On September 23, 2019, the Fifth Ukrainian-Slovak Discussion Forum was held at the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine. The event was organized by the Foreign Policy Council “Ukrainian Prism” and the Research center of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association in cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic and Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine. The Forum serves as a regular platform for extended bilateral consultation on topical issues of bilateral Slovak-Ukrainian relations with the participation of governmental officials, representatives of public administrations, and experts, NGOs, and business communities of both countries.
The Forum contributes to a better understanding of national positions on issues relevant to bilateral relations and interaction and deepens mutual understanding of both domestic and foreign policies of both countries. It also allows exploring possibilities for better bilateral coordination in the international arena.
The Fifth session of the Forum was focused on two key issues:
1) the role of OSCE in the resolution of the crisis in Eastern Ukraine during Slovakia’s Chairmanship of OSCE;
2) prospects for boosting cooperation between Ukraine and Slovakia in the sector of national gas and energy security.
Among others, the Fifth Ukrainian-Slovak Discussion Forum was attended by
— Vasyl Bodnar, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine;
— Marek Šafin, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to Ukraine;
— Sergiy Korsunsky, Ambassador, Director of the Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine;
— Petro Beshta, Deputy Director, Political Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine;
— Hennadiy Maksak, Head, Foreign Policy Council “Ukrainian Prism”;
— Mykhailo Gonchar, President, Center for Global Studies “Strategy XXI”;
— Alexander Duleba, Senior Fellow, Research Center of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association.
