Transport and Covid-19: responses and resources

ITF Secretary-General's Statements on the Ukraine Crisis

ITF Secretary-General Young Tae Kim addressed the opening session of the 35th Meeting of the ITF's Transport Management Board with the following statement on the Ukraine crisis on 15 March:

"I am deeply concerned by the war in Ukraine.

Transport should be made for connecting people. Over the past years, and for a long time, we all co-operated by making policies for better lives. But today, we see destruction and a humanitarian crisis.

ITF’s origins date from the post-second World War to reunite and rebuild Europe. Our transport community should work tirelessly to bring people and economies together peacefully through global dialogue for better policies.

I call an immediate end to the war in Ukraine. We at the ITF Secretariat will do our best to support our member countries. We stand ready to work with you on any decisions you make."



Dr Kim made a further statement to ITF's Transport Management Board at the end of the 16 March morning session:

"Concerning the question related to the war in Ukraine, once again, I feel extremely sorry because every day, we see a growing number of miseries in the global community. Destruction of infrastructure, a rise of disruption and disconnection, an energy crisis and a humanitarian crisis are hurting and paining us. We feel our lives more and more destabilised.

During the past two years, we suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic. We all longed for a return to normal life. But where are we now? We are hit by another one.

I do hope that this war will be stopped immediately. I do hope ITF member countries will again sit together peacefully to discuss better policies for better lives.

The ITF Secretariat is doing its best to support its member countries. The ITF Secretariat is closely co-operating with the OECD legal office to find the best approach for short-term and long-term contexts. However, I would like to remind us that, in the end, it is ITF member countries that should make decisions on major issues. The ITF Secretariat is ready to support the decisions that member countries make."

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