Russian invasion: ‘Ukraine will need USD 750 bn for reconstruction’
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: As the inconclusive Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its 132nd day on Tuesday, the war-torn nation said it would need at least USD 750 billion for national reconstruction after the war.
The key source of recovery should be the confiscated assets of Russia and Russian oligarchs, Ukraine has suggested.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told an international conference through a video link on Monday that it will cost an estimated USD 750 billion to rebuild the war-shattered country, a task which should be the shared duty of the democratic world.
Addressing the International Ukraine Recovery Conference in Switzerland, he, and several other leaders, described the massive destruction and towering needs since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on February 24, the media reported.
“Reconstruction of Ukraine is not a local task of a single nation,” Zelensky said, adding “It is a common task of the whole democratic world.” He insisted that the “reconstruction of Ukraine is the biggest contribution to the support of global peace”.
President Zelensky said: Restoring Ukraine means restoring the principles of life, restoring the space of life, restoring everything that makes us humans.”
Such ambitions, he said, will require wide-scale reconstruction, funding, and security, “in all of our country which will be forced to continue living beside Russia.”
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said such a massive recovery would require a sort of the “Marshall Plan” for Ukraine to help it rebuild.
“Today, we’re all united in our defense. Tomorrow in our reconstruction” said Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shymhal, who attended in person. He presented a recovery plan that meets immediate needs — even as the war continues — followed by a “fast recovery” when it’s over, and then longer-term requirements.
PM Shmyhal said: “We believe the key source of recovery should be the confiscated assets of Russia and Russian oligarchs worth USD 300 to 500 billion.” He stressed that “the Russian authorities unleashed this bloody war. They caused this massive destruction, and we should hold them accountable for it.”
The two-day conference, held under tight security in the picturesque southern Swiss city of Lugano, had originally been planned well before the invasion and slated to discuss reforms in Ukraine before being repurposed to focus on reconstruction.
PM Shmyhal laid out the government’s phased reconstruction plan, which focused first on the immediate needs of those affected by the war, followed by the financing of thousands of longer-term reconstruction projects aimed at making Ukraine European, green and digital.
The Ukrainians have proposed that allied countries “adopt” specific regions of Ukraine, and lead the recovery there to render it more efficient.
Britain has, for instance, proposed taking on the Kyiv region, while France could concentrate on the heavily hit Chernihiv region.
Around 1,000 people are attending the conference, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who let out an enthusiastic “Slava Ukraine” (Glory to Ukraine) after insisting on rebuilding a Ukraine better than it was before the war.
“Ukraine can emerge from this on a path towards a stronger and more modern country, with a modernized judiciary, with stronger institutions, with a solid track record to fight against corruption, but also with a greener, more digital, and more resilient economy,” she said.
While the EU is intent on helping Ukraine win the war, she said, “we must also make sure that Ukraine wins the peace that will come for sure”.
Meanwhile, the Russian forces continued their crushing advance in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
