Ahead of the Switzerland Peace Summit, Germany holds a Conference in support of Ukraine

Germany is holding a conference on Tuesday to rally support for Ukraine’s rehabilitation from the devastation caused by Russia’s war, sending a new gesture of solidarity to Kyiv at the start of a week of intense diplomacy.  

The two-day Ukraine Revival Conference in Berlin, which is a follow-up to a similar event held in London a year ago, takes place this coming weekend before the global peace summit in Switzerland and the Group of Seven summit of Ukraine’s main Western supporters in Italy. 

President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is expected to grace the event, which the German hosts anticipate will draw a diverse crowd of 2,000 individuals from the realms of politics, industry, and other fields.   

Germany’s Development Minister Svenja Schulze said in a press release that Ukraine has to continuously reconstruct homes, hospitals, water pipes, and electricity grids—even in the midst of the ongoing conflict. For people to continue living in their nation, they require access to water, power, and shelter over their heads. We are specifically asking businesses, civic society, and municipalities to the conference since the burden of assisting Ukraine’s recovery in the short- and long-term is too large for governments to handle alone, Schulze continued. 

Adding to the list of pressing issues, Ukraine has been severely affected by ongoing Russian power grid attacks in recent weeks. These attacks have forced Kyiv’s authorities to implement rolling blackouts, plunging the entire country into darkness at times. 

Several billion dollars in nonmilitary aid were promised by Ukraine’s allies in London last year to help restore the nation’s infrastructure, combat corruption, and facilitate Kyiv’s path to EU membership. This year, the emphasis on reforms is still paramount. 

We are pulling out all the stops to ensure that Ukraine can soon sit at the table of the European Union, which, in addition to our military backing, is the best kind of protection available, according to Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.  

Mustafa Nayyem, the director of the State Agency for Restoration of Ukraine, announced his resignation on Facebook on Monday. He said that the government was burdening his agency with excessive red tape and pointed out structural barriers that hinder him from using his authority.  

Oleksandr Kubrakov’s dismissal in May left Ukraine without a minister specifically tasked with rehabilitation. Nayyem protested that he was not allowed to attend the Berlin conference by the prime minister of Ukraine.  

On his third trip to Berlin since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, Zelenskyy is also anticipated to address the Bundestag, the German parliament.

In a significant move, the President of Ukraine journeyed to Germany in mid-February to sign a bilateral security pact with Chancellor Olaf Scholz. This pact, one of several agreements made by Kyiv’s allies, serves as a strong demonstration of their long-term support and commitment to Ukraine’s security. 

Germany backs Kiev’s use of its Armaments

Earlier, Berlin has given Ukraine permission to strike Russian territory with its weapons. The decision follows a comparable move made by the Biden administration, allowing Ukrainian forces to use US-supplied weaponry to attack places within Russia near the heavily shelled eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of NATO, also supported Ukraine utilizing weaponry supplied by the West including Germany to attack legal military targets located within Russian territory.  

Ukraine is experiencing a manpower and ammunition shortage. This is being exploited by the larger and more sophisticated army of the Kremlin. Supplies that are important to Ukraine have been delayed as a result of Western Europe’s inadequate military manufacturing.