From the start of the war against Ukraine in February 2022 until the end of 2023, Russia has fired over 8,000 missiles and 3,800 combat drones, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. And every day there are new and new Russian attacks.
The renowned Kyiv University of Economics regularly assesses the damage done. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, 250,000 residential buildings, over 420 hospitals, 580 administrative buildings, almost 4,000 schools and universities have been damaged or destroyed. 1,800 cultural sites such as theaters, cinemas, libraries, concert halls and museums are also affected, as well as almost 350 churches, synagogues and mosques, we read in the ARD publication.
No one knows the exact amount
Recovery will absorb astronomical sums, the publication continues. At the beginning of June, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal announced, citing data from the World Bank, that 486 billion US dollars will be needed to rebuild the country.
Realistically, however, more money will be needed, since at this stage it is not possible to assess the damage in the Ukrainian territories occupied by the Russians. In this regard, German public television recalls that a number of Ukrainian cities, for example Mariupol, Avdeevka, Soledar, Bakhmut or Severodonetsk, were razed to the ground.
Just for the restoration of the civil infrastructure, 37 billion dollars will be needed, according to the Kyiv University of Economics. More than 100 railway stations were badly damaged by the bombing, as well as 350 bridges and at least 25 thousand kilometers of roads. At the same time, the data refer only to the regions in Eastern and Southern Ukraine near the front line, ARD specifies.
In these areas, the Russian army has also caused heavy damage to Ukrainian agriculture – over a third of the agricultural sector, so important to the Ukrainian economy, was destroyed by the war. About 1,600 units of agricultural machinery are out of order, heavy losses are reported by the beekeeping and fishing sectors.
Systematic theft by the Russian occupiers
Ukraine also suffers damage from the thefts of the Russians. The example that ARD gives for this is from agriculture: according to data from the Ukrainian non-governmental organization “Yellow Ribbon” the Russian invaders systematically export grain from the Ukrainian territories occupied by them.
According to various estimates, between 12 and 16 billion US dollars will be needed to restore Ukraine's destroyed energy system. Other estimates run as high as US$16 billion. So far, the country has lost more than 9 gigawatts of energy capacity. And Russian targeted attacks against Ukraine's energy system continue: the Russians are bombing coal, thermal and hydroelectric plants, substations, high-voltage power lines, distribution stations and dams.
Ukraine already has to import electricity, but that alone is not enough. Power system repairs are difficult for many reasons, including the lack of spare parts – since most power plants date back to Soviet times, spare parts for them are no longer produced, ARD specifies.
Author: Andrea Beer