As part of the preparations for the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2027, which will take place on 28–29 January in Tallinn, Estonia, we took part in several high-level meetings to lay the groundwork for the cooperation that will be formalised at the conference. Of particular note were the online meeting on 2 October and the in-person meeting in Brussels on 13 October. At both events we established contacts with representatives of Ukrainian communities, strengthened our ties with Ukrainian institutions, and got to know representatives of various European bodies, associations and institutions that are actively helping Ukrainians in Ukraine and across Europe.
The meeting on 2 October, organised by the European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, provided an opportunity to discuss European policy on Ukrainian migration. Speakers from the Diaspora Alliance for Recovery of Ukraine, the All-Ukrainian Association of LRAs and the Association of Ukrainian Cities raised important issues: the integration of Ukrainian citizens in Europe, voluntary return to Ukraine, support platforms, and vocational retraining courses for refugees and veterans. They also discussed the possibility of organising summer school camps for Ukrainian children, to help them recover psychologically from the horrors of war and to build lasting bonds with children from different European countries. At the end of the meeting, participants discussed a draft European resolution that sets out recommendations for cities and regions on managing temporary protection for Ukrainians displaced to the European Union and calls for stable and sustainable solutions.
The in-person meeting in Brussels on 13 October brought together more than 90 delegates from Ukrainian and European municipalities, associations, institutions and partner organisations. The panel discussions focused on the need for communities and regions to be at the heart of initiatives supporting Ukrainians. It was emphasised that the Congress’s chosen approach of “horizontal diplomacy” — building bridges between Italian and Ukrainian communities — is effective and offers the best way forward for developing international relations in Europe. Part of the discussion also concerned Ukraine’s accession to the European Union and the progress made by the institutions in this direction.
We shared with the participants our experience in international relations and in building bridges between communities that are physically far apart but very close on a human level. We are confident that we have chosen the right path, and this is confirmed by the many international partners we met in Brussels.
We thank all the colleagues and friends who attended these important meetings. Our special and heartfelt thanks go to Kadri Tillemann, Project Manager for the local and regional dimension of URC 2027. We greatly appreciate her work on this initiative, especially given the short time between the organisation of the 2026 and 2027 conferences. Thank you for your words of support and for highlighting the importance of cooperation between communities, municipalities and regions.
