Resilience Plan: What Strategy Does Bankova Propose for Ukrainians?

The document presented by the head of state consists of 10 points and addresses various areas. The resilience plan, as noted by Zelensky, will be further detailed in collaboration with civil society, businesses, representatives of the cultural environment, and relevant experts.

At the start of his lengthy speech in the building under the glass dome on Hrushevskoho, Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that the decisive moment of the war will be next year, adding that at the current stage “it is determined who will outlast whom.” In this context, Zelensky stressed that Ukraine “does not trade sovereignty” and will not give up its rights to its entire territory.

Moreover, it is quite significant that the current host of Bankova emphasized that the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity will occur after political changes in the aggressor country. In other words, the president does not foresee any global shifts, such as the return of Crimea, before Putin convenes in the Kremlin. Nevertheless, Zelensky noted that Ukraine must already determine for itself “how to live now and how to live in the future.” The guidelines for this are outlined in the Resilience Plan. As mentioned earlier, the plan includes 10 points: unity, the front, weapons, resources, energy, community safety, human capital, cultural sovereignty, and the politics of heroes.

The internal unity of Ukraine, the head of state emphasized, is necessary to unite international partners. Speaking about allies, the current guarantor of the Ukrainian Constitution noted that Ukraine will soon complete the procedure of screening Ukrainian legislation for EU accession. Additionally, Volodymyr Zelensky expressed optimism regarding our country's future accession to the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).

An important statement from Zelensky also addressed the domestic political climate. Specifically, he refuted rumors about holding presidential elections before the end of the war: “The Constitution and laws do not allow elections to be held during wartime. No one in the world is demanding this.”

Regarding the military, the president stated the need to change management approaches within it. He positively assessed the work of the Army+ app, which has already been used by 410,000 soldiers. Zelensky also announced the creation of a military ombudsman office and stated that the mobilization age threshold will not be lowered.

Concerning the weapons aspect of the plan, according to Volodymyr Zelensky, by 2025 Ukraine will produce at least 30,000 long-range drones that will “compensate for the lack of artillery in the army.” Speaking about domestically produced weapons, the president also mentioned the “Long Neptune” missile with a range of 1,000 kilometers. Currently, 600 Ukrainian companies are working in the defense industry, providing 300,000 jobs, the head of state emphasized.

The “Money” point in the Resilience Plan still needs to be approved with businesses, and there will be a separate annex for it, Zelensky explained. He did not disclose details about the “money” point but noted the importance of supporting Ukrainian producers: “Everything we can produce in Ukraine should be purchased in Ukraine.” The president also announced insurance for military risks and a reduction in the share of GDP redistribution by the state.

In the energy sector, the current host of Bankova announced the creation of resilience passports for regions by the end of the year, and by 2025 – generation passports. Emphasizing that nuclear generation has “obvious priority,” Zelensky noted that many details of this point cannot be disclosed as they are confidential.

The “Security” point contains three blocks – Ukraine today, post-war Ukraine, and a sustainable and secure world. “Security concerns both global issues, such as strengthening the state border, and local ones. The priority should be security in educational institutions, such as police protection and metal detectors at the entrance to all educational and other state institutions,” the president detailed. In this context, he also mentioned the modernization of shelter standards and the problem of demining Ukraine.

In the section about communities, the focus is primarily on frontline areas that require “special support,” as well as communities that have taken in the most displaced persons. The president emphasized the need to support and enhance international ties at the community level.

The point dedicated to state support for veterans was the most detailed. Thus, Zelensky announced the establishment of the “Veteran Assistant” institute, which will have 11,000 specialists to support veterans. In each community by 2025, rehabilitation departments should be created, as well as a network of veteran spaces. Veterans are planned to be actively recruited into public service. Additionally, there will be extra payments to family doctors for contracts with veterans and housing programs for veterans.

Speaking about the point dedicated to human capital, Zelensky mentioned the necessity of establishing an institute for multiple citizenship and restarting the diplomatic service. By the end of the year, he stated, all vacancies for Ukrainian ambassadors will be filled. A Ministry of Unification of Ukrainians will also be created, which will specifically address the affairs of the “global multi-million Ukrainian community.” By the end of 2024, Zelensky emphasized, a candidate for the relevant minister will be presented.

One of the most important issues in the area of human capital, Volodymyr Zelensky called “preserving millions of Ukrainian children who are scattered across different corners of the world due to the war.” He believes they must remain connected to Ukrainian culture and life. Zelensky also spoke about the partnership between the state and the church and mentioned the ban on the representation of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, stating that “the time of the Moscow church has expired.” These words from the president elicited enthusiastic applause from the parliamentary corps.

Zelensky also announced an initiative within the framework of international cultural diplomacy to introduce a “Cultural Ramstein.” In this regard, the idea of creating chairs of Ukrainian studies at foreign universities was voiced. “It is precisely through the language of culture that we can reach those countries that are unreachable for politicians,” the president concluded, promising that the Resilience Plan would be ready in December, “turnkey.” Separately, Zelensky emphasized that this plan is not an alternative to the Victory Plan, which he presented face-to-face to a number of leaders of Ukraine's allied states.

By the way, about them – partners of official Kyiv. While Zelensky was presenting his Resilience Plan in the Rada, a two-day G20 summit was concluding in Rio de Janeiro, where Ukraine was also discussed. In particular, in the 9th point of the final declaration of the “Big Twenty,” it is noted: “Regarding the war in Ukraine, referring to the discussions held in New Delhi (at the G20 summit in 2023 – ed.), we emphasize the impact of human suffering and additional negative consequences of the war on global food and energy security, supply chains, macro-financial stability, inflation, and economic growth.” G20 participants also welcomed “all relevant constructive initiatives that contribute to establishing a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace and meet all the goals and principles of the UN Charter in the interest of fostering peaceful, friendly, and good-neighborly relations between nations.”

It is noteworthy that at the G20 summit, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan planned to present a plan to freeze the Russian-Ukrainian war. This was reported by Bloomberg, citing informed sources. It was noted that the essence of the prepared initiative is to freeze the conflict along the current front line. In the Kremlin's view, such a proposal was labeled “a priori unacceptable,” according to Putin's spokesperson Peskov. Following this, the Turkish president's administration denied claims that Ankara was preparing to present a peace plan at the summit.

Interestingly, at the G20 summit, the aggressor country was represented not by Putin, who likely feared being arrested under an international criminal court warrant, but by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov's press conference in Rio de Janeiro coincided with the day when the Ukrainian Armed Forces first struck deep into Russia with American ATACMS ballistic missiles. According to him, the strike by American long-range weapons on the Bryansk region is a “signal that the West wants to escalate the conflict.” Notably, at the current G20 summit, French President Emmanuel Macron shook Lavrov's hand. Bloomberg reported that Macron specifically “sought out” Lavrov to greet him. However, in the joint photo from the “Group of Twenty” leaders' meeting, U.S. President Joe Biden, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni were absent. The White House explained Mr. Biden's absence as due to logistical issues. Meanwhile, the well-known spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, commented on the situation, noting that Western politicians have previously “put on a show with photographs,” for example, trying to do so at night to avoid being photographed with Lavrov.