Mr. Chairperson,

The delegation of Ukraine warmly welcomes Ambassador Villadsen back to the Permanent Council and thanks him for the comprehensive and very informative report on the activities of the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine.

Ukraine continues to recognize the important role the PCU plays in assisting Ukraine’s Government in pursuing reforms that foster the implementation of the OSCE commitments and addressing the daunting aftermath of the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine.

We consistently support the PCU’s activities in all three dimensions. At the same time we maintain that the project activities of the PCU should primarily aim at addressing and overcoming the consequences of the armed aggression by Russia in Donbas. In that vein we appreciate close interaction of the PCU with the relevant governmental and international stakeholders and commend the successful development of the system of environmental monitoring in Donbas.

The Government of Ukraine notes as remarkable the PCU’s core activities in the spheres of judicial and law-enforcement reforms, combating corruption, organized crime and human trafficking, enhancing environmental security, good governance, freedom of the media and electoral assistance.

We commend the PCU’s efforts for building the capacity of service providers to support the conflict-affected population in coping with and overcoming the socio-psychological impact of their circumstances.

The PCU is making a remarkable contribution in supporting the development of legislation and guidelines in various fields, notably related to humanitarian mine action and electoral procedures.

In the domain of most important constitutional and judicial reforms in line with OSCE principles and commitments of Ukraine the PCU provides valuable expertise to the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, legal professionals, including judges, prosecutors, attorneys, as well as academics and civil society activists, expert and logistical support to the national Law Reform Commission established in July by the President.

On the rule of law track we also encourage the PCU to continue its programmes for legal and human rights education.

Among other important undertakings, the Government of Ukraine attaches priority to the work in the field of psychological rehabilitation of population affected by the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict as well as military servicemen, protection of IDPs, reconstruction of relevant infrastructure, monitoring and assessing the environmental impact, humanitarian demining and alleviating chemical hazards in certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.

We highly value the Project Co-ordinator’s involvement in realisation of much needed projects for utilization of explosive remnants of war, assistance in demining in Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine, which are vital for the local civilians suffering from the unexploded ordnance in daily life.

We reiterate on this occasion that as the mandate of the PCU covers the entire territory of Ukraine, including the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, we strongly encourage support for projects that could help alleviate the plight of the people residing under temporary Russian occupation.

We wish Ambassador Villadsen and his able team every success in their future activities.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.