The acquis communautaire, the association agreements, the Copenhagen criteria… But wait a minute… Why do we need the EU? Maybe we should go our own way? Then the question arises: why does the European Union need us at all? Perhaps it is worth making life easier for already busy lawyers, leaving the existing trade and partnership agreements and forgetting about the long process of European integration? But if so, wouldn’t rejecting the partnership be a shot in the foot for both sides, against the historical background of a common enemy whose intentions are beyond doubt? Isn’t it only the consolidation of all the forces that position themselves as fighters for law and freedom that can give a reliable rebuff to this enemy? In any case, in this article I will try to analyse the obvious benefits of Ukraine’s close cooperation with the European Union, as well as to consider the most painful points of post-war reconstruction and the steps that each of us should take in order not only to restore Ukraine, but also to make it a powerful cradle of freedom, which our country has already proven to be on the world stage.

The Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) Institute has created a project “Russia Will Pay” to record human rights violations and war crimes committed by the Russian Federation. It will also keep a record of the damage caused to the economy and design a strategy for its post-war recovery. According to research, the explosion at the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power PlantDam alone caused at least $2 billion in damage. The terrorist attack has had a significant impact on various sectors of the economy. Housing ($1.03 billion), energy ($586 million), transport infrastructure ($311 million), industry ($105 million) and agriculture ($25 million) have all been affected, with housing and local infrastructure, land resources and the energy sector bearing the brunt of the damage. The report, covering the period from February 2022 to January 2024, states that since the beginning of the full-scale Russian military invasion, the total amount of damage to residential and non-residential property and other infrastructure will exceed $157 billion (at replacement cost).

The consequences of the war are undoubtedly terrible, but we must ask ourselves now: ‘How are we going to face tomorrow?’ and give a bold, honest answer. For example, Ukraine has committed to achieving climate neutrality by 2060 as part of the EU’s Green Deal. Furthermore, Ukraine has joined numerous green energy initiatives. Although Ukraine has expressed a desire to join the European Green Deal, wouldn’t it be more appropriate in today’s realities to focus on the so-called ‘survival strategy’ and leave the ‘sustainable development strategy’ for better times?

However, these strategies are not necessarily mutually exclusive. According to an Essay on the Reconstruction of Ukraine, prepared by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (London), there are three phases of reconstruction:

1) immediate response

2) rapid restoration of critical infrastructure and services

3) laying the foundation for future growth and modernisation

None of these phases contain significant obstacles to the implementation of green reconstruction methods, and, moreover, modernisation of the economy in line with the green course has a number of advantages for Ukraine, especially in the energy sector, in particular through reduced dependence on oil and gas supplies, which is important for obvious reasons – Russia’s deliberate strategy aimed at destroying and regressing Ukraine’s energy supply.

So our agenda is to find ways to combine a sprint strategy of urgent and cheap recovery with a long-term strategy of sustainable development, conservation and resource saving, as well as making our energy as independent as possible. Obviously, this opens up an important field for research and innovation, as well as the basis for closer cooperation with the EU in the fields of technology, science and energy supply, because this problem is critical and requires an urgent and quick solution, creating a wide field for innovation and thus an attractive environment for investors. Moreover, as we are going to develop the energy sector almost from scratch and rebuild our cities after the victory, we can move away from outdated standards and Soviet building codes and pay attention to planning smart cities, modernised and equipped with good infrastructure, introducing green energy or even local solar power plants. This, in particular, could attract investors from all over the world, as the country’s potential is enormous, both in terms of innovation and further restoration of the energy infrastructure.

It is also important to remember about the individual contribution to ecosystem conservation and energy saving. I have created a small checklist of daily activities to help you join the global eco-movement:

1. If possible, try to equip your home with a renewable energy source. This will protect you in the event of blackouts and reduce the load on the central energy infrastructure, not to mention save the planet.
2. Introduce the practice of zero-vest. This will significantly save money and help avoid unnecessary pollution. For example, worn-out clothes can be turned into great patchwork blankets or eco-bags. Zero-waste can be a way of life, an interesting hobby, or a fun time spent with your family. You just need to add a little imagination!
3. Give up plastic bags and disposable tableware in your everyday life. This will save a significant part of your money, and you will also have the opportunity to practise the previous point, for example, by altering an out-of-fashion dress into a cool shopper.
4. And finally, the classics: try to sort your garbage at least at home, take the accumulated plastic and waste paper to recycling centres, or if you have the desire and resources, create one in your community. Sort batteries and hazardous waste, and try to extend this practice to a wider sphere of life and involve your friends.

The foundations for far-reaching strategies should be laid today. For example, in order to rebuild entrepreneurship, we could focus on social business and promote it in every way possible: holding trainings and meetings, talking about aspects of this activity, involving young people, perhaps supporting it with funding. Also, the tourism sector suffered significant losses during the wars, so it would be great to explore new tourist routes in Ukraine and promote the existing ones, because the whole world has heard about Ukraine today and is clearly interested in it, and Ukrainians themselves have become much more interested in ethnic culture. After the victory it would be great to promote Ukraine as a tourist destination, but for that we have to work hard now, renew and spread interest in our culture and history among citizens and foreigners, as well as restore and preserve sights and places, including natural habitats. This may also interest the European side in investing in the tourism industry and restoring Ukraine’s cultural heritage.

With regard to housing infrastructure, referred to in the KSE reports as the sector most affected by Russia’s massive terrorist attacks, we must work on inclusivity and smart planning from the very beginning of the reconstruction. Inclusion and Green Deal reconstruction, one of the EU’s key reconstruction requirements, are crucial to the continuation of the European integration process. The support of Ukraine, Europe’s largest country by area, in this area is crucial to achieving climate neutrality on the continent, but it is not the only thing. The war has shed light on the importance of inclusion, which has long been a neglected issue, so we must do everything possible not only to plan for smart reconstruction, but also to implement all these developments in the relatively surviving settlements. The same can be said for environmental safety.

We have identified the most important features of inclusion in cities that are worth working on:

1. Ensuring maximum mobility for all citizens (availability of ramps and gentle entrances in all critical points of the city (and village), including public transport, with the correct calculation of slope, width, height, etc.).
2. Ensure accessibility of critical information for all citizens (transliteration into Braille, signage and signage, sound signals).
3. Zoning of the city (creation of separate recreation areas, smoking areas, coworking spaces, etc.).

We also identified areas in which we can move towards planning a smart city:

4. Ensuring the safety of citizens (availability of video surveillance and photographic recording in the city, especially on the roads, which has already been partially implemented in Ukrainian realities).
5. Access to communications and the Internet (we already have experience with the opening of points of invincibility, it would be great if this kind of thing could be preserved during and after the post-war urban renewal in the form of public coworking spaces).
6. The use of motion sensors for lighting systems, which will not only help save energy but also significantly reduce light pollution, just as solar panels can be used for street lighting, at least locally, to reduce the burden on central energy infrastructure.
7. Use of locks that respond to facial scans or biometrics, for example, to access private areas of residential buildings, which will significantly increase safety, for example, in children’s playgrounds.

Of course, recovering what has been lost is a priority. But smart planning and inclusion are not at odds with accessibility and quality, just as a sustainable development strategy is not at odds with a survival strategy. On the contrary, smart planning can avoid significant costs in maintaining transport infrastructure and unnecessary energy consumption, not to mention improving the lives of millions of city dwellers, and inclusion is a priority in creating a comfortable living space for war-affected people. The only thing is that from the very beginning we have to plant the seeds that will later grow into something much bigger, and whatever path Ukraine chooses, I am convinced of one thing: it will be the path of freedom. And our task is to make it as fast, comfortable and result-oriented as possible. And with all those who also choose freedom, development and optimisation are on our way, so cooperation and partnership with the EU, at least in the areas of infrastructure, environmental protection, energy and innovation, is obviously mutually beneficial and useful for both sides.

Only we have the right to decide where history will go the next day. And I believe that if we unite, if we combine the experience, the resources, the creativity, the vision and, above all, the small conscious steps taken every day by everyone who considers himself a free citizen, by everyone who aspires to freedom and progress, by everyone who believes in humanity and its triumph, we will achieve everything, not only by defeating evil, but also by reaching heights of science and society that our ancestors could not even dream of. Together, step by step, from Earth to the stars.