A monument of Ukrainina pianist and composer, Mykola Lysenko, located in front of Kyiv National Opera House.

Since Ukraine’s accession to the Council of Europe on 9 November 1995, one of the main objectives of co-operation activities has been to support the country in honouring its statutory obligations, and the commitments taken upon accession to the Council of Europe. However, beyond these statutory obligations, Ukraine freely undertook to fulfil a number of specific commitments in order to improve democracy, human rights and the rule of law in the country; these various obligations and commitments are laid out in PACE Opinion No. 190 (1995).

Pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Ukraine and the Council of Europe concerning the establishment in Ukraine of the Office of the Council of Europe and its legal status of 6 November 2006, the Parties resolved to facilitate further democratic development in Ukraine, in particular through full and efficient implementation of the Action Plan.

The Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023-2026 was approved by the Committee of Ministers on 14 December 2022. The document has been prepared in close consultation with the Ukrainian authorities. The first Steering Committee meeting of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023-2026 took place in Kyiv on 24 April 2023 where it was presented.

The main objective of the Action Plan is to contribute to Ukraine’s stability, security and prosperity through addressing immediate and medium-term needs in time of war and further during the post-war period, in the areas where the Council of Europe has expertise and added value. 

The document builds on the progress achieved by Ukraine in meeting the Council of Europe standards in the areas of human rights, rule of law and democracy, notably within the Action Plan 2018-2022 and its Priority Adjustments, and is aimed to continue supporting the country’s efforts to honour its obligations as a Council of Europe member. In addition, the Action Plan will also support Ukraine’s European perspective reform agenda, following the decision by the European Council on 23 June 2022 to grant the country EU candidate status. 

The Action Plan covers the following areas of co-operation:

I.            Human Rights

  • Promoting better protection and effective implementation of human rights
  • Promoting equality and human dignity
  • Anti-discrimination, diversity and inclusion
  • Promoting social rights

II.           Rule of Law

  • Strengthening rule of law-based institutions
  • Action against crime, security and protection of citizens
  • Strengthening the society through sport and reinforcing sport integrity

III.          Democracy

  • Strengthening democratic governance
  • Strengthening democratic participation
  • Culture, nature and heritage

The Action Plan provides a four-year framework for co-operation during 2023-2026 offering the flexibility required to address emerging needs and priorities of Ukraine in the current volatile context and high-risk environment. Risk and threat mitigation strategies and management mechanisms will be continuously evaluated and discussed with the Ukrainian authorities.

The overall budget of the Action Plan is estimated at €50 million. Projects are funded from multiple sources: the Council of Europe’s ordinary budget, as well as voluntary contributions from donor countries and international organisations, including the European Union (notably through the European Union/Council of Europe Partnership for Good Governance - PGG).

The Office of the Council of Europe in Ukraine and operational services in Strasbourg are responsible for the implementation of the Action Plan. In particular, the Office of the Council of Europe in Ukraine co-ordinates the implementation of the projects in the field, including joint projects with the European Union.

The Council of Europe action is closely co-ordinated with other actors, in particular the EU, UN and OSCE, as well as bilateral donors and international organisations, to ensure complementarity of actions and avoiding overlaps.

CONTRIBUTION TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

               

Through the actions implemented in 2022, the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022 and its Priority Adjustments contributed to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG 1 (targets 3 and 4), SDG 3 (target 4), SDG 4 (targets 7), SDG 5 (target 5), SDG 10 (targets 2 and 3), SDG 11 (target 3), SDG 16 (targets 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10) and SDG 17.

More information: Overview of the Council of Europe Contribution to the UN 2030 Agenda.