On September 17, 2013, the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine of the Ministry on Foreign Affairs of Ukraine hosted the International Conference “The Role of international organisations in Ukraine’s national security”. The conference was organised by the Razumkov Ukrainian Centre of economic and politic research, in cooperation with the NATO Liaison Office in Ukraine under the patronage of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, and also with support from the Embassies of Norway, Poland and Switzerland in Ukraine and the Ministry of Defence of Estonia.

The conference was dedicated to discussing issues pertaining to the situation with and effectiveness of the functioning of global and regional safety systems, existing formats of international cooperation, and also ways to deepen cooperation between Ukraine and international organisations in aims of strengthening regional safety.
Within the framework of the first Plenary Discussion: “Ukraine and International Organisations: responding to frequent threats and challenges”, the Secretary General of GUAM presented a report dedicated to GUAM’s activities. In his speech, the Secretary General spoke about cooperation within the GUAM and GUAM+ formats, priority projects and cooperation programmes, primarily in fields such as trade, transport and combating organised crime.

The report paid special attention to Ukraine’s role in the Organization’s formation and development, as well as GUAM’s role in improving stability and fostering integration in South-eastern Europe.

The Conference also involved representatives of other international organisations, including the OSCE, the UN, NATO, the EU, the Council of Europe, the Energy Community, the heads of diplomatic missions (including Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Russia, Poland, Switzerland, Sweden), and embassy staff of the UK, Lithuania, Estonia, China, Slovenia and Turkey. Representatives of legislative and executive power in Ukraine also attended, as well as leading experts from domestic and foreign analytical centres, and media representatives.