At the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC 2025) in Rome, a high-level panel discussion was held on the role of municipalities in fostering resilience, cohesion, and European integration. The session, titled “Resilience and Cohesion through Partnerships: Local and International Cooperation”, brought together key voices from Ukraine and the EU.

---

The panel was moderated by Svitlana Blinova, Coordinator and Team Leader of the Cities4Cities Initiative. As a reminder, the Cities4Cities team is working at the URC 2025 for strengthening international municipal partnerships within the Polaris Programme "Supporting Multilevel Governance in Ukraine".

The discussion featured representatives of the Ukrainian government, municipalities from Ukraine and the EU, and donor institutions from countries already actively supporting partnerships with Ukrainian communities. They shared lessons learned and explored how this approach can be scaled across more European countries, regions, and municipalities.

Aliona Shkrum, First Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine:

“No community or country can cope with the scale of destruction alone — but we are rebuilding together with you. That is why we are launching the next phase — involving businesses in inter-municipal cooperation. Because recovery is not only about schools, roads, and shelters, but also about investment, new opportunities, and shared responsibility.”

 

 

Antje Grotheer, President of the Bremen State Parliament, Chair of the Working Group on Ukraine, European Committee of the Regions:

“Establishing a Joint Consultative Committee is not just a formality. It is an important step for any EU candidate country on its path to EU membership. It will allow Ukrainian local and regional authorities to play a direct role and take greater ownership in cooperation and dialogue with their EU counterparts. We will jointly define the priorities for dialogue and cooperation and work together on an equal footing.”

Dr Jakob Granit, Director-General of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida):

“Sweden, through various programmes, supports exchanges, training initiatives, and the implementation of impactful projects in the endeavour to strengthen Ukraine’s resilience and advance the EU integration. Through cooperation Ukrainian and European municipalities benefit from strategic collaboration, innovative solutions, and invaluable experience of operating under crisis conditions.”

 

 

Svitlana Blinova, Coordinator and Team Leader of Cities4Cities:

“On the cities4cities.eu platform, over 600 Ukrainian communities are ready for cooperation. Ukraine’s recovery begins every day — in our cities and villages. Where children go to school under shelling, where local bakers hand out bread in the metro during air raids, where hromadas support each other through the 'Shoulder to Shoulder' project. We want to build partnerships not just for support, but for shared solutions, new ideas, and common security. This is what true European cohesion means.”

Cities4Cities initiative implements the "International Municipal Cooperation" sphere of the Polaris Programme, which is funded by Sida and implemented by SALAR International.