STATEMENT

by H.E. Dr. Andrii Melnyk, LL.M.,

Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Ukraine

to the United Nations

at the Security Council Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security

(17 June 2026)

Mr. President,

Distinguished Members of the Security Council,

Ukraine is grateful to the Presidency of Colombia for convening this open debate and  for bringing before the Security Council a truth that should have become self-evident long ago: peace cannot be built when women are expected merely to endure the consequences of war, while being denied their rightful place in shaping their respective decisions.

The Women, Peace and Security agenda is no longer an abstraction for Ukraine. It has already become an integral part of our daily life.

It embodies faces of women who courageously defend Ukraine in uniform, who treat the wounded after Russia’s missile and drone strikes, who document daily war crimes, support survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, who search for unlawfully deported children, for the return prisoners of war, and hold entire communities together while Russia seeks to destroy Ukraine’s Statehood.

That is the reason why Ukraine rejects an illusion that women’s participation in peace and security processes can wait until after the war, as though justice, equality and human dignity were luxuries reserved for more peaceful times.

If women are included only after the war is over, then the war itself will have already shaped the terms of peace; and if peace is shaped without those who carry such a profound share of its human cost, such peace will never be just.

Mr. President,

In February this year, Ukraine, in the middle of the war, adopted its third National Action Plan until 2030 on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1325. This action plan was developed through an inclusive process involving central authorities, regional administrations, civil society and, most importantly, women’s organizations.

It embeds the gender perspective into security and defense policy, recovery, justice, reparations, reintegration, support for survivors and decision-making at all levels.

Ukraine is proving that Women, Peace and Security agenda has become a practical instrument of governance even in these dark times of Russia’s war of annihilation.

Every day Ukraine is implementing its best international practices under this agenda, even under Russian missiles, drones and bombs.

Mr. President,

The real question is whether political institutions, security establishments and international mediation frameworks are ready to share power, resources and responsibility with women, rather than symbolically inviting them to bless decisions already taken elsewhere.

That is why Ukraine continues to back its UN commitments with concrete policies. Together with UN Women this year Ukraine launched the Alliance for Gender-Responsive and Inclusive Recovery, which now brings together more than 110 members – governments, international organizations, financial institutions; businesses and civil society.

Mr. President,

Today, more than 75,000 women serve in Ukraine’s Armed Forces, of whom more than 55,000 are active-duty military personnel. More than 11,000 of them are military officers. They serve as commanders, snipers, and combat medics on the most dangerous sections of the front. For their personal bravery, 1,705 women have already been awarded state honors, and five have received the highest title — the Hero of Ukraine.

All these brave women do not need ceremonial praise once a year; what they need are more efficient institutions worthy of their courage, they need more equal opportunities, proper equipment, access to leadership, protection from discrimination and a real voice in shaping security and defense policy.

And that is our goal.

For Ukraine, the Women, Peace and Security agenda is not a side chapter of the ongoing peace process; it is one of the foundations of a comprehensive, just and lasting peace that we try to achieve. And it will be impossible to achieve that peace without the leadership, participation and strong voices of women.

I thank you.