Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva met with the delegation of the European Network of Equality Bodies (EQUINET) headed by Ombudswoman of the Republic of Croatia Tena Šimonović Einwalter and Ombudsman for Equality in Sweden Lars Arrhenius.
The Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine informed EQUINET representatives about Ukraine's implementation of the European Commission's recommendation in the context of ensuring the rights of national minorities. He briefed the interlocutors on the specific steps and decisions taken by the Ukrainian authorities in this area, in particular, he mentioned the draft law on amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On National Minorities (Communities) of Ukraine".
"This area is an important component of our comprehensive work on Ukraine's European integration to ensure that our country receives a positive opinion from the European Commission as part of the enlargement package in October this year," said Ihor Zhovkva.
The EQUINET Board Chairperson emphasized the importance of wider involvement of the relevant Council of Europe institutions in the work on national minority rights. She also praised the work of Ukrainian authorities working in the field of human rights and equality.
The parties discussed Ukraine's accession to EQUINET. In this context, hope was expressed that the General Assembly of this organization would make a decision in this regard in October this year.