(Adnkronos) – Nations must not only help with war-shattered Ukraine’s reconstruction but must “build back better,” Italy’s deputy foreign minister Edmondo Cirielli said on Friday, underlying his country’s commitment.
We must not just rebuild Ukraine, but build back better,” Cirielli told a panel discussion at the Ukraine Recovery Conference taking place in Rome.
“Ukraine is today the victim of brutal aggression and a loss of human rights. But we are also seeing material losses and many cities damaged by Russian attacks,” Cirielli stated.
“We are proud to be sponsors Ukraine’s rebirth,” Cirielli told the Resilience and Cohesion through Partnerships: Local and International Cooperation panel discussion.
Cirielli underlined Italy’s unwavering support for Ukraine’s reconstruction and recovery and said it has been especially involved to date in projects in the country’s southern Odessa region.
“Our efforts are centred on three areas: restoring historic buildings; the revitalisation of culture and job creation in the sector; and rebuilding damaged urban spaces,” he said.
Italy has signed a 32 million euro agreement for the restoration Ukraine’s war-damaged monuments and a 12 million euro accord for cultural revival, which it inked on Thursday, Cirielli noted.
Italian universities are “already active” in rebuilding urban spaces, Cirielli said.
Cirielli praised the cooperation already underway between Italy and Ukraine’s cities and regions in the country’s reconstruction.
“I am proud of what has been achieved between the cities of Kharkiv, Mikolaiv, and the Odessa region as part of a project funded by Italy for over two million euros,” Cirielli said.
The two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference, which ends on Friday, aims to give international support to rebuilding the country and to accelerate its entry to the European Union.
A total 5,000 participants are attending the conference being held at the Nuvola convention centre, including 100 government delegations, heads of state and government, 2,000 companies, top business representatives, business chiefs, international development banks, senior regional and local officials, and civil society associations.
On Thursday, Italy’s premier Giorgia Meloni announced that conference participants had made financial commitments of over 10 billion euros for Ukraine’s reconstruction.
