Ukraine's sombre pavilion at Cop27 reflects the pain and hope of its people

Country's first ever pavilion at the UN climate conference has been popular among delegates

Ukraine's pavilion at Cop27. It is the first time the country has a pavilion at a Cop. Photo: John Dennehy / The National

The pavilion has an installation designed to reflect a shell that has cratered the ground. Photo: Ukraine at Cop27

Samples of Ukraine's soil at the pavilion. Photo: Ukraine at Cop27

A piece of an oak tree damaged by shrapnel taken from Irpin. It is now on display at the pavilion. Photo: Ukraine at Cop27.

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, addresses Cop27. Sean Gallup / Getty Images

There are two things weighing on Oleksii Riabchyn’s mind in Egypt: the first is climate change, and the second, the fact his wife and children are back in Ukraine in a bomb shelter.

Mr Riabchyn, 39, is representing Ukraine at Cop27, where the country has its first ever pavilion at a UN climate conference.

Painted a sombre grey to reflect the war back home, Ukraine wants it to be a statement of defiance and hope to show Russia’s invasion will not prevent Kyiv thinking of tomorrow.

“It is really hard to think about the climate when in Kyiv my wife and kids are without heating and electricity and taking refuge in a bomb shelter,” said Mr Riabchyn.

“But we understand that we are not only fighting for the future of Ukrainians but the future of the climate. And the future of Ukraine should also be green.”

Despite its austere appearance, Ukraine's pavilion has been popular among delegates, with a steady stream of visitors taking photos and watching videos that outline how the country has suffered since Russia invaded in February.

Smoke rises on the outskirts of the city during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters

Workers surround the Monument to the Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred with sandbags against damage from shelling in Mykolaiv. EPA

Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for talks before a meeting between the Russian president and the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, Russia. AFP

People take water from a water pump in Kyiv. EPA

A woman walks past a damaged building in the town of Nova Kakhovka. Reuters

A woman outside her home, which was destroyed during battles at the start of the conflict, in Yahidne, Chernihiv. Getty Images

People shelter inside a subway station during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters

Firefighters at the site of a drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine. AP

A woman walks past the site of a Russian missile strike in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv. Reuters

Rescuer workers at a building destroyed in an attack in Mykolaiv. Reuters

Parts of a drone lie on a street in Kyiv. Reuters

A drone flies over the Ukrainian capital during an attack. AFP

Ukrainian servicemen tow a captured Russian armoured vehicle in Rudneve village, Kharkiv. EPA

A partially destroyed residential building in Saltivka, in Kharkiv. AP

Ukrainian servicemen fire a captured Russian howitzer on a front line near Kupyansk city, Kharkiv. EPA

Ukrainian servicemen near the recently retaken town of Lyman in Donetsk region. AFP

An officer from a Ukrainian national police emergency demining team prepares to detonate collected anti-tank mines and explosives near Lyman, in the Donetsk region. AFP

A boy playing on a destroyed Russian tank on display in Kyiv. AFP

A young couple hiding underground during an air alert in Zaporizhzhia. AFP

Ukrainian firefighters looking for survivors after a strike in Zaporizhzhia. AFP

Workers fix a banner reading 'Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson - Russia!' to the State Historical Museum near Red Square in Moscow. AFP

Residents try to cross a destroyed bridge in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine. AFP

Alyona Kishinskaya helps to clean up a shop as it prepares to reopen in Balakiya, Ukraine, after a six-month Russian occupation. Getty Images

Alla, 12, has a swinging time in Balakiya, Ukraine, as life goes on despite the war. Getty Images

Ukrainian flags in the town square in Balakiya. Getty Images

A destroyed Russian command centre in Izium, Ukraine. Getty Images

In what may be a final farewell, young Russian recruits - escorted by their wives - walk to a train station in Volgograd before being sent to war in Ukraine. AP

Russian recruits board the train to Ukraine in Volgograd. AP

Ukrainian soliders drive a tank at the recently retaken eastern side of the Oskil River in Kharkiv region, Ukraine. AFP

Volunteers pass boxes of food aid on a destroyed bridge over the Oskil River. AFP

Ukrainian soliders rest on an armoured personnel carrier. AFP

A sign warns of landmines in Izyum, eastern Ukraine. AFP

This crater was left after a missile strike in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. AFP

At the entrance is an installation designed to reflect a shell funnel sticking out of a crater that now pockmark the country’s fields. Inside are 16 types of soil to underline the country's agricultural heritage. Visitors can also touch a piece of Ukrainian oak taken from a tree in war-battered Irpin that has pieces of shrapnel embedded in it. Virtual reality headsets allow people to experience the ruins of Ukraine’s cities.

“It has been absolutely heartbreaking for my whole family and my grandparents,” said Viktoriya Ball, 22, a member of Ukraine’s youth delegation at Cop27.

“They are doubly displaced during their lifetime because the first time was during the [1986] Chernobyl disaster. There is no end to the negligence to human life from the Russian regime.”

Ms Ball said there was a positive response from people visiting the pavilion over the past few days to Ukraine’s situation. The virtual reality glasses in particular have brought home the utter devastation wrought on the country’s cities.

Ms Ball, from Cherkasy in central Ukraine, said the war had a huge impact on her personally but she had tried to deal with it better since the first days of the invasion.

“But when I hear some of the personal stories and see the constant destruction on Ukrainian news it is very difficult,” she said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Cop27 summit on Tuesday there could be no effective climate policy without peace.

The pavilion is staging events throughout the conference to highlight the impact of Russia's war, with tens of thousands killed, cities destroyed and energy systems denuded.

Ukraine’s environment minister in October estimated environmental damage done by Russia was about $35.3 billion.

The pavilion is also highlighting plans to modernise Ukraine into a greener and more energy-efficient place when the conflict ends.

“Russian weapons are destroying wind turbines. They are using energy and gas to blackmail Europe. They are shelling our infrastructure thinking we will surrender but we will not surrender,” said Mr Riabchyn.

“We will rebuild our country and it will be the greenest country in Europe. We will win.”

Cop27 takes place in Egypt — in pictures

A man wears a face mask that reads "no climate justice without human rights" during a protest at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP

A presentation at the American University in Cairo Pavilion. Reuters

Egyptian artist Bahia Sheha stands inside her installation "Heaven & Hell in the Anthropocene." AFP

Akihiro Nishimura, minister of the environment of Japan, reviews notes with others at the COP27. AP

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, right, and Xie Zhenhua, China's special envoy for climate greet each other at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. AP

Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva poses for a group photograph with representatives of his country's indigenous people. AFP

People attend the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. EPA

Activists dancing during a discussion on leaflets at the Cop27 climate conference, taking place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AFP

An activist wears a polar bear outfit as part of campaigning. AFP

From left, Rakia Amandou of Niger, Ba Aminata of Burkina Faso, Kenyan Rosemary Nenini, Fatima Mustafa Ahmed from Sudan and Djeneb Dicko from Burkina Faso at the Indigenous Peoples Pavilion. AP

Abdulla Nasser Musallam Al Rahbi, Oman's Ambassador to Egypt and Permanent Representative to the Arab League, speaks at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. AFP

Climate activists demonstrate in the designated protest zone. AP

Sheikh Abdullah, Director General of Environment at the Public Authority of Kuwait, speaks at Cop27. AFP

Visitors at the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre. AFP

A display outside the convention centre. AFP

A fountain in the green zone at the International Convention Centre at sunset. AFP

Mohamed bin Daina, right, Bahrain's Special Envoy for Climate Affairs and Chief Executive at the Supreme Council for Environment, at the conference. AFP

Members of Extinction Rebellion stage a protest at the Glencairn tidal pool outside Cape Town, South Africa to mark Cop27's 'Water Day'. AP

From left, Fahad Al Maskari of the Khalifa University, Frank Hartmann, Ghaleb Al Breiki of the UAE University, and Mouna Maroun of the University of Haifa, sign an agreement at Cop27. AFP

John Kerry, US special presidential envoy for climate, at Cop27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP Photo

Australian climate activists offer bananas to climate summit participants. AFP

Climate activist Sabrina Elba. AP Photo

Egyptian security forces stand guard during the protest. AFP

US President Joe Biden. AFP

Mr Biden with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. AP

A Cop27 sign in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, provides the backdrop for this woman's selfie. Reuters

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi speaks to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the climate summit. AFP

A water wonderland greets this child at an acquarium in the Cop27 Green Zone. Reuters

Mr El Sisi, second left, takes part in a cycling marathon on the sidelines of Cop27. EPA

Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks in Sharm El Sheikh about 'complicated' talks to set up a protection zone around Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. AFP

Frankie the dinosaur. Reuters

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Reuters

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan, CEO of the Alliances for Global Sustainability; Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and Minister of State for Food Security; and Hatem Dowidar, group CEO at e&. AFP

Sameh Shoukry, Cop27 president, centre left, poses for photos in the youth pavilion. AP

A visitor looks at the 'Zero Point' series of collage portraits by Turkish artist Deniz Sagdic, each of which is made from a particular kind of upcycled waste material. Getty

Participants visit the Ukrainian pavillon. AFP

Mr Kerry speaks during a session on accelerating the clean energy transition in developing countries. AP

Youth climate activists. Pictured, from the left, Eric Njuguna of Kenya, Nicole Becker of Argentina, Vanessa Nakate of Uganda, Sophia Kianni from Iran, and Mitzi Jonelle Tan of the Philippines. AP

Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser, right, chairman of the Islamic Development Bank Group, poses for a photo with Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, the UAE's Minister of State for Financial Affairs. AFP

Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Bloomberg

A police officer stands at the entrance of the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre during Cop27. Reuters

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres. AP Photo

Former US vice president Al Gore speaks during a session at Cop27. AP Photo

Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest. AFP