President Zelensky: Ukraine to rebuild in cooperation with Europe and the world

The relevant statement was made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at a meeting of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

According to Zelensky, when deciding to invade Ukraine, Russia’s leadership hoped for an internal split in the country, that Ukrainians would not be able to unite for the sake of victory. But, two months of Ukraine’s resistance showed that the Kremlin was wrong.

“Every day, while the whole country is fighting against the Russian invaders, we, as central and local government  authorities, in cooperation with our friends and partners, must spend on preparations for the postwar restoration of our state,” Zelensky stressed.

According to the preliminary estimates, Ukraine’s losses from the war with Russia have reached $600 billion so far.

“More than 32 million square meters of living space, more than 1,500 educational facilities and more than 350 medical facilities have been destroyed or damaged. Economic entities suffered huge losses – hundreds of enterprises have been destroyed. About 2,500 kilometers of roads and almost 300 bridges have been ruined or damaged. And it’s not just statistics. This is Mariupol, this is Volnovakha, this is Okhtyrka, this is Chernihiv, this is Borodianka, dozens and dozens of our cities, towns and villages,” the President of Ukraine noted.

More than 11.5 million Ukrainians have fled their homes due to hostilities, and about 5 million of them have gone abroad. But, 95% of migrants already want to return home. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a plan to rebuild a comfortable European Ukraine, according to Zelensky.

The President of Ukraine said that today he had received consent from the United Kingdom, Denmark, Japan, Italy and several other countries to join the restoration of the affected territories of Ukraine.

“The main principle of this project is that we are building with Europe and the world, rebuilding the whole country. A partnership will be established for each city and each country,” Zelensky explained.

President of the National Council, the lower house of the Swiss parliament, Irène Kälin, President of the Senate of Romania Florin Cîțu, President of the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia Talat Xhaferi arrived in Ukraine to attend a meeting of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities. They expressed admiration for the courage of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Ukrainian people, and assured their comprehensive support for Ukraine, namely regarding postwar reconstruction.

A reminder that, on February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, starting a war.  Russian troops are shelling and destroying the key infrastructure facilities, launching missile and air strikes on Ukrainian cities and villages, torturing and murdering civilians.

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