(AGENPARL) – Fri 04 July 2025 Image
PRESS RELEASE
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
Ref. CG045(2025)
Ukraine’s Path to Post-War Good Democratic Governance Discussed at High-Level Dialogue in Lviv
Lviv, 4 July 2025 – The fourth session of the High-Level Dialogue on Good Democratic Governance in Ukraine took place on 3–4 July 2025 in Lviv to discuss progress and agree on further actions to improve the legal framework on multilevel governance and elections.
It brought together key Ukrainian stakeholders and the Council of Europe. The Ukrainian delegation headed by First Deputy Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament Oleksandr Korniyenko included Parliament members representing different political parties and factions/groups, including members of the Parliamentary Committee on State Building, Local Governance, Regional and Urban Development; senior officials from the Ministry for Communities and Territorial Development, including Deputy Minister Oleksiy Riabykin; representatives of the Central Election Commission led by its Chair Oleh Didenko; representatives of the four associations of local authorities, including Tetiana Yehorova-Lutsenko, President of the Ukrainian Association of Rayon and Oblast Councils, and Oleksandr Korinnyi, Chair of the Association of Amalgamated Territorial Communities and senior representatives of the Association of Ukrainian Cities and All-Ukrainian Association of Communities.
Participants highlighted the progress made in respect of strengthening the multilevel governance system in Ukraine, focusing on the update of the Decentralisation Reform Concept in light of wartime realities and EU integration, division of competences between the different levels of government, recovery of local self-government in de-occupied and frontline territories – including the transition from military to civilian administration – and the issue of the term of office of mandates of local elected representatives under martial law.
The Dialogue also provided a platform for a forward-looking and inclusive exchange on the legal and institutional preconditions for conducting democratic post-war elections in Ukraine. Ukrainian legislators, the Central Election Commission, and representatives of civil society and expert community engaged in constructive discussions on constitutional and legal preconditions for future elections, including related to the transitional period, necessary for calling, organising and conducting post-war elections. Participants explored further possible steps to improve the current electoral legislation in light of possible legal mechanisms and practical measures to ensure the integrity, inclusiveness, and security of the post-war electoral process.
The event was opened by Oleksandr Korniyenko; Claudia Luciani, Director of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe; and Louise Barton, Director of Committees of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
“Accession to the European Union is not only a strategic goal for Ukraine — it is also a matter of daily work to transform our institutions based on the principles of democracy, transparency, and accountability. We must lay the foundation for resilient multi-level governance, update electoral legislation, and ensure continuity of authority even under conditions of war. We value the support of the Council of Europe and our international partners on this challenging yet necessary path,” Oleksandr Korniyenko underlined.
Claudia Luciani, Director of the Congress, noted the importance of keeping a transparent and inclusive consultation process at regular and foreseen intervals in order to secure a format based on trust amongst all stakeholders. She also emphasised the complexity of some of the issues at hand such as the recovery of public governance in temporarily occupied territories and the need to consider them in the short-, medium- and long-term perspective in spite of the very volatile situation on the ground. She was pleased to register many consensual positions on fundamental strategic orientations concerning updating the decentralisation concept and the work on the division of competences between the different tiers of government. “The fundamental principles contained in the Charter of Local Self Government provide an excellent compass to inform and orient the choices of the Ukrainian authorities on multilevel governance,” she said.
Louise Barton, Director of Committees of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, highlighted that preparing for post-war elections is not only a legal and logistical undertaking, but also a democratic opportunity to restore public trust and rebuild the social contract between citizens and the state. She welcomed the proactive steps already taken by the Verkhovna Rada and the Central Election Commission, notably the elaboration of legislative proposals and assessment criteria to guide future elections. Reaffirming the Assembly’s long-term engagement, she stated: “The Parliamentary Assembly is proud to stand with Ukraine in this effort – before, during and after the elections – because we believe in Ukraine’s democratic future, and we know it is being shaped in rooms like this, by conversations like these, and by the commitment you demonstrate every day.”
The Dialogue also featured contributions from senior Ukrainian officials including Oleksiy Riabykin and Oleh Didenko.
“Decentralisation has served as a driving force for the development of communities. Over the course of 11 years of reform implementation, significant progress has been achieved: a new administrative-territorial set up has been established, the inter-budgetary relations system has been modernised, and communities have become more accountable and closer to inhabitants. However, this reform was conceived and implemented under peacetime conditions. The reality has changed following the full-scale invasion. Our current task is to preserve the achievements of the reform while at the same time providing communities with tools for further development and integration into the European system of governance,” Oleksiy Riabykin said.
Olena Shuliak, MP, Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning, stated: “We need to continue working on the implementation of the decentralisation reform, strengthening the capacity of communities, enhancing the involvement of civil society in local decision-making processes, and improving the exercise of citizens’ rights to participate in local self-government — particularly in the context of community recovery.”
Vitaliy Bezgin, MP, Chair of the Subcommittee on administrative and territorial structure and local self-government, underlined: “This year’s Dialogue differed significantly from previous ones: in addition to the traditionally strategic issues related to the continuation of decentralisation, we also delved into current challenges facing local self-government and even agreed on the next steps to address them — steps that received consensus from all sides.”
Tamila Tasheva, MP, Chair of the Parliamentary Subcommittee on the Restoration of State Authority and Local Self-Government in the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine, in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and the City of Sevastopol, noted: “It is necessary to develop a unified, systemic approach to both occupied and de-occupied territories — taking into account their specific characteristics, the experience of occupation, and the current state of local self-government. On the basis of the subcommittee I chair, together with the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, other state and non-state actors, and with the involvement of international partners, we will work on strategic solutions — particularly in relation to the restoration of Ukrainian governance, post-war elections, and responses to demographic and other changes caused by the occupation.”
Alina Zahoruiko, MP, Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Committee, Chair of the Parliamentary Sub-committee on Elections, Referenda and other Forms of Direct Democracy of the Parliamentary Committee on State Building, Local Governance, Regional and Urban Development noted that “the non-conduct of elections during the martial law is consistent with the Constitution of Ukraine. Hence, the key, but not the only, condition for preparing the post-war election process is the end of the martial law. Dialogue helps all participants find a flexible yet legitimate solution to the issues raised”.
Sergiy Vlasenko, MP, member of the faction of the All-Ukrainian Union “Bat’kivshchyna” in the ninth convocation of the Parliament of Ukraine, reiterated several times during the event that “any changes to the electoral legislation should take place exclusively with due consideration of international standards, primarily the recommendations of the Council of Europe and the OSCE”.
Oleh Didenko, Chair of the Central Election Commission, emphasised that since 2022, the Commission, in partnership with profile Parliamentary Committee, government institutions, and civil society organisations, has been actively working on updating the electoral legislation and implementing practical measures to electoral processes in response to the consequences of the Russian war of aggression. He stressed that “legislation for post-war elections should establish clear procedures and action algorithms for competent authorities, ensuring coordinated planning, adequate financing of electoral needs, and effective responses to security and other risks that could undermine the free expression of the will.” At the same time, the preparation of legislative proposals is complemented by practical measures that the Central Election Commission is already implementing on an ongoing basis, particularly in the areas of cybersecurity, updating information and analytical systems, and developing communication and training solutions to ensure the proper organisation of post-war elections.
This Dialogue once again proved to be a timely and constructive platform for exchanging and planning for future reforms and for joint work of Ukrainian stakeholders and the Council of Europe in order to improve the legal framework in light of European standards, good practice and Ukraine’s path towards the EU accession.
The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is an institution of the Council of Europe, responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in its 46 member states. Composed of two chambers – the Chamber of Local Authorities and the Chamber of Regions – and three committees, it brings together 612 elected officials representing more than 130 000 local and regional authorities.
President of the Congress: Marc Cools (Belgium, ILDG), President of the Chamber of Local Authorities: Bernd Vöhringer (Germany, EPP/CCE), President of the Chamber of Regions: Cecilia Dalman Eek (Sweden, SOC/G/PD).
Political groups: Group of Socialists, Greens and Progressive Democrats (SOC/G/PD), Group of the European Peoples Party (EPP/CCE), Independent Liberal and Democratic Group (ILDG), European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR).
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