(Rubric “Point of view”)

The other day a European (therefore, from June 23, 2022, the Ukrainian one is also participating here!) Decision was announced. on the intention of Romania and Bulgaria build five bridges across the Danube. The European Union will add a lot to investing in the construction of property.

The greatest improvement in transport connections on the continents along the North-South line. This is important for trade, for tourism, and now, in light of the threat of totalitarian Russian militarism, and for security.

Where are the Ukrainian bridges?

Neighbors’ intentions should not go unnoticed by the Ukrainian government and Ukrainian society. Many remember, perhaps, how in 2018 the then President of Ukraine and the Prime Minister of Bulgaria announced a plan to build Ukrainian-Romanian-Bulgarian transport corridorstarting from the bridge between our Orlivka in Odesa region and Isaccea in Romania.

The plans have survived on the Internet, but in reality the Danube near Orlivka can still be crossed only by boat or ferry.

It is not worth looking at the fact that there are few bridges on the lower Danube. The river is wide and capricious. The first, the so-called Constantine’s Bridgewas built across its waters by the Byzantines in 328 (it stood for four decades), and the next, between Romania and Bulgaria, only in 1954.

But does it mean that the Danube state, Ukraine, has enough unreliable time to communicate with its super-Romanian neighbor, that bold plans for 2018 should be sent to the archives?

Back in 2020, our neighboring countries agreed to build a bridge across another border river, the Tisza in Transcarpathia. Funded again by Brussels.

Involuntarily, the question arises: will it not improve in the European Union to add to the five Bulgarian-Romanian at least one Romanian city on a common section of 180 kilometers?

The issue is especially relevant given the danger to the entire European continent from Moscow. From there, they threaten Vilnius or Bucharest.

The bridge across the Soul in its Ukrainian part will provide transportation of goods from Southern Europe, will become another export channel for the supply of Ukrainian agricultural products.

This should be heard in Brussels

To achieve the result, Kyiv’s interests must be heard in Brussels. It is advisable to involve civil society in their advocacy. The media and social networks must have their say.

Skeptics will say: what are the bridges during the war? In fact, the opposite is true: peace will still come after our victory, and the whole of Europe has already declared itself to rebuild the country. And in case of a new threat from the north, the bridge will help.

The European road, which opened to Ukraine a few days ago after a decade of negotiations and argumentation, will be successful only for the persistent and creative.

Our bridges will be built if we build them. In word and deed.

Andriy Veselovsky – Ukrainian diplomat, former representative of Ukraine to the EU

The opinions expressed in the section “Point of view” convey the views of the authors themselves and do not fully reflect the position of the editors.