Panel Discussion “Training Professionals for Ukraine’s Future in the EU”

On May 8, at Karazin University, a panel discussion titled “Training Professionals for Ukraine’s Future in the EU” was held at the initiative of the Department of International Relations, within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Scientific and Practical Conference “International Relations in Global and Regional Dimensions.”

The event brought together representatives of the academic community, government bodies and local authorities, international governmental and non-governmental organizations, media, think tanks, and civil society organizations.

The goal of the discussion was to identify key challenges, objectives, and approaches to training professionals who meet EU qualification standards and can effectively contribute to Ukraine’s European integration process.

The moderator of the discussion was Natalia Vynnykova, Head of the Department of International Relations (Educational and Research Institute "Karazin Institute of International Relations and Travel Business", V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University). Speakers focused on priorities in the training of international relations professionals in the context of Ukraine’s European course.

Volodymyr Ohryzko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (2007–2009), political and public figure, welcomed the participants and outlined key components of the professional training of a modern diplomat.

Marek Tabor, Head of the Executive Education Office, College of Europe (Natolin Campus, Warsaw), shared insights on training civil service professionals from Ukraine to work in EU structures.

Maksym Kolinko, Deputy Head of Administrative Affairs and Head of the Department for Territorial and Local Development and International Relations of the Executive Office of the Kharkiv Regional Council, emphasized the importance of practical training in project management for specialists in international relations and European integration.

Yulia Bidenko, Associate Professor, expert of the EU Delegation to Ukraine, Team Europe Kharkiv initiative, and researcher at Carnegie Europe, addressed the challenges currently faced by practitioners in European integration and the need to enhance expertise with a specific focus on the Ukrainian context.

Oksana Zabuzova, Executive Director of the Kyiv School of Diplomatic Arts and Head of Etiquette, Protocol and Intercultural Communication Programs, stressed the need to enhance international specialists’ cultural awareness.

Oksana Holovko-Havrysheva, Associate Professor of the Department of European Law, Faculty of International Relations at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and Head of the Ukrainian Association of European Studies, presented specific requirements and expectations for experts in the field of European integration.

Olha Bolibok, Project Coordinator and Researcher at the Austrian Centre for Social Innovation (ZSI), gave an overview of the essential knowledge and skills required for specialists in European integration. She highlighted the importance of training professionals for all negotiation clusters of Ukraine’s EU accession process.

The discussion also featured contributions and experiences from:

• Anatolii Parfinenko (Associate Professor, Head of the Department of World Politics, Diplomacy, and Tourism, Karazin Institute of International Relations and Travel Business, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University),

• Iryna Yeremieieva (Associate Professor, Head of the Department of International Relations, University of Customs and Finance, Dnipro),

• Halyna Kuts (Professor of the Department of Political Science, Sociology, and Cultural Studies, H. S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University, Member of the Kharkiv Regional Council, Head of the Standing Committee on Science, Education, and Spirituality),

• Ivanna Makukh-Fedorkova and Ivan Osadtsa (Associate Professors, Department of International Relations and Public Communications, School of History, Political Science, and International Relations, Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University).

The event gathered representatives from higher education institutions and research organizations from Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania, including:

• State Biotechnological University

• Zaporizhzhia National University

• West Ukrainian National University

• Ivan Franko National University of Lviv

• National University “Ostroh Academy”

• Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University

• Odesa I. I. Mechnikov National University

• Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University

• Ivan Puluj Ternopil National Technical University

• University of Customs and Finance (Dnipro)

• Mykolas Romeris University, Vilnius, Lithuania

• Simon Kuznets Kharkiv National University of Economics

• V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University

• O. M. Beketov Kharkiv National University of Urban Economy

• Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University

• Chernihiv Institute of Information, Business, and Law of MNTU

• Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland

We sincerely thank all participants of the panel discussion and conference for their constructive, open, and practice-oriented dialogue on the challenges and prospects of training international relations professionals in the context of Ukraine’s European integration.