First meeting of Interdepartmental Working Group on the preservation of documentary evidence of the armed aggression against Ukraine summoned

On 2 December 2025, the first meeting of the Interdepartmental Working Group was held, established in accordance with Resolution No. 1303 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 10 October 2025 "On the establishment of an Interdepartmental Working Group on the coordination of measures to preserve documentary evidence of the russian federation's armed aggression against Ukraine". The meeting was held in a mixed format at the Central State Archive of Public Associations and Foreign Ukrainian Studies under the leadership of Anatolii Khromov, Head of the State Archives of Ukraine.

The purpose of the Interdepartmental Group is to coordinate the efforts of participants in preserving documentary evidence of the war, organising it, conducting an expert assessment of its value, and subsequently transferring it to the state archives for storage in the "Archive of the War for Ukraine's Independence."

Representatives of state authorities, civil society institutions and international partners joined the work of the IWG.

During the meeting, Anatoliy Khromov, Head of the State Archives of Ukraine, presented the composition of the IWG, outlined the main areas of activity and expected results, emphasising: "The task of archivists is not only to record the events of this war, but also to ensure their long-term and reliable preservation for future generations. All documents transferred to permanent state storage are cultural treasures and are subject to special protection."

First Deputy Head of the State Archival Service of Ukraine Tetiana Shevchenko thanked the participants for their willingness to join the joint work and stressed: "One of the priority tasks is to form a complete and organised array of documentary evidence through a well-established mechanism for transferring it to state storage. This will allow us to create a comprehensive and reliable evidence base that can be used in international courts, investigations, truth commissions, as well as in memorialisation and peacebuilding processes."

Following the discussion, priority tasks were identified for the IWG to work on before the next meeting, in particular, working with existing and potential funders to ascertain their intentions regarding the transfer of documentary evidence to state storage and developing mechanisms for interagency cooperation, such as organising joint events, training sessions and educational programmes in synergy with international organisations and civil society institutions.

During the meeting, the results of the joint project "The Past for the Future: Accountability for War Crimes against Archives" and the study "The Role of Archival Institutions in Transitional Justice" were presented.

There was also a ceremonial signing of an agreement on the transfer of documents to the "Archive of the War for Ukraine's Independence," concluded between the Central State Archive of Public Associations and Ukrainian Studies and the NGO "Fund for the Support of Fundamental Research."

Separately, the State Archives of Ukraine presented an initiative to create a single space for bringing together institutions that document and are potential contributors to the "Archive of the War for Ukraine's Independence." It is planned to develop a specialised website in the arch.gov.ua domain zone, which will serve as an integration platform and catalogue of organisations documenting the events of the War for Ukraine's Independence, providing convenient access to information for researchers, journalists and the public, and helping to avoid duplication of activities and increase the effectiveness of cooperation.

The meeting was the first step towards establishing sustainable and effective cooperation between state structures, civil society and international partners to preserve the documentary heritage of Ukraine's War of Independence. The work of the IWG is based on the following principles: "Today – preservation. Tomorrow – access to the truth. Forever – memory and national history."