Mārtiņš Staķis, Chairman of the Riga City Council, along with the mayors of several other European cities, met president of Ukraine Volodymir Zelensky, mayor of Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv Vitaly Klichko, and other state and municipal officials from Ukraine on Friday, the 19th of August. Together with other European mayors visiting Kyiv, Staķis signed a political agreement to support the sustainable rebuilding of Ukrainian cities.
Following the visit, Riga mayor Mārtiņš Staķis declared: “The brutalities of the Russian Army only sink in when you see the aftermath with your own eyes - the destruction committed by the occupying forces in Bucha, Irpin and Borodyanka. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky voiced three simple requests to the mayors of European cities: to fight back against Russia’s information warfare, to take leadership in restoring Ukrainian cities, and to serve as examples to other cities in Europe and the world. The faith that Kyiv mayor Vitaly Klitchko has in the power of his people is another testament to how we should remind Europe about the ongoing war every day, how we should help refugees, donate to the Ukrainian army, and coordinate the activities of European cities to participate in the restoration of Ukraine. Victory to Ukraine!”
The agreement is supported by the Eurocities network, and was signed by the board of a congress of regional municipalities representing local governments in Ukraine. In a joint announcement, the mayors of Riga, Florence, Athens, Helsinki, Lyons, Marseille, Oslo, Tirana and Kyiv state: “We, the mayors and governors of European and Ukrainian cities, condemn Russia’s war on Ukraine and urge the immediate withdrawal of Russian armed forces so that peace can be restored. We have undertaken to work together in order to prepare for and implement a quick and sustainable rebuilding of Ukrainian cities.”
A joint working group that includes Eurocities representatives and the Ukrainian Congress of Local and Regional Municipalities will be meeting regularly in order to supervise how cooperation unfolds.
Further information is available at https://eurocities.eu/latest/on-ukraine-visit-mayors-pledge-sustainable-rebuilding/
