The cities of Chernihiv and Aachen (Germany) have become twinned.

The document on the official solidarity partnership was signed by the acting Mayor of Chernihiv Oleksandr Lomako and Mayor of Aachen Sibbila Koipen during the events dedicated to the awarding of the international Charlemagne Prize (a European prize for contribution to the unification of Europe) to Ukraine. The prize was awarded to the Ukrainian people and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"The agreement we are signing is about strategic cooperation between our cities for many years to come, not just for today. But it is very important for us right now. It demonstrates to the residents of the glorious city of Chernihiv that they do not stand alone in their confrontation with the aggressor, but are supported by the entire civilised world, and in particular by the new partners from the beautiful city of Aachen," said Oleksandr Lomako.

"We are similar to our partner city in terms of, among other things, the university environment, population and rich history, as well as European core values. We are looking forward to current and future exchanges on sustainability, energy, infrastructure, waste management, urban planning, and education," said Sibbila Koipen.

Chernihiv continues to recover from the active hostilities of 2022. The city needs help from international partners at various levels to do so.

"Today, our city has already taken a lot of steps to restore the destruction and return to normal life as much as possible during this barbaric war. People have returned to the city, and today more than 260,000 people reside in Chernihiv. Our plans are not just to restore all the destruction, we also work on developing a strategy for city modernisation. We would like to involve your experience, knowledge, technology and design solutions for this purpose. This means that there are lots of various exciting projects ahead, which will benefit both cities and, most importantly, their residents. I believe that in the nearest future, a lot of common people from Aachen will be able to visit peaceful Chernihiv, and Chernihiv residents will come here. Residents of our cities will have a chance to see each other's beauty, and this will become a true friendship," expressed his hope Oleksandr Lomako.

The partnership between the two cities was established with the assistance of the Ukrainians in Aachen Association. The cooperation agreement between Chernihiv and Aachen was approved online on 20 January 2023, and now it was publicly signed in front of the German city's residents during events on the occasion of awarding the international Charlemagne Prize.

For reference. The Charlemagne Prize has been awarded in Aachen for contributions to European unification since 1950. Winston Churchill and Konrad Adenauer were among the first winners. Over the years, it has been awarded to prominent politicians and public figures: Vaclav Havel, Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron, Pope Francis and others.

Aachen is one of the oldest German cities with a population of almost 250,000, located on the borders of three countries: Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. Main industries: confectionery, engineering, automation, laser and environmental technologies.