War and Peace: Supporting Ukraine to Prevail, Rebuild, and Prosper

First and foremost, Ukraine’s priority is winning the war and ensuring the safety and security of its people. Ukraine is facing a harsh winter and needs urgent aid and solutions including power generators, heating, and temporary housing to withstand freezing temperatures, ice, and snow. In addition to emergency support, the prime focus of Ukraine’s Western partners needs to be on military and economic aid to ensure Ukraine’s victory against Russian aggression and to support its economy in a time of war. 

And yet, wherever possible, the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine should commence during the war to reduce the huge economic and human cost of the invasion and prevent Ukraine’s economic collapse. This should happen concurrently as this huge undertaking requires planning and coordination. It serves as a confidence-building measure for all Ukrainians concerned about their future, and for the West to demonstrate its ability to help Ukraine win the war and recover. 

A solid plan for the way forward should be based on the following: a predictable flow of financial assistance; a common donor coordination mechanism; a designated Ukrainian institutional partner to manage reconstruction; a steady pace of reforms particularly in the fight against corruption, de-oligarchisation, and decentralisation; confiscating and using the assets of sanctioned individuals and entities to compensate Ukraine; and proceeding with Ukraine’s integration into the EU single market. 

Ukrainian civil society has demonstrated its maturity as the watchdog and backbone of Ukraine’s democratic progress and EU integration and now—under extreme duress—it is a crucial component of Ukraine’s war effort and resilience. Working with civil society should form the core of a human-centric approach to resilience and recovery.

Finally, Ukraine’s victory in this war is not just about defeating Russia on Ukrainian territory and surviving as a nation rebuilt on financially and economically viable model. More fundamentally, it is about ensuring that the country emerges as a successful and prosperous European democracy. Reconstruction efforts should work from this premise to “build back better” a modern Ukrainian with a European future.

The authors set out recommendations for making Ukraine’s reconstruction and recovery effective, just, inclusive, accountable, and sustainable.