After Ukraine-Russia war ends, Scotland's towns and cities should twin with Ukrainian communities to help them rebuild – Angus Robertson MSP

At the end of the Second World War, countries across Europe decided that they should make twinning arrangements.

Yevghen Zbormyrsky, 49, is comforted as he stands in front of his burning home after it was shelled in Irpin, outside Kyiv (Picture: Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images)

It was a commitment to solidarity, reconciliation and rebuilding across the continent. Edinburgh’s first partnership was the Bavarian capital Munich in 1954, followed by Nice on the French Riviera in 1958.

For decades, there have been civic and educational exchanges as well as cultural programmes to boost connections between the cities.

The same is true across Scotland as a whole, with Glasgow twinned with Nuremberg and Marseille, Aberdeen with Regensburg and Clermont-Ferrand, as well as Dundee with Würzburg and Orléans.

In total there are almost 70 French and nearly 30 German towns, cities and regions that have twinning or partnership arrangements with different parts of Scotland. Many others from different countries have followed.

Scotland’s capital is twinned with Ukraine’s capital city Kyiv. Since the start of the Russian invasion, Edinburgh has shown its solidarity with the blue and yellow Ukrainian flag flying from the city chambers and cross-party support for Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity.

Large charity collections have been made for the city’s Ukrainian centre and, meanwhile, charities like Edinburgh Direct Aid have been out to the Polish/Ukrainian border to provide direct assistance to the refugees fleeing indiscriminate Russian attacks on civilian areas.

Whenever the war ends, and hopefully peace talks secure a sustainable end to the fighting, we are all going to have to play our part in rebuilding Ukraine.

In a moving video President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has already drawn attention to what will need to happen at the end of the conflict: “We Ukrainians know what will come next. We will win. And there will be new houses. There will be new cities. There will be new dreams. There will be a new story. There will be – there is no doubt. And those we’ve lost will be remembered. And we will sing again and we will celebrate anew. Yes, Ukraine was beautiful but now – it will become great. Great Ukraine.”

Scotland’s towns and cities should all adopt and support a Ukrainian community. Just as twinning arrangements were made at the end of the Second World War in France and Germany, we should do the same with Ukraine.

Obviously while the war is ongoing the focus is on humanitarian and military support to help Ukraine defend itself and its population. But the time will come to put measures in place to assist with the rebuilding of homes, hospitals, schools and nurseries.

Scotland has 32 local authority areas should consider how they can help support a peaceful future for Ukraine with specific partnership arrangements.

I have already raised this suggestion with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and with European Union colleagues. In discussions with the co-chair of the Friends of Scotland group in the European Parliament, Udo Bullmann MEP, he stressed the important role of international partners in the reconstruction of Germany after the Second World War. Imagine if all of Ukraine’s towns and cities had the support of communities internationally?

The war in Ukraine cannot end quickly enough. The innocent people of that country have suffered more than enough and Russia has failed to secure its military objectives.

Whenever peace is secured, Scotland and its communities should play its part in helping to rebuild Ukraine.

Angus Robertson is the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Central and Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary

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