Saltivka Awaits Good News from Lugano

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

Children play in the field in front of an apartment that was destroyed by a Russian missile in Borodyanka, Kyiv province, Ukraine, June 17, 2022.

Vera Dmitrivna (65) was unaware of the meeting between Ukrainian authorities and representatives of several countries and institutions in Lugano, Switzerland on 4-5 July 2022. She only knew that the Ukrainian government was trying to ensure that her apartment unit in the Saltivka area, Kharkiv, would be habitable again.

She left the apartment complex in March 2022 because the Saltivka area continued to be targeted by Russian rockets. The Kharkiv provincial administration and the Kharkiv military-operations command center deemed the area too dangerous for civilians. Thus, residents were asked to evacuate.

Dmitrivna was then forced to live in her grandson’s flat closer to the center of Kharkiv. Since the beginning of June 2022, she has visited her flat every few days. “I want to come back here. I don’t want to live anywhere else,” she said, adding that she had lived there for 33 years.

She is waiting for the apartment’s water supply to be restored, as well as the return of gas and electricity. So far, workers have been seen repairing gas-transmission pipelines near her apartment, though workers have yet to repair the gas-distribution network to her home.

The transmission network allows gas to travel between regions or between countries. The distribution network delivers gas to customers. The same applies to electricity.

Dmitrivna did not care much about the shattered windows in her unit. “I can use plastic in the meantime. I don’t mind if water only reaches the yard and I must go back and forth to bring it from upstairs to downstairs,” she said.

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The apartment complex consists of more than 20 towers with each tower accommodating more than 90 units. The complex is one of the older settlements on the outskirts of Kharkiv.

Dmitrivna moved there shortly after her husband quit his job at the Chernobyl nuclear-power plant in northern Kyiv. Her husband died a few years ago from cancer. “He was there when the tragedy occurred,” she said.

She was referring to the disaster of 26 April 1986. Reactor No. 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear-power plant exploded due to overheating. Dmitrivna’s husband worked as a chemist. The Chernobyl disaster forced thousands of people, including Dmitrivna and her husband, to flee. From 1989, they lived on the outskirts of Kharkiv.

Dmitrivna did not expect to have to evacuate again after the death of her husband, and due to the same cause: explosions. Before it was due to a nuclear-reactor explosion and now it was because of exploding Russian rockets and missiles. The difference is, she still hopes to return to her home.

Recovery

For them to become habitable again, the apartment units of Dmitrivna and thousands of her neighbors in Saltivka need to be repaired. Some of the apartments have collapsed while others lost half their walls.

There are many more units that do not have access to necessities such as electricity, water and gas. Without gas, it is impossible to cook or heat a room. In a cold country like Ukraine, heating is needed and must be provided when constructing a building.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

A man passes in front of a logistics and apartment building destroyed by a Russian missile, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday (15/6/2022).

Repairs are not only needed by Dmitrivna and thousands of her neighbors in Saltivka. There are also millions of Ukrainians who have been displaced by the war.

The Ukrainian Economic Ministry and the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) estimate that at least a total of 45 million square meters of houses were destroyed during the war. These houses, apartments and flats span from Kharkiv in the east to Uzgorod in the west. If this includes houses that are partially damaged and are still habitable under very poor conditions, then the figure can be much greater.

KSE estimates that the destruction of and damage to houses, buildings and other infrastructure in Ukraine has resulted in at least US$103.9 billion in losses. This figure could still increase as the war continues and much of the damage has not been verified.

The war has also destroyed roads, railway networks, bridges, generation and transmission lines, as well as electricity, water and gas distribution networks. Several train stations and port facilities were damaged. While some of the damage was caused by Ukrainian shells and bombs, most of it was due to Russian shells and bombs.

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Damage to dams and irrigation networks is only part of the losses faced by the Ukrainian agricultural sector. KSE said the agricultural sector saw direct losses of at least $4.5 billion and indirect losses of almost $24 billion due to the war.

“Russian attacks have not only eliminated our ability to sell crops. Damage to land, infrastructure and agricultural equipment has and will impact Ukrainian agriculture. Without asset recovery, it is impossible for Ukraine to become a global food supplier again,” said KSE senior-researcher Roman Neyter.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said rebuilding Ukraine is the priority agenda. For the initial phase of infrastructure restoration, Ukraine needs $17.4 billion. The funds were used to, among other things, build or repair 400 schools, 300 kindergartens, 300 hospitals as well as thousands of housing units and a network of settlement support. The network is to supply water, electricity and gas to settlements.

At a conference in Lugano, Shmyhal and Ukrainian authorities said rebuilding will not only encompass the physical aspect. Ukraine will also reorganize and leave behind the legacy of the Soviet Union in terms of systems, governance and various buildings.

Kyiv estimates that by 2032, it will take up to $750 billion for post-war recovery. Ukraine hopes its partners are fully committed to the recovery efforts.

Because the figure is very large and recovery will take a long time, Ukraine promises major reforms in governance and law. This was also requested by the European Union after establishing Ukraine as a candidate member of the EU.

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.