occupied cities and towns. Therefore, our priority is to create suitable living conditions for them.”