“This war is closer than it seems. The war is not just in Ukraine, it is in Europe! Until the aggressor who threatens the world with nuclear weapons is finally defeated, you will never feel safe in your countries again. However, any half-hearted decisions taken by European policymakers would only encourage Putin to go on and on,” said Viacheslav NEHODA, Deputy Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, when addressing participants of the meeting between Ukrainian mayors and local government representatives from Southern Europe.

This was the fourth meeting held as part of the “Local Governments Unite for Welfare and Peace” International Marathon. Over two weeks, mayors from all over Ukraine were given the opportunity to call upon their peers from more than 30 European countries to make certain that politicians, MPs, prime ministers, presidents of their countries never hesitate when deciding to support Ukraine, including in the matters of strengthening its defence capacity and putting more pressure on Russia.

As emphasised by Ihor TEREKHOV, Mayor of Kharkiv, a 1.5 million-strong city in eastern Ukraine, which has been shelled by Russians every day of the last month, “I want the whole world to understand that this is not a special operation, but a war that is being waged by Russia against the Ukrainian people, including residents of Kharkiv. 1,531 houses, including 1,300 residential buildings, have been destroyed in the city. 70 schools, 54 kindergartens and 16 hospitals have been ruined. The shelling never stops. This is genocide! The passive stance taken by mayors and MPs leads to civilian casualties. I am thankful for the humanitarian aid but, in order to hold our ground, our army must be supplied with heavy weaponry and air defence systems. Please unite and help close the sky over Ukraine and supply us with weapons.”

The instances of atrocities committed by the Russian army were confirmed by Yuriy BOVA, Mayor of Trostianets, Sumy Oblast: “Trostianets was liberated after a month of occupation. And then we saw the ruin that the invaders have turned into our magical city that had always topped the list of Ukrainian cities in terms of communal improvements. The enemy destroyed everything it saw. Invaders killed people for no reason. We keep finding mutilated bodies of tortured people in the basements. The Russians would not allow burials in the cemetery for more than ten days and had planted mines in it. The only way to stop Russia is to repel its army. That is why military aid is critical to us. It is the only way to help us stop Putin and the Russians who support this war. Today, Ukraine is the shield of Europe. Without this shield, there will never be peace in your cities. Ukrainians are now defending the entire world. Having the status of an EU member would be the easiest path for us to do that.”

In recent years, Halyna MINAIEVA, Chuhuiv’s Mayor, has been the face of successful community development in the Kharkiv Oblast. Today this town is known as the face of the war in Ukraine — a photo of Olena Kurylo, the wounded local resident, choreographer and children’s educator, has been published by leading global media, and the portrait painted from this photo has sold for USD100,000 at Heritage Auctions. Explosions were heard in the town, when the Mayor of Chuhuiv, with tears in his eyes, asked everybody to join efforts in order stop air strikes on peaceful neighbourhoods: “Please help us so that children wouldn’t feel scared all the time. Words fail to describe what is happening around here.”

Ukrainian mayors also spoke about Russian propaganda that is primarily focused on Russian citizens who have been denied access to foreign sources of information and social networks. This propaganda is also aimed at the European public. Halyna MINAIEVA provided shocking details of ordinary Russians being zombified by propaganda: “Many Chuhuiv residents have relatives in Russia. They never believe us when we talk about the shelling of houses and all the other atrocities, putting their faith in the Russian TV instead (which reports ‘pinpoint strikes made against military facilities in Ukraine’).”

Ukrainian mayors point out that this war has now become a threat to the entire Europe and the entire world, with the Russian invaders already resorting to nuclear blackmail. To do this, they have seized Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, preventing IAEA experts from monitoring the radiation background. Before that, the Russians captured the Chernobyl nuclear power plant where large amounts of spent radioactive fuel are stored. In its exclusion zone, the Russians ride tracked vehicles, raising up radioactive dust, and cause fires in the so-called “Red Forest” contaminated with radiation back in 1986.

The Russians had intended to seize another nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, but were stopped at Voznesensk, 25 km from the South Ukraine nuclear power plant, by heroic efforts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and territorial defence. This is how Yevhen VELYCHKO, Voznesensk’s Mayor, describes this heroic deed: “We had to blow up road and railway bridges across the river in our town to stop the invaders from approaching the nuclear power plant. Otherwise, they would increase their nuclear blackmail pressure on the entire Europe. The occupation lasted only two days, but those were the longest two days of our lives. During this time, the Russians destroyed civilian facilities, shelled residential areas chaotically from mortars, damaging the swimming pool and kindergarten. We are ready to fight the aggressor, but we need weapons. Let us unite to defeat the enemy. I urge you to stand up and fight!”

“In the Russian-occupied Crimea, missiles are aimed at Ukrainian cities today, but where will they be aimed tomorrow? Turkey? The Balkans?” asked Ukrainian mayors. Mention was also made of the mines planted by Russia in the Black Sea and brought by the tide to the shores of Romania and the Bosphorus. “Do we really need, God forbid, one of these mines to destroy a ship, like the Malaysian Boeing shot down by a Russian missile in 2014, for everyone to understand that Russia is a threat to the entire Europe and planet?” pointed out Viacheslav NEHODA.

In response to appeals from their Ukrainian counterparts, European mayors spoke of their solidarity with Ukraine and its communities.

Claudia LUCIANI, Director of the Directorate of Human Dignity, Equality and Governance, Council of Europe, emphasised the awareness of the threat of war and the need for European solidarity: “We are united by fundamental values. Ukrainian mayors are now fighting for their freedom, but also for our freedom!”

On behalf of the Union of Municipalities of Greece, she was supported by Ilias APOSTOLOPOULOS: “Europe's values are now being defended by Ukraine. European security today depends on it. We will help with everything we can. Each day we send humanitarian goods to Ukraine. We continue to work with government agencies to provide assistance to Ukrainian refugees. We feel that we have a great responsibility. We fully support Ukraine’s sovereignty!”

“Our Ukrainian brothers and sisters bravely withstand Russian aggression. From Kyiv to Athens, the rights of each of us have been violated by this war. It may also affect our cities. Brave Ukrainian people! We offer you our absolute support and will do everything necessary to stop this war, will encourage all Greek cities to support Ukraine”, said Vassilis AXIOTIS, Deputy Mayor of the City of Athens, Greece.

Representatives of the “Energy Cities” Association, which unites about 1,000 cities across 30 countries, were also among the participants of today’s and previous marathons. The Association’s leaders express their strong support for their Ukrainian partners and help them in these difficult times. Mario RAJN, Mayor of Križevci, Croatia, a member of this Association, strongly condemned the actions of the Russians: “It is hard to imagine that someone would decide to take away the independence and freedom from other people in this way, causing suffering, splitting families and killing innocent children.”

Vladimir PREBILIČ, Mayor of Kočevje, Slovenia: “I have already expressed support for the Mayor of Bucha (a destroyed town in Kyiv’s suburbs) and the entire community, which is our partner today. We are all working closely to provide assistance to Ukraine. We have turned our schools and kindergartens into temporary shelter centres for refugees from Ukraine.”

Representatives from European municipalities have also joined the calls of their Ukrainian counterparts to put pressure on decision-making by politicians and international institutions in support of Ukraine. Moses ELISAF, Mayor of Ioannina, Greece: “Our municipality strongly condemns the Russian invasion that has caused suffering to Ukrainians and humanitarian catastrophe in Ukrainian cities. The least we can do is to appeal to our government, demanding that all requests from Ukraine are met. Russia should be subject to the toughest sanctions!”

Christian GIORDANO, Mayor of Villanova d'Asti, Italy: “We are with you, we respect you and fully condemn the Russian invasion of the incredible Ukrainian state that shares European values with us. We are doing our best to provide support to the Ukrainian people. Ukraine is now an outpost of freedom. This war will have major consequences in the coming years. We need to understand how to respond to such cases. The existing security model may no longer work.”

Massimo BELLO, Member of the Italian Section of the Association of Council of Municipalities and Regions of Europe (AICCRE): “You have given us the opportunity to experience with you this pain and this tragedy. The words of our peers have struck deep in our hearts. Russia’s attack has destabilised the entire international order. This war is the most dramatic event in Europe in recent times. We must have the courage to demand appropriate support from the EU (for Ukraine). Europe should really show that it is strong on the international stage, that it is united, coordinated and ready to respond properly to a situation that no one could have imagined. In fact, the European Union was created after World War II in order to avoid the next war. It remained possible for 70 years, and now every effort must be made together with local and regional authorities to protect the Ukrainian people.

Today’s event lasted longer than expected, since many participants sought to express their support for Ukraine and willingness to help. To continue today’s communication with Ukrainian communities or to find new partners in Ukraine, the organisers have asked participants to send messages to uamunicipalities@gmail.com.

Another meeting will be held as part of the International Marathon next Thursday, this time with municipalities and media from the USA, Canada, Mexico, and Israel.

We would like to remind you that the International Marathon is organised by the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, the Council of Europe Programme “Enhancing Decentralisation and Public Administration Reform in Ukraine”, the USAID Economic Resilience Activity, the Swiss-Ukrainian Decentralisation for Improved Democratic Education (DECIDE) project, the Association of Ukrainian Cities, the Association of Amalgamated Communities, and the Decentralisation Portal.

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A video stream of the event is available at https://fb.watch/c5oqBs3bLj/

For more information please contact popiukrd@minregion.gov.ua

Official Telegram channel (English version) covering the war is available at https://t.me/UA_struggle

Photo gallery is accessible at https://decentralization.ua/news/tag/foto-viiny