On 15 May 2023, Mr Patrick Penninckx, Head of the Information Society Department, addressed participants of the Communication Forum organised by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine on the occasion of its Communication Service Day. The Forum was dedicated to the topic of effective communication in times of war and gathered together more than 100 participants and speakers from the law enforcement and defence sectors, as well as media experts and representatives of the international community.

"Since February 2022, an important part of our work has been dedicated to the protection of journalists, the debunking of disinformation and propaganda, supporting the Ukrainian media community in ensuring the public’s access to information and the efficient communication strategy of the Office of the Prosecutor General in times of war", Mr Penninckx mentioned during his intervention. He further outlined the co-operation priorities under the Action Plan for Ukraine and in the frames of the new Project "Safeguarding Freedom of Expression and Freedom of Media in Ukraine", with a focus on supporting effective and efficient communication strategies for law enforcement and balanced media coverage while preventing information disorder. He also presented the work of the Council of Europe on strengthening the capacities of the Ukrainian authorities to overcome the war-related cybersecurity threats and preserve electronic evidence of war crimes and other gross violations of human rights committed since the beginning of the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

The Communication Forum is a two-day event that includes a series of discussion panels and training sessions aimed at building effective communication between the Ukrainian law enforcement and defence authorities and society in times of war through enhanced interaction and dialogue between the communication services and the media community. The training was followed by employees of the Communication Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the information services of central executive bodies and higher education institutions under the auspices of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.

The Council of Europe supported the organisation of the Forum through the Project "Safeguarding Freedom of Expression and Freedom of Media in Ukraine", implemented under the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine "Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction" (2023-2026).