The Council of Europe has recently facilitated Regional Dialogues with Hungarian and Romanian national minorities in Transcarpathia (December 2nd) and Chernivtsy (December 5th).

Over 200 participants discussed minority languages, education, and national minority rights in Ukraine, emphasizing the country's European integration.

Key officials, addressed the participants online, highlighting Ukraine's progress towards EU membership, particularly in aligning national minority legislation with European standards.

The participants recommended:

• Draft amendments to the legislation related to national minorities and education to address identified challenges and improve minority language policies.
• Enhance media infrastructure to ensure regional coverage and better access for elderly populations in minority languages.
• Strengthen collaboration between national and European stakeholders for the inclusion of Hungarian and Romanian minorities.

The events were organised by the State Service of Ukraine on Ethnic Affairs and Freedom of Conscience with the contribution of the European Union and the Council of Europe "Supporting the implementation of European standards on anti-discrimination and the rights of national minorities in Ukraine", and the Council of Europe  project "Supporting the reform of the national minority legal framework and the resilience of national minorities and Roma in Ukraine".