Ukraine advances its own agenda at the UN Commission on the Status of Women

Government Commissioner for Gender Equality Kateryna Levchenko noted this in an interview with Ukrinform.

“We continue to use the commission’s platform to advance our agenda,” she said. “This includes women’s leadership and gender equality in Ukraine’s reconstruction, as well as Russia’s accountability for crimes committed on Ukrainian soil – torture, child abductions, deportations, and conflict-related sexual violence.”

According to Levchenko, the current session demonstrated “Ukraine’s significantly greater involvement in the international context and its subjectivity.”

The delegation members participated in a variety of events and held meetings with representatives from various countries, including Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa.

“I am seeing a strong mobilization of European countries on issues of global gender equality,” Levchenko emphasized, adding that many countries in the Global South are also demonstrating leadership in this area.

She noted the “unwavering support” for Ukraine from UN Women and other agencies, particularly in matters of reconstruction.

The Government Commissioner stressed that Ukraine not only demonstrates resilience in all areas – military, humanitarian and economic – but also develops models that can be effective in solving problems in other countries. This also applies to the survivor assistance centers established in Ukraine in June 2022.

The Ukrainian delegation also held several parallel events. Deputy Head of the International Legal Department of the Ministry of Defense Inna Zavorotko spoke about women serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Many of the events were attended by the Ukrainian community of New York, the Ukrainian National Women's League of America and other diaspora organizations.

For the first time, Ukraine chaired several events, and Levchenko moderated an interactive dialogue with young people.

In addition, a significant number of events related to Ukraine were organized by delegations from Finland, Germany, Canada, Norway, Denmark and other countries.

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Earlier, in a comment to Ukrinform, Deputy Foreign Minister Maryana Betsa stated that the main goal of the Ukrainian delegation at the session of the Communist Party of Poland is to inform the international community about the crimes committed by the Russian occupiers.

As reported, the 69th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women is taking place in New York from March 10 to 21. The session will discuss issues of gender equality, women's rights and the elimination of all forms of discrimination.

The Ukrainian delegation is headed by Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Justice O. Stefanishyna, who is participating in the meeting remotely.