Ukraine is still in the grip of war, but the country is already in talks with other nations on how to rebuild once the conflict is over.
And with Japan’s rebuilding know-how — rising from the rubble of World War II and from the devastation of the earthquake-triggered tsunami in 2011 being just two examples — Tokyo can do much to help Kyiv, says Kuninori Matsuda, the Japanese ambassador to Ukraine.
“We should share our own experience reconstructing after World War II and how we have rebuilt our nation after various natural disasters. We should cooperate with Ukraine in their reconstruction phase as well,” Matsuda said in an online interview from Rzeszow, a Polish town 80 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, where the Japanese government and other international organizations are based.
Ukraine has estimated that its direct losses from the war total at least $650 billion (¥84 trillion), and with indirect costs added such as business and trade opportunities lost due to the war, the total damage could reach $1 trillion.
“Discussions regarding reconstruction after the war have already begun,” Matsuda said. “Reconstruction efforts will not end in a day or two. European countries and international society as a whole will need to be involved in the rebuilding phase for a significant period of time after the war.”
But for now, fighting in Ukraine continues, with Russian troops reportedly aiming to take control of cities in the country's east. Kyiv, meanwhile, remains under Ukrainian control, prompting more Western countries to reopen their embassies in the capital. The United States reopened its embassy in Kyiv on May 18.
In Japan, calls to reopen the nation's embassy in Kyiv, which has been closed since early March, have been rising within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. However, Japan has no fixed plans to do so.
“We are carefully considering it from a comprehensive standpoint based on how safe it is, whether it's necessary and other factors,” Matsuda said.
The Japanese Embassy in Kyiv shut down on March 2, six days after Russia started its invasion, transferring its functions to the Lviv office in western Ukraine. The Rzeszow office in Poland is also coordinating Japan’s humanitarian aid efforts to the country and helping Ukrainians who want to evacuate to Japan, as well as ensuring the safety of Japanese nationals in the war-torn country.
Japan has so far provided $200 million in humanitarian aid and has offered an additional $600 million in financial aid to help the Ukrainian economy.
On Feb. 24, Matsuda, a Russia expert who once served as director of the Foreign Ministry’s Russia division, was at the ambassador’s residence in Kyiv when he heard the news in the early hours of the day followed by a blaring air raid siren.
Because many had already evacuated prior to the invasion, there were only a handful of officials left at the embassy, he said.
“What struck me the most was that even though the war began that day, people were still going to work, public transportation was still operating and there was an old woman taking her dog for a walk,” Matsuda said. “It was all very surreal.”
As long lines of Russian tanks headed toward Kyiv on March 2, Matsuda and a handful of embassy workers evacuated, driving to Poland together and making sure to use the safest route possible out of the country.
As a diplomat, the Ukraine war is not the first conflict Matsuda has witnessed. Before being appointed ambassador to Ukraine in October, he was Japan's ambassador to Pakistan.
“After the fall of Kabul, I was involved in the operation to evacuate Japanese and Afghans” who worked for Japan and other Western countries and their families, said Matsuda.
That was nearly 10 months ago, and now, as ambassador to Ukraine, Matsuda is witnessing a war.
More than three months after the invasion, the war is expected to continue with no signs of an endgame. During the conflict's initial phase, international support focused on the refugees evacuating Ukraine — to date, 6.8 million people have fled.
“But what is also considered problematic now is the number of internally displaced people — those who have fled their homes in eastern Ukraine and are looking for safety in the western regions of the country,” Matsuda said.
According to a report from the U.N.’s International Organization for Migration on May 26, approximately 8.02 million people have been internally displaced.
“This war is the biggest tragedy and humanitarian crisis since World War II,” he said. “Japan has been — and needs to continue — providing support for Ukraine in the reconstruction process.”
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