Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani is on a mission to Kyiv today to participate in the informal meeting of EU Foreign Ministers, organized to mark the fourth anniversary of the Bukha massacre.
Before the start of the meeting, EU Foreign Ministers attended commemorations organized by the Ukrainian authorities to pay tribute to the victims of the atrocities perpetrated by the Russian army in Bukha, Irpin, and Borodyanka in March 2022. According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, 73 civilians were killed during the brief period of Russian occupation of the area, with a further 105 reported killings.
The meeting’s agenda includes a short introductory session and a second segment focusing on the issue of ascertaining the Russian Federation’s responsibility for crimes perpetrated against Ukraine, also in light of the work of the Compensation Commission and the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. The third session will focus on the situation on the ground at the end of the fourth year of conflict, with the aim of optimizing European support to Ukraine in the military, energy, and infrastructure sectors. The issue of war veterans will be the subject of the fourth and final session, which will analyse the main challenges related to the reintegration of former Ukrainian combatants into civilian life and the potential role the EU can play in promoting social cohesion and economic inclusion, especially in a post-conflict context.
For Minister Tajani, the mission is also an opportunity to express his support to the Italians living in Ukraine, through a series of meetings organized with the staff of the Embassy in Kiev, as well as with the communities of officials at international organizations and Italian entrepreneurs working in the country.
