With little money, Ukraine is defending itself against further Russian attacks after its own counteroffensive was ineffective.
In the Ukrainian village of Trostianets, an excavator spews smoke as it clears debris and dirt from between the rail and bus stations to create room for a redesigned transportation hub.
Trostianets, severely damaged in combat with Russian forces nearly two years ago, is one of six settlements being rebuilt with state finances as part of a pilot initiative to build the expertise and experience required for a later, far larger restoration operation.
Time was running short, according to Mayor Yuriy Bova, to revitalise communities or risk losing millions of Ukrainians who could contribute to the country’s development to permanent exile in Europe.
The village is only about 30 km (20 miles) from Russia. “We’re fighting for every person who should return; for every child who needs to return and build their future here,” he said to Reuters there.
Bova remarked of the abandoned northeastern town, “To walk around and see this every day, that will morally traumatise a person.” “We need to restore everything, starting with cafes, libraries, factories, schools, hospitals.”
The urgent need to rebuild Ukraine has also been indicated by Kyiv officials; this endeavour will cost hundreds of billions of dollars and entail more than just band-aid repairs to vital infrastructure like hospitals, power plants, and railroads.
Still, there are no indications that the fighting will end. With little money, Ukraine is defending itself against further Russian attacks after its own counteroffensive was ineffective. Additionally, Moscow has started up a campaign of widespread airstrikes on urban areas located well beyond of the battle line.
Reviving town squares is a luxury that Ukraine cannot currently afford, according to Pavlo Kuzmenko, the mayor of Okhtyrka, a town located just 20 km away from Trostianets that likewise suffers from the effects of severe Russian bombing during the early stages of the conflict.
The department store that was destroyed across the street has not yet been fixed, and Okhtyrka officials took their time removing the debris off the main avenue that originally housed the municipal hall. Nonetheless, the majority of schools have been renovated with new roofs, windows, and bomb shelters, largely because of contributions from outside.
Kuzmenko, who lamented a lack of resources and openly questioned the Trostianets plans last year, stated that the priority should be on repairing homes and essential infrastructure exclusively. The military should get any remaining funds.
“A lot needs to be rebuilt,” Kuzmenko informed Reuters. “Squares, and all their decorations, can be done after the war.”
Antonina Dmytrychenko, 65, of Okhtyrka, was standing next to the remnants of the city hall when she agreed with her mayor that “first we need victory, then reconstruction.”
The divergent opinions in the nearby communities are a reflection of a national discussion concerning wartime expenditures in Ukraine. Most obviously, there is a growing grassroots protest movement calling for the military to take precedence over discretionary initiatives like maintaining public areas and roadways.