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Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he had decided to set aside his prepared speech and instead speak “from the heart” about what he truly feels and considers important, UATV English reports.
Addressing Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, Tusk said:
“Feel at home,” emphasizing the atmosphere of trust and mutual respect at the conference.
According to Tusk, the future of Poland, Ukraine, and Europe as a whole is only possible through mutual respect and an understanding of their shared history.
Europeans and Ukrainians will rebuild Ukraine’s destroyed cities together after the war. Beyond infrastructure, preserving and understanding their shared history is equally important, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said during the opening of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026 (URC 2026) in Gdańsk
Tusk thanked the thousands of politicians, government officials, and business leaders who gathered in Gdańsk to spend two days preparing a major post-war reconstruction plan for Ukraine.
He said he had proposed Gdańsk as the conference venue because of its profound symbolic significance.
The Polish prime minister recalled that the historic center of Gdańsk was almost completely destroyed during the Second World War. He stressed that “the miracle of reconstruction happens when people truly want it, when they are able to win peace, and when they are determined to do good.”
Tusk noted that Gdańsk was completely rebuilt after the war and has become one of the world’s finest examples of successful post-war reconstruction, not only in architectural terms.
“The same tremendous effort awaits Ukraine. All of us here—in Ukraine and across Europe—believe that Ukraine will repel Russian aggression and that our plans to rebuild Ukraine are not a mirage. When we say that together we will rebuild Ukraine’s destroyed cities after the war, we say it because we believe it will happen after the war, and it will happen thanks to our solidarity,” Tusk said.
He emphasized that reconstruction is about much more than buildings, power plants, schools, and infrastructure.
“Reconstruction is also about what is within us. Ukraine rightly wants to become part of a united Europe. The prerequisite for unity has always been an understanding of one’s own history and a genuine willingness to reconcile,” he said.
Tusk recalled that the Second World War began in Gdańsk and at one point seemed destined to divide European nations forever. Yet after the war, Germans, French, Poles, and others were able to reconcile and build a common future.
“We must speak honestly about the past so that the future can be completely different. Let us remember this—my fellow Poles, your fellow Ukrainians, Yuliia, and everyone in Europe—that we can build the future only on the foundation of truth and mutual respect,” Tusk concluded.
As previously reported, the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026 opened in Gdańsk on June 25. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Union would transfer the first tranche of macro-financial assistance to Ukraine under its new support loan for 2026–2027.
Read also: Von der Leyen Announces €3.2 Billion Tranche for Ukraine in Gdańsk
