On 10 September 2026, Basel hosted the Switzerland–Ukraine Forum on Municipal Cooperation, bringing together political leaders, representatives of local authorities and relevant organisations from Ukraine and Switzerland.

The Forum was jointly organised by the Swiss Government, the cities of Basel, Bern and Zurich, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the Embassy of Ukraine in Switzerland, the Ukrainian Association in Switzerland (Ukrainischer Verein Schweiz), and the Support and Recovery Platform (SRP).

The Forum was opened by Conradin Cramer, President of the Government of the Canton of Basel-Stadt; Iryna Venediktova, Ambassador of Ukraine to Switzerland; Vitalii Bezghin, Minister for Communities, Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine; and Jacques Gerber, Delegate of the Federal Council for Ukraine.

Under the motto “Building Partnerships. Delivering Results.”, participants discussed ways to turn Swiss-Ukrainian cooperation between cities and municipalities into concrete joint projects and initiatives.

The discussions focused on the reconstruction and resilience of Ukrainian municipalities, particularly in the areas of energy supply and energy efficiency, water infrastructure, governance and public services.

The one-day programme featured two panel discussions addressing the political foundations of municipal partnerships for reconstruction and resilience, as well as practical models for implementing such partnerships.

Particular attention was given to the parallel “City Labs” working sessions, where representatives of Ukrainian and Swiss cities jointly developed concrete ideas for future cooperation.

The Forum marked another important step in strengthening partnerships between Ukrainian and Swiss municipalities and contributed to developing practical solutions for further cooperation in Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction.