Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission
22.4.2022
The Commission is saddened by the incident in the village of Hranitne in eastern Ukraine, which, according to reports, resulted in the death and injury of four Greek diaspora members.
The Commission understands that Ukrainian authorities extended their sincere condolences to the families of the victims, noting that there was no political or ethnic motive and that the incident was a crime under criminal law and that those responsible have been arrested and will be brought to justice.
Since 2016, U-LEAD (Ukraine — Local Empowerment, Accountability and Development programme) with Europe has supported the creation of the principle of local self-government, which is responsive to the needs of the local population including minorities located in the various regions of Ukraine, such as the Greek one.
Notably, in 2018-2019, U-LEAD with Europe along with the European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) implemented in Zakarpattya, Odesa and Chernivtsi regions the initiative ‘Diversity Management for Sustainable Economic Development’.
Moreover, under the U-LEAD programme Ukraine put in place local subsidies aimed to support areas with diverse population.
The EU and Ukraine have been regularly discussing the rights of persons belonging to national minorities and have agreed on the need to ensure the respect for these rights as enshrined in United Nations and Council of Europe conventions and related protocols[1].
- [1] https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2021/02/11/joint-press-statement-following-the-7th-association-council-meeting-between-the-eu-and-ukraine/