World Town Twinning Week. Zaporizhzhia — Magdeburg: 2,060 km of gratitude 

Another twin city and most reliable partner of Zaporizhzhia is Magdeburg. On World Twin Cities Day, we are happy to send best wishes to our faithful friends in Germany.

Interestingly, the partnership between Zaporizhzhia and Magdeburg started in 2006 as the cooperation of the cities’ chambers of commerce and industry. The experience was so successful that the two cities officially entered into a twinning agreement in two years.

This agreement then led to many projects and events, including annual mutual visits, joint participation in international conferences and forums, and the regular exchange of best practices on urban development, energy efficiency and green economy. Magdeburg helped to renovate the elevators in Zaporizhzhia’s city clinical hospital. Even before the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, the twin city provided frequent humanitarian support to socially vulnerable people in Zaporizhzhia.

Cultural collaboration between our cities is also fruitful. Magdeburg supported the organisation of the Days of German Culture in Zaporizhzhia and helped to implement a project of creating a Bauhaus-style mural in our city. The mural was painted on a facade of the Music School No. 3. Its author, German artist Max Grimm, even reproduced elements of Magdeburg’s modernist architecture in this artwork.

Over the past year, Magdeburg has given significant support to Zaporizhzhia. The city administration collected and sent relief supplies, including food, clothes for IDPs, and vital medical equipment. These days, the German city continues to be a temporary home to hundreds of families from Ukraine.

We sincerely thank our friendship city for its solidarity with Ukraine and great assistance to Zaporizhzhia. We send our warmest regards to the people of Magdeburg and wish our twin city peace and prosperity, a happy present and a successful future!