The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, in partnership with the International Renaissance Foundation and the Ukrainian Institute, organised a visit to Ukraine for a group of journalists from ASEAN countries from 8 to 12 September. The delegation included five representatives from leading media outlets of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand.

The visit continued the MFA's systematic work to engage audiences in Africa, Latin America, and Asia by building sustained ties with local media, and was carried out as part of the "Ukraine – South-East Asian States" communication strategy.

In Kyiv, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Maryana Betsa discussed with the journalists the development of relations between Ukraine and ASEAN countries, the return of Ukrainian children illegally abducted and deported by Russia, Ukrainian drone innovations, and Ukraine's role in supporting global food security, including amid Russian attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure.

Colonel Oleh Shuvarskyi, Head of the Mine Action Directorate – Deputy Head of the Main Directorate for Mine Action, Civil Protection and Environmental Safety of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, spoke about Ukraine's progress in humanitarian demining, the use of innovative technologies, and environmental monitoring of cleared territories.

Representatives of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Polina Ivashchenko, Deputy Director – Acting Director of the Rural Development Department, and Oleh Vitiuk, Deputy Director of the Rural Development Department overseeing its digital direction, discussed the results and prospects of economic cooperation and Ukraine's digital and financial tools to support farmers affected by the war.

With Daria Herasymchuk, Advisor to the President of Ukraine – Commissioner for Children's Rights and Child Rehabilitation, participants discussed the impact of Russia's war on children in Ukraine and the return of Ukrainian children abducted and deported by Russia.

On 8 September, journalists worked on-site at the location of a Russian drone strike on the "We – Ukraine" TV channel building, where they spoke with general producer Yuriy Suhak. Journalists also documented the aftermath of numerous Russian attacks in the Lukianivka neighborhood of the capital.

With representatives of the Centre for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, UNITED24 Media, VoxCheck, Truth Hounds, Resilient Ukraine, and the MFA's Strategic Communications Unit, journalists discussed international perceptions of Ukraine, Russia's use of disinformation as a tool of hybrid aggression, and Ukrainian approaches to countering Russian disinformation narratives and FIMI.

With representatives of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, the National University of "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy", as well as the ADASTRA and European Policy Institute in Kyiv (EPIK) think tanks, participants discussed the development of ASEAN-focused research in Ukraine, the impact of Russia's full-scale invasion on the Ukrainian education system, and Ukraine's experience in European integration, innovation, and reform that could benefit other countries.

Experts from the Center for Civil Liberties, together with Ukrainians who witnessed crimes committed by Russian occupying forces, briefed journalists on Russia's systematic violations of international humanitarian law and human rights, the situation in the temporarily occupied territories, and the conditions of detention, ill-treatment, and torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war and illegally held civilians.

A separate meeting with Crimea experts addressed human rights violations in the temporarily occupied territories, the illegal detention of political prisoners, and threats to the preservation of the unique identity of Ukraine's indigenous peoples in temporarily occupied Crimea.

At the "Ukrainian House" National Center, journalists visited an exhibition dedicated to Ukrainian classical composer Borys Liatoshynsky and spoke with the Ukrainian Institute's team about the role of cultural diplomacy during wartime. Yevhen Klopotenko and Olena Braichenko discussed Ukrainian cuisine as a component of national identity and a tool for promoting Ukraine abroad.

At the Superhumans war trauma center in Lviv, participants learned about modern approaches to rehabilitation and prosthetics. Representatives of Suspilne Ukraine and the Lviv Media Forum spoke about the challenges faced by the media in wartime and the experience of Ukrainian journalists. During a meeting with youth activists and civil society representatives, participants discussed young people's vision for Ukraine's future, challenges in education amid the war, and youth initiatives, veterans' projects, and charitable campaigns.

First Deputy Mayor of Lviv Andriy Moskalenko told journalists about the city's adaptation to the challenges of the full-scale war, the consequences of Russian shelling, and the development of international partnerships. At Lychakiv Cemetery, journalists, together with the Lviv City Council team, paid tribute to the memory of fallen Ukrainians.

Olena Odynoka, Deputy Director for International Cooperation at the Ukrainian Book Institute, and Olha Movchan, Director of the Publishers Forum NGO – the organiser of BookForum, spoke about Ukrainian book publishing, the promotion of Ukrainian culture abroad, and the consequences of Russian attacks on book infrastructure.

The visit was organised as part of the "EU–Ukraine Strategic Communications Capacity Building Initiative" project, funded by the European Union.