On 25 March, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Mariana Betsa met with a delegation of the Council of Europe Secretariat. The Organizations' representatives arrived in Ukraine for consultations as part of the preparation of the annual report by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe on the human rights situation in the territories of Ukraine temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation.

Mariana Betsa expressed gratitude to the Council of Europe for its consistent support for Ukraine. She also noted the leadership of Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset and the clear priority given by the Organization to addressing the consequences of Russian aggression. The Deputy Minister thanked the Council of Europe for its efforts to hold the Russian Federation accountable, in particular with regard to the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the preparation of the upcoming report by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe. The Ukrainian side positively noted the substance of the 2025 report, which devoted particular attention to Russia’s violations against Ukrainian children, including unlawful transfers, deportation, indoctrination, and forced conscription into the Russian military, as well as Russia’s crimes against prisoners of war and civilian detainees, including torture, arbitrary detention, and deprivation of fundamental human rights and freedoms.

In the context of preparing the next report, Mariana Betsa emphasized the need for more in-depth coverage of Russia’s systematic criminal policy in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, in particular forced integration, passportization, suppression of dissent, violent assimilation, and the destruction of Ukrainian identity. The Deputy Minister also stressed the need to more broadly reflect the long-term humanitarian consequences of the temporary occupation, including demographic changes, trauma, family separation, and loss of access to education in the Ukrainian language.

During the meeting, Mariana Betsa also drew special attention to the situation in the temporarily occupied city of Enerhodar, emphasizing in particular the systematic nature of Russia’s human rights violations.

“Russia is unlawfully detaining civilians, including employees of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. These actions are a tool of pressure on the plant’s personnel aimed at forcing them to cooperate with the occupation administration and Rosatom, which constitutes a gross violation of international law and undermines nuclear safety at the facility,” Mariana Betsa stated.

Mariana Betsa called on the Council of Europe to give special attention to securing the release of civilian hostages, children, and prisoners of war unlawfully detained by the aggressor state.

The parties also discussed further cooperation within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine, as well as other areas of strategic partnership.