A delegation of mayors from Copenhagen, Aarhus and Odense, as well as representatives of Local Government Denmark (LK) visited Ukraine on April 18-20 and declared their readiness to assist Ukraine
Danish municipalities have the strength, experience, knowledge and a pronounced desire to contribute with a significant effort in the upcoming reconstruction of war-torn cities in Ukraine. The municipalities' support can entail technical assistance and project management within e.g. social infrastructure (schools, kindergartens, transport etc.), water, energy and the green transition. Such is the message from mayor and KL deputy chairman Jacob Bundsgaard (Aarhus), mayor Peter Rahbæk Juel (Odense), lord mayor Sophie Hæstorp Andersen (Copenhagen) and employment and integration mayor Jens-Kristian Lütken Jensen (Copenhagen). The Danish delegation also participated in the international conference “Cities and Regions Summit” in Kyiv on April 20th.
Aalborg Municipality did not participate in the actual visit, but supports the municipalities' desire for action in relation to Ukraine.
The city of Aarhus represented by mayor Jacob Bundsgaard and city of Lviv represented by mayor Andriy Sadovyi signed sister city agreement on April 18th.
Aarhus already supports Lviv with donations of city buses to accommodate Lviv’s growing needs in public transportation, as the city is now home to thousands of internally displaced Ukrainians. More projects are under way.
The city of Copenhagen represented by lord mayor Sophie Hæstorp Andersen (Copenhagen) and the city of Kyiv represented by mayor Vitaliy Klychko signed a Memorandum of Partnership on April 19th.
The Memorandum implies that Copenhagen and Kyiv intend to cooperate on the following general points:
• Cultural exchange
• Summer camp in Copenhagen for Ukrainian children
• Pocket parks and climate adaptation
• Noise management
• IT solutions
• Initiatives for veterans
• Cooperation on construction, water management, waste management, infrastructure and mobility in the long term
The city of Odense has been Kyiv’s twin city since 1989. During the difficult winter of 2022-2023, Odense provided substantial support to Kyiv’s damaged energy infrastructure by sending 17 powerful electric generators worth 750 thousand Euros fundraised by Rotary Club.
