The platform was officially launched on Monday, March 27, at the German Ministry of Economic Development, Ukrinform reports.
“Rebuilding Ukraine is a huge task... that governments cannot do alone. It requires the involvement of entire societies. We in Germany have a strong desire to contribute to the rebuilding of Ukraine,” Svenja Schulze, Minister of Economic Development, said.
She also said that Ukraine's rebuilding is already underway, even though the war is still ongoing. At the same time, a long-term perspective and early planning are important for the resilience of Ukrainian society, as well as for the successful and effective reconstruction of the country.
It is noted that the Ukraine Recovery Platform is seen as a meeting place for business representatives, active citizens, and municipalities of Germany and Ukraine to meet and exchange information. It is planned to organize specialized conferences, dialogue forums and seminars, with the first event scheduled for April.
At the inaugural conference, Ukraine's Ambassador to Germany Oleksii Makeiev emphasized that Ukrainians expect mutually beneficial cooperation, not just aid, and called for investment and purchase of Ukrainian goods.
“Reconstruction must begin now, not when we win. We cannot waste time,” the diplomat said.
He also assured that all funds raised for the projects would be used transparently and efficiently.
The Ministry of Economic Development has allocated EUR 800 million to help Ukraine over the past four months. With the support of the Ministry, a lot of aid has been delivered to Ukraine, including medical equipment and medicines, fire trucks, generators, cooking and heating appliances.
Partnerships have been established between German and Ukrainian municipalities, in the field of water supply and sewage, and between clinics.
To support and expand all these partnerships, the Ministry will provide another EUR 25 million this year.
Earlier, Bloomberg journalists claimed that Berlin is more focused on competing with Poland for international recognition in supplying weapons to Ukraine, and thus slows down the transfer of spare parts to Warsaw.
On March 24, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that Germany is not providing Ukraine with adequate support and should provide more financial, weapons, and ammunition.