Ukraine Leads 2023 | Ukrainian Hub

About Ukraine Leads

The European Advocacy Forum is an annual event organized by Promote Ukraine in the framework of Ukraine Leads Network and is aimed at gathering Ukrainian civil society in Europe to discuss urgent matters and advocacy priorities of Ukraine.

On December 1, 2022, the Forum gathered together Ukrainian civil society organizations from

14 different countries to debate issues and best practices for advocacy and actions in support of Ukraine.

See last year's forum

The European Advocacy Forum 2023 main objectives are:

- To identify key advocacy priorities for Ukraine in prepararion for the upcoming European elections in 2024.

- To facilitate constructive dialogues and exchanges of ideas between Ukrainian civil society organizations and EU decision-makers.

- To establish actionable strategies for advocating Ukrainian interests within the European political landscape.

Agenda of the forum

9 November 2023

8:30 - 9:30

Welcome coffee & registration

9:30 - 10:00

Opening ceremony

Dr. Marta BARANDIY, President and Founder of Promote Ukraine
Dr. Hardy OSTRY, Director, European Office Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

Vlad GHEORGHE, MEP, Renew Europe Group, European Parliament
Yuri KOZLOVSKY, Ukrainian Veteran
Liza BEZVERSHENKO, Advocacy Co-Lead, Promote Ukraine

10:00 - 11:15

Panel 1: "Protecting Democracy in Europe"

Tanel TANG, Teamleader Policy Coordination, Ukraine Service, DG NEAR, European Commission
Dr. Marta BARANDIY, President and Founder, Promote Ukraine
Petros FASSOULAS, Secretary General, European Movement International

Moderator: Amanda PAUL, Senior Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre (EPC)

11:15 - 11:45

Coffee break

11:45 - 13:00

Panel 2: "Securing the Future: Assessing the Security Landscape in Europe and Implications for EU-Ukraine Relations"

Petra GOMBALOVA, Head of Division EURCA.2 - Ukraine
Volodymyr ILCHENKO, Senior Researcher at the Center for Military Strategic Studies of the National University of Defense of Ukraine
Vineta KLEINE, Director of the NATO Information and Documentation Centre in Kyiv
Moderator: Pavlo MELNYK, Co-founder, Project and Fundraising Coordinator, Vitsche

13:00 - 14:30

Lunch break

14:30 - 15:45

Panel 3: "Unlocking Economic Potential: Exploring Opportunities in EU-Ukraine Relations and the Role of the EU in Ukraine's Reconstruction"

BLANC Gabriel, Team Leader on Reconstruction DG NEAR SGUA Head of Unit E1 of relief and reconstruction
Hanna SLOBODYANYUK-MONTAVON, IWEK, Mykolaiv Water Hub, Berlin-Mykolaiv, Advisor to the Mayor of Mykolaiv on Reconstruction and Economic Development
Antonio ALBALADEJO ROMAN, Policy analyst at EPRS (European Parliamentary Research Service)
Ganna TSARENKO, Expert in Ukraine's civil society monitoring of reconstruction funds
Moderator: Nikolas ZHAROV, President, LUkraine

15:45 - 16:15

Coffee break

16:15 - 17:30
Panel 4: "International Tribunal for Russia's War Crimes: Addressing Human Rights Violations and Seeking Accountability"

Thomas OSSOWSKI, PSC Ambassador Permanent Representation of Germany to the European Union
Oleksandra ROMANTSOVA, Center of Civil Liberties
MATIC Andrej, Legal Adviser, EEAS
Moderator: Marta BARANDIY, Promote Ukraine

10 November 2023

08:30 - 09:00

Welcome coffee & registration

09:00 - 10:00

Workshop: What is advocacy? Success cases

10:00 - 10:30

EU selection advocacy campaign

10:30 - 10:45

Coffee break

10:45 - 12:45

Workshop: framing EU elections advocacy campaign

13:00 - 14:00