Yesterday, Kyiv hosted the 4th International Summit of Cities and Regions, opened by President Volodymyr Zelensky. Under the theme “Partnership. Resilience. Preparedness”, hundreds of local elected officials from around the world gathered to discuss what truly matters: how to rebuild Ukraine, how to protect its people, and how to prepare for what comes next.
The discussions focused on the resilience of vital infrastructure in the face of Russian strikes — water, energy and housing — with direct testimonies from the military administrations of Kharkiv and Chernihiv. They also addressed the energy transition in wartime, moving from emergency generators toward a model of sustainable development, as well as the reintegration of veterans into civilian life, a major challenge Ukraine will face at every stage of the conflict. All of this was discussed with a view to URC 2026, the major international conference on Ukraine’s reconstruction, which will take place in Gdańsk at the end of June.
Building on the network developed through our MistoMatch programme, we mobilized a major delegation of French mayors and elected officials, making the French delegation the largest national delegation to travel to Kyiv, with some members visiting Ukraine for the first time. Supported by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Ukraine in France, MistoMatch is our programme for sustainable cooperation between French and Ukrainian local authorities: tailor-made partnerships designed with the geographical, economic and cultural realities of each territory in mind, and intended to last well beyond Russia’s aggression.
During the summit, several cooperation agreements were signed between partner French and Ukrainian cities in practical areas such as education, culture, support for reconstruction and urban resilience.
