The conference with the participation of all ambassadors of Ukraine, which will take place on December 21-22 in Huta, Ivano-Frankivsk region, will begin a large-scale process of geographical decentralization of Ukrainian diplomacy. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was speaking with media representatives after a trilateral meeting with the Presidents of Poland and Lithuania at the Syniohora residence.
The head of the Ukrainian state stressed his ambitious goal: to change the perception of Ukraine in the world – not as a geographical object, but as a political entity.
"Not a problematic, but a strategic partner, whose opinion and interest the world takes into account not only formally, but it really takes them into account. To this end, Ukraine must be a proactive player in the global arena, not a silent observer. This is possible when diplomacy is aware of its high role, and foreign policy changes from too conservative, and therefore slow, to modern, mobile and very dynamic," he said.
Zelenskyy said that Ukrainian diplomacy should be created not only in the capital of the country – high-level meetings, summits, forums should be held throughout the country: in Lviv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Dnipro, Mariupol and other Ukrainian cities.
"We started this path not today and we have first successful steps, so to speak, pilot projects. But Huta 2021 is the start of a new large-scale process involving more than 300 people. This is the geographical decentralization of Ukrainian diplomacy," the President said.
The President said that previously meetings with all serving ambassadors of Ukraine were held every two or three years, which in the modern world of rapid change made them ineffective and formal.
"We need content, we need results, so from now on I will gather Ukrainian ambassadors here in Huta every year," Zelenskyy said.
The President reminded that for the first time since Ukraine's independence a comprehensive action plan of Ukraine on the world stage – the Strategy of Foreign Policy – has been approved.
"Moving towards the EU and NATO, strengthening our presence and national interest in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America. We will analyze the implementation of these and other important issues in the next two days. And every next year, strengthening our diplomatic team, we will discuss together the results and new goals of the external strategy of our independent Ukraine," the President said.
