Permanent Representative Tamila Tasheva spoke at the discussion “We are the state” at the XI International Book Arsenal Festival. The discussion was organized with the support of the Institute for the Humanities in Vienna within the framework of the Documenting Ukraine project.

The Permanent Representative was joined by Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Oleksandra Azarkhina, Head of the NGO “Iskra Dobra” Ihor Kukobko, Deputy Mayor of Bucha Mykhaylyna Skoryk-Shkarivska and Rector of the Kyiv School of Economics, sociologist Tymofiy Bryk. The event was moderated by journalist Natalia Humeniuk.

The Permanent Representative told the audience about her career path from a public activist and co-founder of Crimea_SOS to first Deputy Permanent Representative and then Permanent Representative. In particular, Tamila Tasheva spoke about the directions of the Mission’s work, as well as the importance of keeping Crimea in focus and building the sustainability of the state body for future teams.

“It is very important for me to build the sustainability of the system so that these developments and their values remain for future teams that will work on Crimea. That is why in 2021 we adopted the Development Strategy of the Mission, which was approved by the Decree of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It was a long way, but an important one. Sustainability is about the experience we pass on. The issue of Crimea should be in focus, as well as the work on its reintegration,” the Permanent Representative said.

A separate topic was the youth of Ukraine, as well as their patriotism and involvement in the life of their country. The Permanent Representative mentioned the powerful youth organizations of Ukraine, such as PLAST, UAL and FRI, which unite value-oriented youth and with which the Mission is currently in contact, developing the priority steps of youth policy for the de-occupied Crimea.

Responding to a question from the audience about whether something should be criticized in Ukraine, the Permanent Representative noted that criticism is an important point. However, criticism is only appropriate when it is supported by reasoned proposals that will improve the lives of Ukrainian citizens.

“The Ukrainian state is free, democratic and independent, but first of all, every state consists of its people, so, of course, their opinions will always be taken into account!” – said Ms. Tasheva.

The Mission thanks the participants of the discussion and moderator Natalia Gumenyuk for the powerful conversations and thorough questions about the state and its activities.

Special thanks to the organizers of the International Festival “Book Arsenal” for the huge scale of the event!