Support for Ukraine

Introduction

The invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army on 24th of February 2022 has caused an unprecedented wave of indignation among local and regional authorities across Europe and beyond.

In its resolution, the SYVICOL committee strongly condemned this heinous aggression and called on all municipalities to show their solidarity and support for the Ukrainian people. Numerous municipalities did not hesitate to organise humanitarian aid for the suffering population as quickly as possible and according to the means at their disposal. However, the hostilities are still going on and the scale of the destruction is increasing. The need for support will therefore be long term.

At European level, several initiatives have been developed to support local authorities who wish to help the Ukrainian people in different ways.

On this page, SYVICOL wishes to share the information it has access to through its relations with various international organisations with its members. SYVICOL also collaborates with the Association of Ukrainian Cities and can establish contact between the latter and the Luxembourgish municipalities that wish to do so.

On this page you will also find inspiring initiatives of Luxembourg municipalities as well as some official information from the Luxembourgish authorities, and the contact details of several NGO’s.

This page will be regularly updated, so please do not hesitate to visit frequently.

Cities4Cities

Launched in March this year, Cities4Cities is a free online exchange platform and communication tool developed to help Ukrainian cities. It allows local authorities from Ukraine and the rest of Europe to share their needs and offers of help with regards to local infrastructure as well as enabling them to get in contact to receive direct practical help.

The platform was launched at the initiative of Bernd Vöhringer, President of the Chamber of Local Authorities at the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe and Mayor of the city of Sindelfingen (DE), with the support of the Congress.

Bernd Vöhringer explains that the need to coordinate support from local level became very clear after a visit from Sindelfingen's Polish twin city Chełm, located near the Ukrainian border, where he saw "the urgent need for support in terms of material, financial and human resources. The platform will be a place to match the requests/needs of Ukrainian cities with the capacities, know-how and offers of other European cities, and it will allow us to support our Ukrainian friends and partners faster and more efficiently."

To consult the requests for assistance or to apply for an offer of assistance (aid deliveries, food, transfer of knowledge, support for reconstruction measures), you just need to create a profile on the Cities4Cities platform. Please note that the platform managers have to accept and unlock each new profile, so you will need to be patient after creating your profile.

Each request or offer of help is linked to a contact person with an email address or a phone number. The platform recommends using English or Ukrainian (if necessary with the help of the standard translation tools) for emails and for making contact by phone, they recommend that people with appropriate language skills (preferably Ukrainian) make the calls.

For more information visit: https://www.cities4cities.eu/LandingPage/Index?ReturnUrl=%2F.

To contact the platform managers, contact: contact@cities4cities.eu.

An FAQ and a user guide for the platform can be downloaded below.

Camps for Ukrainian children

During his participation in the 149th plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions in April, Vitaliy Klitschko, President of the Association of Ukrainian Cities and Mayor of Kiev, together with Apostolos Tzitzikostas, President of the European Committee of the Regions, launched an initiative to organise camps for Ukrainian children aged 6 to 17 in European cities and towns.

The project is aimed at children from the local Ukrainian communities most affected by the war, as well as the carers who accompany them. The overall aim is to create a space where young people can feel safe and regain a sense of normality through a balanced daily routine. Outdoor activities, sports and rehabilitation activities will be organised, personal development courses will enrich the knowledge of each child or young person and allow them to gain new experiences with a foreign language, while professional psychological support should be available in their mother tongue.

Camps last between one and a few weeks depending on the availability of local organisers. The costs of the children's stay, including travel and activities organised during the camp, are covered by the local or regional authority hosting the camp. The Association of Ukrainian Cities, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European host authorities, takes care of the administrative procedures necessary for the trip and the stay in the territory of the host community.

Luxembourg cities and municipalities interested in organising a camp can contact the CoR at SupportUkraine@cor.europa.eu.

A concept for organising camps for Ukrainian children and young people as well as frequently asked questions are available below.

Activities of international and european organisations

Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR)

CEMR is the broadest association of local and regional governments in Europe, bringing together the national associations of local and regional governments from 40 European countries, including SYVICOL.

On the day of the Russian invasion in Ukraine, it issued a statement strongly condemning the Russian attack on the sovereign state of Ukraine and underlining its solidarity with the Ukrainian people and their local and regional governments.

In a circular letter dated 25th of February 2022, SYVICOL invited Luxembourg's local government officials to sign up to the initiative by filling in an online form - which more than 40 locally elected representatives have done so far - and to show their solidarity by other gestures, such as raising the Ukrainian flag.

CEMR has also set up a taskforce dedicated to Ukraine, which regularly meets online and of which SYVICOL is a member. It is an important platform for the exchange and consultation between associations of local governments, including the association of Ukrainian cities, providing first-hand information on the development of the situation and the needs of its members.

Finally, CEMR has set up a dedicated internet page dedicated to its activities in this area. It includes recommendations for activities to support Ukraine and good practices from municipalities in other European countries.

European Committee of the Regions

The CoR is the voice of regions and cities in the European Union. It consists of 329 members and alternates representing local and regional authorities from the 27 EU member States.

As early as 24th of February, through its President Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the CoR strongly condemned the invasion of Ukrainian territory and affirmed its solidarity with the Ukrainian cities bombed by the Russian aggressor. The committee expressed its readiness to support Ukrainian cities and regions by all available means. At the 9th Summit of Cities and Regions in Marseille on 3rd and 4th of March 2022, more than 2.000 regional and local representatives of the European Union representing over one million mayors, local and regional elected political leaders, adopted a declaration for a free Ukraine in Europe and launched a call for commitment through concrete humanitarian aid actions along the European borders, while reaffirming the CoR's unequivocal support for Ukrainian cities and regions that defend their territorial integrity.

This appeal was implemented by the CoR itself, which initially focused on humanitarian aid and the support of refugees. First of all, the CoR created a dedicated page on its website to address the most urgent needs, functioning as a relay point for requests for concrete assistance received from Ukrainian regional and local associations.

Then, on March 30th, an information and support platform was put online in order to offer concrete support to local and regional authorities in order to better respond to the humanitarian crisis both in Ukraine and in the host countries by facilitating the linking of needs and offers of assistance, as well as information on European funds. Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of the City of Kiev and President of the Association of Ukrainian Cities has also been granted honorary CoR membership.

On 27th of April, at its plenary session, the CoR sent a strong political message in the presence of several regional and local leaders of Ukraine, calling for severe sanctions against Russia, demanding the immediate release of Ukrainian mayors and civil servants abducted by the Russian occupation forces, and offering its support for the reconstruction of Ukraine. The CoR has also launched an initiative to organise camps for children and young people aged 6 to 17 to offer them the opportunity to be welcomed in European countries away from the torments of war (see above).

Seven days after the Member States' decision to grant Ukraine EU candidate status, which the CoR warmly welcomed, its leaders, together with associations representing Ukrainian cities and regions, launched the European Alliance for the Reconstruction of Ukraine with the aim of helping Ukrainian local and regional authorities to rebuild homes, schools, infrastructure and services destroyed by Russia since the beginning of its invasion. The Alliance will focus on reconstruction needs as part of the long-term support to Ukraine.

Congress of local and regional authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE)

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe (CLRAE) is responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in its 46 member states. As the advocate for cities and regions, it promotes consultation and political dialogue between governments and local authorities. It also has the task of monitoring the application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government in Council of Europe member states.

After the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army on 24th of February 2022, the Council of Europe reacted quickly: as of 25th of February, after holding an exchange of views with the Parliamentary Assembly, the Committee of Ministers decided to suspend the Russian Federation from the Council of Europe, in accordance with Article 8 of its Statute. At an extraordinary meeting on 16th of March, the Committee of Ministers decided that the Russian Federation should cease to be a member of the Council of Europe with immediate effect.

Six days later, on 22nd of March, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities adopted a declaration condemning in the strongest terms the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which constitutes a flagrant violation of international law and the Statute of the Council of Europe and calling on all local and regional authorities in Europe and beyond, to remain united and determined in their solidarity and support for the Ukrainian nation, its people and its authorities.

At the same time, the Congress supported the mayor of the City of Sindelfingen (DE), Bernd Vöhringer, to launch the Cities4Cities exchange platform to help Ukrainian cities. It allows local authorities in Ukraine and the rest of Europe to share their needs and offers related to local infrastructure and to get in direct contact to receive direct practical help.

Since then, the Congress set up a dedicated section of its website to the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine. It brings together international and European political declarations and examples of concrete actions to help Ukrainian cities and municipalities.

Examples of Luxembourg cities and municipalities

Esch-sur-Alzette (LU) and Stryi (UA): on the way to the first Luxembourg-Ukrainian twinning

Official information

NGO Contacts