On 12 October, Ukrainian Week in Germany opened at the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt (Oder), featuring the exhibition “Crimea: Over a Decade under Russian Occupation”. Developed by the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea/Crimea Platform Office, the exhibition was presented by Alina Olefir, Chief Consultant at the Crimea Platform Support Service.

The exhibition focuses on the consequences of Russia’s occupation of Crimea since 2014, including systematic human rights violations on the peninsula, the destruction of Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar cultural heritage, the unlawful deportation and forced displacement of children, and their militarisation and ideological indoctrination under Russian occupation.

Presenting the exhibition in a European academic setting helps disseminate information about the situation on the temporarily occupied peninsula, draw the international community’s attention to the consequences of Russian aggression, and support the policy of non-recognition of Russia’s occupation of Crimea.

One of the key events marking the opening of Ukrainian Week was the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation between European University Viadrina and the Global Coalition of Ukrainian Studies. The University became the first German state higher education institution to officially join the coalition, opening up new opportunities for joint educational and research projects and for developing Ukrainian studies across the European academic landscape.

Olena Zelenska, the First Lady of Ukraine, addressed the event participants and highlighted the University’s many years of support for Ukraine and its contribution to the development of Ukrainian studies, including through the interdisciplinary academic network KIU Competence Network.

The opening programme also featured a roundtable, “Security and Resilience for the Future of Europe”, where representatives of the Ukrainian Institute, the Bundestag, European University Viadrina, and the University of Basel discussed European security and resilience from the perspective of Ukrainian experience. Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, writer and journalist, also delivered a lecture titled “Freedom Despite Everything: Why Ukraine Matters to Europe”.

The Global Coalition of Ukrainian Studies is a national initiative established by the Ukrainian Institute, the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Education, Science and Sports, the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the support of Ukraine’s First Lady, Olena Zelenska. Its activities aim to develop Ukrainian studies worldwide and strengthen international academic cooperation.

Ukrainian Week in Germany unites academic and cultural events in Frankfurt (Oder), Berlin, Tübingen, Karlsruhe, Regensburg, and Munich.

The exhibition “Crimea: Over a Decade under Russian Occupation” is open to visitors from 13 October to 1 November 2026 in the main foyer of the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt (Oder), next to the university library.