The importance of coherent policies for veterans in Europe, and the need for systemic support to Ukrainian soldiers who became disabled as a result of Russia’s war against Ukraine are in the centre of discussion today at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Social inclusion and supporting veterans, along with protecting minorities and women, and helping Ukrainian children return home, are among the key priorities of the Council of Europe’s new Action Plan for Ukraine 2027-30 that was presented today by the Secretary General Alain Berset to participants of the “Voices from Ukraine” event, which took place on the margins of the autumn Parliamentary Assembly session.
Democratic security for Ukraine that the plan will focus on, “does not replace military security”, the Secretary General argued. “Ukraine needs weapons and air defence; it’s a question of survival, and it is also why Europe is rearming”.
“Democratic security is what makes every other form of security sustainable and accountable, and no peace in Ukraine will hold without it”, Alain Berset stressed.
The new action plan seeks to strengthen Ukraine’s democratic resilience through good governance, the rule of law and human rights. The other key areas of the plan, in addition to the social inclusion issues, cover, firstly, accountability via evidence-based investigations of war crimes, secondly, strengthening democratic institutions, local governance and information integrity, and, finally, advancing independent justice, including fight against corruption.
Berset also reiterated the political work the Council of Europe is doing for Ukraine, including on minority rights in the Transcarpathia region, where it offers its good offices to the Ukrainian and Hungarian ombudspersons, as well as its efforts on raising awareness of the situation of children of Ukraine, and of people living in its temporarily occupied territories.
