On the last day of the Black Security Forum, Ambassador Ernal Filo, together with several colleagues and Forum participants, visited the town of Snihurivka in the Mykolaiv region, near the front line. The trip was organized by the Forum organizers.
Snihurivka was under Russian occupation for eight months in 2022, as representatives of the local authorities said during our conversation with them. Unfortunately, these events led to the departure of a significant number of residents from the town to safer parts of the country. Specifically, out of 21,054 residents in January 2022, only 14,970 people remain on the territory of the Municipality today.
They informed about the consequences of shelling and military actions on civilian infrastructure facilities: Destroyed: 1,915 apartments, 21 educational institutions, 19 cultural institutions, 6 administrative buildings, 6 bridges, train station. Attacks on educational institutions had also resulted in the deaths of two children. They also shared information about the ongoing repairs of damaged buildings, carried out with the support of the state and international partners, as well as plans for further reconstruction of the community.
They also highlighted an important but often overlooked fact: that Russia attempted to organize a referendum in this city in 2022, which, according to them, was part of Russia’s strategy to annex Ukrainian territories. However, only a negligible number of residents (30 residents, collaborators of the Russian aggressors) responded to the call for this “simulated” referendum, who, as the city authorities added, left the city along with the retreating Russian army after Snihurivka was liberated.
Accompanied by them, the participants visited several sites with destroyed buildings, as well as some that have been reconstructed.
The message that the leaders of the local authorities gave was that the US must understand who the aggressor is and that the US and allied countries must stand with Ukraine until the end. They stressed the importance of continued international support and expressed gratitude to all partner countries for their assistance so far.
