Sometimes connections are formed instinctively, before growing thanks to a shared desire to build something bigger than oneself. This is how the partnership between the City of Chaumont and Liubotyn was born.
Chaumont, a town in Haute-Marne in the Grand Est region, scarred by the wounds of history, could not remain indifferent to Russian aggression. During the First World War, US President Woodrow Wilson established the headquarters of General Pershing’s expeditionary force there. Occupied during the Second World War, from 1940 to 1944, the town retains a vivid memory of the struggles for freedom.
Deeply affected by the war in Ukraine, Mayor Christine Guillemy wanted to take action.
Leonid Lazurenko, Mayor of Liubotyn, demonstrated exemplary composure from the very beginning of the invasion. Located on the outskirts of Kharkiv, his town maintained its businesses, public services, and even its bakery. He expressed a strong desire for European openness. This partnership with Chaumont is a first for Liubotyn. With the support of Stand With Ukraine, as part of the #MistoMatch program, and the commitment of Svitlana Krizhanivska Blinova and Anna Koshel of Cities4Cities United4Ukraine, a sincere dialogue was established.
After an initial videoconference, a powerful gesture followed: on June 5, 2025, Christine Guillemy, accompanied by Eliott RIVORY-PONS, undertook a long journey to Liubotyn. Twenty-seven hours to Kyiv, a night on the train, then a twelve-hour round-trip drive in an area that remains exposed. To see, to understand, to bear witness. The next day, back in Kyiv, at the Summit of Cities and Regions, Kongres and Regional Councils of Presidentov Ukrainny, opened by President Volodymyr Zelensky, the two mayors signed the partnership agreement with the participation of the French Ambassador to Ukraine, Gael Veyssiere, and the Ukrainian Embassy in France.
Joint projects are already emerging: educational, cultural, environmental, and institutional cooperation.
Deeply affected by the war in Ukraine, Mayor Christine Guillemy wanted to take action.
Leonid Lazurenko, Mayor of Liubotyn, demonstrated exemplary composure from the very beginning of the invasion. Located on the outskirts of Kharkiv, his town maintained its businesses, public services, and even its bakery. He expressed a strong desire for European openness. This partnership with Chaumont is a first for Liubotyn. With the support of Stand With Ukraine, as part of the #MistoMatch program, and the commitment of Svitlana Krizhanivska Blinova and Anna Koshel of Cities4Cities United4Ukraine, a sincere dialogue was established.
After an initial videoconference, a powerful gesture followed: on June 5, 2025, Christine Guillemy, accompanied by Eliott RIVORY-PONS, undertook a long journey to Liubotyn. Twenty-seven hours to Kyiv, a night on the train, then a twelve-hour round-trip drive in an area that remains exposed. To see, to understand, to bear witness. The next day, back in Kyiv, at the Summit of Cities and Regions, Kongres and Regional Councils of Presidentov Ukrainny, opened by President Volodymyr Zelensky, the two mayors signed the partnership agreement with the participation of the French Ambassador to Ukraine, Gael Veyssiere, and the Ukrainian Embassy in France.
Joint projects are already emerging: educational, cultural, environmental, and institutional cooperation.
This bond rests on solid foundations: shared values, a human scale, a history marked by hardships, and a fierce desire to build a Europe of solidarity.
Chaumont, with its 21,000 inhabitants and remarkable medieval heritage (castle, ramparts, keep, chapels, listed buildings), was the scene of the 1814 Treaty. Today, it hosts the International Graphic Design Biennial. Creative, bold, and in tune with nature.
Liubotyn, with its 27,000 inhabitants, is one of the oldest towns in Kharkiv Oblast. Founded in 1650 by Cossacks, it boasts a rich religious and natural heritage (forests, waterfalls). The second city in Ukraine to join the “Zero Waste Cities” program, it is developing waste sorting, composting, and reduction.
Thanks to the commitment of the mayors, their teams, and citizens, this partnership is set to grow and become a model of European cooperation between local authorities. A true example of what we seek to build through our #MistoMatch program.
Long live the partnership between Chaumont and Liubotyn.
Chaumont, with its 21,000 inhabitants and remarkable medieval heritage (castle, ramparts, keep, chapels, listed buildings), was the scene of the 1814 Treaty. Today, it hosts the International Graphic Design Biennial. Creative, bold, and in tune with nature.
Liubotyn, with its 27,000 inhabitants, is one of the oldest towns in Kharkiv Oblast. Founded in 1650 by Cossacks, it boasts a rich religious and natural heritage (forests, waterfalls). The second city in Ukraine to join the “Zero Waste Cities” program, it is developing waste sorting, composting, and reduction.
Thanks to the commitment of the mayors, their teams, and citizens, this partnership is set to grow and become a model of European cooperation between local authorities. A true example of what we seek to build through our #MistoMatch program.
Long live the partnership between Chaumont and Liubotyn.
