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Call to cities and regions to give energy equipment to Ukraine  

Joint appeal by the European Committee of the Regions and the European Commission comes as France hosts international conference to gather aid for Ukraine.

Cities and regions should urgently consider donating power generators and heating equipment to Ukraine to cope with the worst of the winter, the European Commission and European Committee of the Regions have urged. The call was made in a letter sent on a day when the French government hosted an international con ference – "Standing with the Ukrainian people" – to gather aid to help Ukraine through the winter, as well as a bilateral conference for resilience and reconstruction with the Ukrainian government.

The letter to cities and regions was sent by Janez Lenarčič, the European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, and byVasco Alves Cordeiro and Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, respectively President and Chair of the Ukraine Working Group of the European Committee of the Regions, which in June formed a European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine together with associations representing local and regional authorities of Ukraine and across the EU.

Vasco Alves Cordeiro, President of the European Committee of the Regions, said: "In the midst of war and a harsh winter, Ukrainians face one more battle. It is the battle for light and for heat. Once again, the European Committee of the Regions stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and with the Ukrainian people. I call upon regions and cities from the European Union to join this collective initiative to provide generators and energy items to Ukraine. You can make the difference, we must make the difference!"

Janez Lenarčič, the European Commissioner for Crisis Management, said: "In support of Ukraine facing an even harsher winter this year due to the unjustifiable and brutal war waged against it by Russia, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism continues to deliver energy generating equipment, donated by European countries. It stands ready to do so also from European cities and local communities under our joint appeal with the Committee of Regions. In these darkest times, we cannot and will not abandon Ukrainians."

Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, said: "The European Commission via Cohesion Policy and its main actors and stakeholders – EU regions – stands firmly on the side of the Ukrainian people. Today, we join forces with the Committee of the Regions to appeal to local and regional authorities to donate energy generating equipment. Together, we can help Ukraine withstand the destruction of its critical infrastructure by the Russian aggressor and make the coming winter easier to endure."

Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, mayor of Gdańsk and chair of the Ukraine Working Group in the European Committee of the Regions, said: "Once again, European local governments have the opportunity to show how solidary and determined they are to help in a just cause. I am convinced that our call will not remain unanswered and we will once more show the strength of the European community. Let us offer our Ukrainian friends not only moral support, but also concrete help by providing generators and energy equipment to Ukraine to help them survive the winter."

The EU is mobilising support through its EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

Items highlighted on the Ukrainian government's list of requests are power generators (ranging from 2kVA to 600kVA) and heating equipment and fuel, but tools and other equipment also feature in the requests filed with the European Commission.

Background

  • Local and regional authorities that are interested in donating should contact the European Commission's Department for Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO), which is managing the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. The address to write to is: ECHO-Donations@ec.europa.eu . Donations will be directed to the 'rescEU energy hub' established in Poland, with the transport costs co-financed by the EU.
  • Businesses that are interested in donating should contact the Energy Community Secretariat by writing to UkraineEmergencySupport@energy-community.org . The Energy Community, which is based in Vienna and has 36 members, will help prepare a list of offers. Offers would then be submitted through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
  • The founding members of the European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine are the European Committee of the Regions, which acts as the secretariat, and a wide range of associations of local and regional associations from the EU and from Ukraine. From the EU, they are: the Association of European Border Regions, the Assembly of European Regions, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions, the Conference of European Regional Legislative Assemblies, and Eurocities. From Ukraine, the associations are: the Association of Ukrainian Cities, the All-Ukrainian Association of Сommunities, the Ukrainian Association of District and Regional Councils, and All-Ukrainian Associations of Amalgamated Hromadas. The Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy and Energy Cities were also founding partners. Any city and region in Europe can join provided they subscribe to the principles of the Alliance, including "unwavering support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and the right to defend its sovereignty", support for further European integration and access for Ukraine's local and regional authorities to European networks, and the empowerment of local self-government to take on a leadership role in the recovery and reconstruction. The Alliance was recently joined by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, whose members come from 46 countries, the government of Scotland (United Kingdom), the Barcelona Provincial Council (Spain), Maramureș City Council (Romania), the City of Mannheim (Germany), the region of Baden-Württemberg (Germany), and the MUSOL Foundation.

Contacts:

Monica Tiberi

Spokesperson of the President

Tel. +32 479 51 74 43

monica.tiberi@cor.europa.eu

Andrew Gardner

Press officer

Tel. +32 (0) 473 84 39 81

andrew.gardner@cor.europa.eu

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