On Thursday, 26 June 2025, the Media Center of the Directorate-General for Rendering Services to Diplomatic Missions hosted a roundtable entitled Where the Ukrainian Heart Beats.
The event was organised by the GDIP team with the support of the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Centre for Public Diplomacy of the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Diplomatic Spouses Association, the West Ukrainian National University and the Professor Lubomyr Wynar Institute for the Ukrainian Diaspora Studies.
Among the participants of the discussion were representatives of Ukrainian communities abroad, government officials, the national diplomatic corps, as well as experts in the fields of diaspora studies and public diplomacy.
The roundtable was opened with welcoming speeches by Mariana Betsa, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; Tetiana Sybiha, Head of the Centre for Public Diplomacy of the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine, co-founder of the Ukrainian Diplomatic Spouses Association; and Olena Maksymova, Deputy Director of the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Ukraine, Project Coordinator.
‘The issue of Ukrainians abroad is of vital importance and remains a top priority not only for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our diplomats, but also for the President and the state as a whole, given the large number of our citizens currently living outside the country. We understand how crucial it is to maintain contact with Ukrainians abroad, to preserve their identity, and to protect their rights. First of all, I would like to note that this topic has taken on an entirely new dimension since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022. Ukraine has historically had large diasporas in different countries, but the challenges posed by russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine have compelled us to fundamentally rethink the state’s role in protecting the rights of Ukrainians abroad and our approaches to working with them,’ said Mariana Betza in her welcoming speech, outlining the most important areas of work of the foreign ministry in the context of protecting the rights and interests of Ukrainians abroad.
Tetiana Sybiha, for her part, thanked the organisers of the roundtable and everyone who contributed to the meaningful discussion of such an important topic. She underlined that the Ukrainian diaspora represents a powerful force, helping diplomats across the world speak about Ukraine and its distinct identity:
‘Unity and trust are the key elements we must work on more profoundly. They are vital to our national security and to resisting the brutality of russia’s aggression against Ukraine. I would like to thank our diaspora and Ukrainian communities around the world, who find the strength to build bridges of understanding and to actively support the efforts of our Embassies. Thank you for your tireless advocacy and ongoing volunteerism. With this spirit of synergy, we possess a tremendous resource that truly serves our unity, resilience, and the development of the state we truly deserve.’
In her address, Olena Maksymova also emphasised the strength of the voices coming from the global Ukrainian community and their impact on Ukraine’s international image:
‘Public diplomacy is not solely the activity of the state, but the task of everyone who can tell the world about Ukraine using the language of truth, humanity, culture and values. And Ukrainians abroad play an extremely important role in this regard.’
The event’s speakers were Oksana Duka, Head of the Division for Policy Development and Relations with the Global Ukrainian Community of the Directorate for Global Ukrainian Community and Humanitarian Initiatives of the Department of Public Diplomacy and Communications of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; Volodymyr Sheiko, Director General of the Ukrainian Institute; and Yurii Klymenko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Argentina (with concurrent accreditation to Uruguay and Paraguay).
Representatives of Ukrainian organisations abroad also joined the discussion: Kateryna Argyrou (Australia), Zénon Koval (Belgium), Fabiana Tronenko (Brazil), Slavko Burda (Croatia), Inna Hordiienko and Volodymyr Palamar (Estonia), Maryna Akram (India), Larysa Levchun (Italy), Zhanna Kharkivska (Portugal), Kateryna Aloshyna (South Africa), and Christina Tershakovec (USA).
The participants had the opportunity to explore and reflect on the importance of the global Ukrainian community in shaping a positive international image of the state and supporting its integration into the European and global cultural and information space. Where the Ukrainian Heart Beats roundtable became a forum for dialogue, exchange of experience and networking to strengthen cooperation between Ukrainian government agencies and active Ukrainian communities abroad.
