Lviv Rayon
Following the reform-related dissolution of the Ukrainian partner district of Pustomyty in autumn 2020, the Saarpfalz district received a written request from the district council chairman Andrij Sulym in March 2021 to establish a partnership with the newly created Lviv district. The decision to continue the partnership followed just two months later on 7 May 2021 and marked the start of the establishment of a network with other districts in Lviv Oblast.
The official partnership document was signed on 6 April 2022 in Łańcut, Poland, by District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo and District Council Chairman Andrij Sulym. The document was backdated to 24 February 2022, the date on which the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine began, in order to express solidarity with Ukrainian friends and mutual support.
Since then, the cooperation has grown steadily. The partner districts have forged close links, particularly through the joint organisation of aid measures for the Ukrainian population affected by the war. In addition to numerous transports of relief supplies, three holiday camps for Ukrainian children and young people have been organised in the Saarpfalz district so far. Thanks to several visits by the district council chairman Andrij Sulym to the Saarpfalz district, it has also been possible to open up further prospects for long-term cooperation. He has already taken part in the SaarLorLux Tourism Exchange in St. Ingbert twice in a row in order to introduce the residents and economic players of the Saarpfalz district and the Greater Region to the advantages of Ukraine as a destination in times of peace and a centre of innovation. The partners are now waiting for the realisation of many of the projects already discussed in a hopefully soon free Ukraine.
The Lviv district is also an alliance partner of the "International Alliance for Peace and Cohesion in Europe" and was instrumental in establishing the "International Museum Alliance", to which the Hard Coal Museum in Lviv is affiliated as a Ukrainian partner. The trusting relationships between the representatives of the two districts favoured the establishment of the German-Ukrainian partnership at state level between Lviv Oblast and Saarland, which was signed in November 2023.
