Sacramento and Sumy Became Sister-cities

Sacramento, California, and Sumy, Ukraine, established sister-city relations and announced their partnership. Ua House, represented by Chairman Vlad Skots, had the privilege to be a part of this historic moment.

The sister city agreement that the Sacramento City Council passed unanimously was proudly announced by the Mayor of Sacramento, Darrell Steinberg. He handed the Memorandum of Understanding to Dmytro Kushneruk, Consul General of Ukraine.

Mayor highlighted that after speaking with Mayor Lysenko, it is evident that a sister-city relationship could help bring humanitarian aid and continue to shine a light on the daily challenges faced by a city in the middle of a war zone. We are happy that many Americans support this initiative to strengthen the relationship between Ukraine and the United States.

Despite the Mayor of Sumy, Oleksandr Lysenko was unable to attend in person, he shared a heartfelt video message with the audience. He noted that Sumy City is open to co-work. “Although Ukraine is in a challenging situation, a Sumy city may build a long-term partnership with Sacramento. Broadening our partner’s relationship and strengthening international collaboration is one of our priorities in developing our city. I want to highlight that today’s event is a long-awaited one”- said the Sumy Mayor.

UA House chairman Vlad Skots called this event a milestone, highlighting the potential for mutually beneficial cooperation between Ukrainian and US cities.

In northeastern Ukraine, Sumy is the capital city of the Sumy Oblast region. It also borders Russia on two sides. Sumy was one of the first cities to be invaded by Russian forces at the start of the conflict in 2022.

Going back in time, Mayor Lysenko first spoke with Mayor Steinberg in April 2023 about the tragic loss of life in the region and the severe damage to the Ukrainian infrastructure caused by the Russian invasion. According to a report from The Guardian, Sumy had no professional soldiers when Russia crossed the border and created its defense force to defend the city. Many citizens who initially fought in the self-defense operation have since joined the Ukrainian Army.