Livermore asks Russian sister city to support cease-fire in Ukraine

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The Livermore City Council decided unanimously Monday to send a letter to officials in its sister city of Snezhinsk, Russia, calling for the city to stand against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“I’m really pleased to see that this is a way that we can talk city to city, person to person, and perhaps make for a change,” Councilmember Trish Munro said in support of sending the letter after noting that her own grandfather immigrated from Ukraine in the early 20th century.

Earlier this month the city of Livermore received correspondence from Dmytro Kushneruk, the Consul General of Ukraine in San Francisco, requesting that Livermore take this course of action as a show of support for Ukraine after the country was invaded by the Russian military.

“As a Mayor of Livermore you have the power to address your counterparts in Russia with a firm demand for them to start acting now in resisting the criminal regime of the Kremlin before it’s too late,” Kushneruk’s letter reads. “They may stop Russian conscripts of their city from being sent to Ukraine and they may mobilize their communities to go on streets.”

Kushneruk’s letter also suggested that if Snezhinsk is not receptive to Livermore’s correspondence, then Livermore should sever its ties with Snezhinsk. “In a critical situation like this, such rigidity is absolutely necessary, as it may save lives,” Kushneruk wrote in his letter.

During Monday night’s regular City Council meeting, all five councilmembers agreed that a letter to Snezhinsk would be appropriate but they did not discuss exactly what the letter would entail at the time.

The council directed city staff to draft the letter with the oversight of Mayor Bob Woerner. Upon finalization of the draft, the council also directed staff to post the letter on the city’s website.

The letter was completed, sent to the mayor of Snezhinsk and posted to Livermore’s city website by Tuesday evening.

“On behalf of the City of Livermore City Council, I write to you as Mayor of Livermore’s sister city, to request your support for a cease-fire in Ukraine,” the letter signed by Woerner reads. “Thousands of innocent lives have already been lost and the Ukrainian people continue to face an unprovoked, unrestrained military aggression from the Russian Federation.”

While the letter said they “respectfully urge” Snezhinsk to take action, Livermore officials did not include any mention of suspending its relationship with Snezhinsk.

Livermore adopted Snezhinsk as one of its sister cities back in 1998. The city of Snezhinsk is home to a major nuclear research laboratory and in the late 1990s, scientists from Livermore worked with their counterparts in Snezhinsk to keep nuclear information and material safe during the transition that followed the end of the Cold War, according to Livermore’s website.

A complete recording of Monday night’s council meeting is available here and a copy of the letter sent to Snezhinsk can be found here.