“The Council of Europe with its Congress is accompanying consultation and decision-making processes over reforms on multilevel governance, which are fundamental for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union,” underlined Congress Director Claudia Luciani speaking at the session “The Future through Cohesion: How Reforms are Shaping Regional Policy and Strengthening Partnerships” in Brussels on 14 October 2025.

The exchange, initiated by Ukraine’s Ministry for Development of Communities, took place during the EU Week of Regions and Cities and focused on aligning with EU cohesion policy principles of reforms in the areas of multilevel governance, strategic planning, public investment management and digital tools promoting cohesion and sustainable development.

The session brought together Ukrainian stakeholders from local and regional authorities, their national associations and state subnational authorities as well as EU institutions led by President of the European Committee of the Regions Kata Tüttő. They discussed key reform priorities, state of their progress and challenges. One of the key points agreed during the session was the crucial role of local self-government in Ukraine’s transformation towards EU membership, in line with the principles of the European Charter of Local Self-Government and other Council of Europe standards.