From October 30 to November 13, the 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference, the highest governing body of the Organization, was held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, during which member states determined the strategic directions of its activities.
Ukraine's delegation to the session, headed by Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha was approved by the order of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The delegation also included Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, President of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO Mariana Betsa, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to UNESCO, Ambassador Vadym Omelchenko, Head of the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine Olha Herasymiuk, representatives of the Secretariat of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO, Embassy of Ukraine in Uzbekistan, Permanent Mission of Ukraine to UNESCO, Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, and other bodies.
A key victory for Ukraine was the election of our country to the UNESCO Executive Board for the period 2025-2029, the second highest governing body of the Organization after the General Conference. Ukraine received the highest number of votes in the election within the three seats of the Second Regional Electoral Group – 137. Romania (135 votes) and Moldova (133 votes) also joined the Executive Board from the Second Regional Electoral Group. For the second time consecutively in the history of its membership in UNESCO, Russia lost the election to the UNESCO Executive Board, receiving the lowest number of votes – 93. Russia's defeat was a natural result of its aggressive policy towards Ukraine and due to our partner’s activities, who systematically worked to get the Executive Board and other UNESCO bodies to pass resolutions strongly condemning Russia's aggression, full-scale war against Ukraine, war crimes committed by Russia against Ukrainian cultural heritage, as well as the damage caused by Russia to Ukraine's education, science, and environmental systems and other areas falling within UNESCO's mandate.
Russia also suffered a crushing defeat and was not elected to a number of UNESCO advisory bodies, despite putting forward its own candidate. The results of the votes confirmed that a terrorist state waging a war of aggression against Ukraine, destroying cultural heritage, schools, museums, theatres and libraries, should not be a member of UNESCO's governing and programme bodies.
Ukraine was also elected Vice-Chair of the UNESCO General Conference from Electoral Group II and Vice-Chair of the UNESCO General Conference Culture Commission.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Chair of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO Mariana Betsa held more than 40 bilateral meetings with heads of delegations from other countries as part of her participation in the 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference and the promotion of Ukraine's candidacy in the elections to the UNESCO Executive Board for the period 2025-2029.
Olha Herasymiuk, Head of the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine, took an active part in the work of the 43rd session of the General Conference. At the meeting of the Communication and Information Commission, O.Herasymiuk called for strengthening the coordination mechanisms of UNESCO's Intergovernmental Program “Information for All” and emphasized the importance of the International Program for the Development of Communication in supporting freedom of speech and protecting journalists.
The adoption of the resolution “UNESCO Emergency Assistance Program for Ukraine” was also an extremely important step. The aim of this program is to provide support to Ukrainian institutions in preserving cultural heritage and developing culture, education, science, and media in wartime conditions. The importance of the adopted document lies in the fact that it represents an important mechanism of international solidarity, which gives political weight to Ukraine's position in preserving and restoring Ukraine's cultural heritage, opens up access for our country to financial and technical resources for the restoration and reconstruction of damaged objects, ensures Ukraine's presence on the global humanitarian agenda, and strengthens the international legal basis for holding Russia accountable.
The 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference adopted another important initiative by Ukraine – the resolution proclaiming November 27 as the International Day of Engagement in Science for Sustainable Development.
An important event was Kyiv's official designation as a UNESCO City of Music and its accession to the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, which is an important international recognition of the musical heritage and contemporary potential of the Ukrainian capital.
Thus, the 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference demonstrated Ukraine's achievements and victories, which were the result of the long-term and coordinated work of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in particular, the Secretariat of the Ukrainian National Commission for UNESCO, the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to UNESCO, the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Uzbekistan, Ukrainian diplomatic missions abroad, relevant national institutions at all levels, as well as international partners in UNESCO member states. It also demonstrated that Ukraine's influence and position in the Organization have significantly strengthened and that it has taken its rightful place among UNESCO leaders.