News
Issues relevant to Ukraine were discussed at the remote meeting
On the 8th of June Ukmergė District Municipality Mayor Rolandas Janickas participated in a remote meeting of the working group of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) concerning issues relevant to Ukraine. The meeting was chaired by CEMR General Secretary Martin Revault.
The working group was created to share information and join forces to help Ukrainian municipalities, Ukrainian refugees, and to share experiences with national local government associations.
During the meeting, R. Janickas talked about the long-time partner town Podole Kamenec in Ukraine and about the fact that after the start of the war, two more cooperation agreements were signed with other towns of this country - Krasyliv and Korosten.
“Without delay, we started thinking how we can help our new friends. This required direct contacts to find out the real situation and needs of the cities. When organizing the support, it was necessary to act quickly, so I am glad that many volunteers contributed to it. After clarifying the situation, we started to organize transport, we are preparing for the reception of war refugees”, said the mayor of Ukmergė District Municipality.
According to him, about 400 war refugees from Ukraine are currently settled in Ukmergė, about 250 of them are children. All of them successfully attend kindergartens and schools.
The mayor informed the participants of the meeting about the gatherings of Ukrainians taking place at the Ukmergė tolerance centre and was happy that they could meet in one place and be together, share their worries and joys, and support each other.
“While assisting the Ukrainian people who came to Ukmergė, we encountered challenges related to document management and state support. We didn’t wait for the paperwork and procedures to be sorted out. All conditions were created for people to get housing, food, and other things important for living.
As the infrastructure is currently damaged in Ukrainian cities, our plans are to support our partner towns with specific equipment to ensure the needs of the residents there.
I always say that big things start small, and it is the mayor’s duty to assemble people and never get lost in an emergency. We have a lot of reserve, because in the communities of every city and region there is an infinite number of sincere, honest people who understand the situation very well, and with support of those people and their initiatives, by sharing the tasks, we can solve all problems that arise”, said R. Janickas.
These remote meetings are an opportunity to exchange information about the needs of Ukrainian municipalities, contributing to the Association of Ukrainian Cities and the initiative “Bridges of Trust”.
Korosten and Ukmergė district municipalities participate in the international project “Bridges of Trust”. The purpose of this project is the exchange of good practices between the countries of the European Union and Ukraine, bringing together citizens of different countries and cultures, and the development of international partnerships between European municipalities.