Ukraine Recovery Conference begins in Lugano
Ukraine and Switzerland will jointly host the international Ukraine Recovery Conference today in Lugano, Switzerland.
The conference was initially planned to be the 5th Ukraine Reform Conference, where in previous years Ukraine has demonstrated its progress in implementing economic reforms and discussed future reform priorities. However, given the damage to the country caused by the Russian invasion, Kiev and Bern jointly decided to re-orient the conference’s priorities.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will present a formal draft of Ukraine’s Recovery Plan. Ukraine has already received significant financial aid, including $2.8 billion in humanitarian assistance from the G7, and over $1.3 billion in macro-financial assistance from the EU. However, most of this has been aimed at providing immediate assistance rather than funds to rebuild the country – a venture that Ukraine estimates will cost $600 billion.
Expect the conference to provide a more long-term plan for the rebuilding of Ukraine, including investment into infrastructure. With European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in attendance, and given Ukraine’s newfound European Union candidate status, expect the EU to play a major role in this funding.
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