A 'Marshall Plan' is needed to rebuild Ukraine, says Simon Coveney

The rubble of a school that was destroyed during a missile strike in the outskirts of Kharkiv: Simon Coveney said 'a global financial effort will be required to rebuild Ukraine after the war'. Picture: AP/Andrii Marienko

A 'Marshall Plan' involving financial support from countries across the world will be needed to rebuild Ukraine, Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said.

It is now expected the initial reconstruction of the war-torn country will cost at least €750bn, part of which could be paid for through seized Russian assets, Mr Coveney has suggested.

Mr Coveney said: "I don't know how long this war will continue, but we know that a global financial effort will be required to rebuild Ukraine after the war. The EU won't be found wanting here and, I think, will give significant leadership."

Mr Coveney, who recently travelled to Ukraine with a small delegation, said: 

We're talking about a very large country here that has extraordinary levels of damage and destruction across multiple cities. Some cities hardly exist anymore, given the level of bombardment and destruction.

"I witnessed some of that firsthand at Bucha. But from what I'm told and from the images I've seen, cities like Mariupol and some others are Bucha multiplied by many, many times."

He added: "I think we are going to need something of a similar level of ambition to a Marshall Plan. And certainly, Ireland will support that."

Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney said at the moment there is 'not a lot of optimism' that there is 'any appetite' from Russia for a ceasefire or a peaceful solution.

Appearing before the Oireachtas Committee on European Affairs, he said at the moment there is "not a lot of optimism" that there is "any appetite" from Russia for a ceasefire or a peaceful solution.

He pointed to the suggestion that some countries could "adopt" certain regions to help with the rebuilding effort, and said Ireland already has links with certain cities.

Fine Gael TD Neale Richmond and Fianna Fáil's Dara Calleary both asked if the Irish Government would support calls to use the €36bn of frozen assets taken from Russian oligarchs and officials to rebuild Ukraine.

Mr Coveney said the "most effective weapon" the EU now has is sanctions.

Russian aggression is causing all of this. We are going to have to rebuild a country on the back of what Russia is responsible for in Ukraine. So it does make sense that if we are seizing assets that the value of those assets would be used to rebuild Ukraine."

Mr Coveney confirmed that €1.7bn of assets have been frozen by Ireland to date.

He added that the EU Commission had been asked to work up options that would be consistent with the obligations of member states.

"I do think we need to be responsible here in terms of any action we take being legally sound," he told the Committee.

Since February, the EU has provided over €4bn in humanitarian support and €2bn in support for the Ukrainian armed forces, the committee heard.