Check against delivery – Speech by Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe
Honourable Michael Falzon, Minister for Social Policy and Children’s Rights of Malta,
Her Excellency Mariana Betsa, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine,
Ambassadors,
Ms Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Special Envoy of the Council of Europe Secretary General on the Situation of Children of Ukraine,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Some numbers are hard to process.
Others are difficult to bear.
And then there are those that haunt you.
Nine children killed in a missile attack on a playground in Kryvyi Rih in April.
Three children wounded in a drone strike on a kindergarten in Kharkiv last week — the youngest, a little girl, just three years old.
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All she knows is war.
That little girl is why we are here today.
Because for every child like her, there are thousands more.
Thousands who were deported — and are still unaccounted for.
Thousands still displaced.
Many have lost years of education.
Far too many have lost homes, families, limbs — even their lives.
In just the past three months, the UN has reported a 200 percent increase in the number of Ukrainian children killed or wounded.
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That is why, at Ukraine’s request, the Consultation Group on the Children of Ukraine was created in November 2023.
To implement the Declaration on the Situation of the Children of Ukraine, adopted by Heads of State and Government as part of the Reykjavík Declaration.
And to bring answers to the most difficult questions:
How do we ensure the safe return of children to Ukraine from Council of Europe member States?
How do we prevent trafficking and exploitation during displacement?
What are the legal safeguards for guardianship across borders?
What does trauma-informed care look like across different systems?
How do we guarantee access to education for children on the move?
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We launched the Action Plan for Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction — now shifting from emergency support to long-term, sustainable care.
This includes building capacity in education, child protection, and trauma-informed services that can endure beyond the immediate crisis.
And now we have my Special Envoy on the Situation of Children of Ukraine, who is with us here today.
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Ukraine is the Council of Europe’s top priority.
And our work rests on three pillars:
First, the European Court of Human Rights.
Today, the Court will deliver its ruling in a major inter-state case covering the conflict since 2014.
Second, the Register of Damage — which has 40,000 claims to date.
Its next step is to launch a new category to document harm suffered by children — including their forcible transfer or deportation.
This work lays the foundation for the future Claims Commission and a full compensation mechanism.
And third, the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.
To ensure that those who bear the greatest responsibility in this war are held to account.
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When President Zelenskyy came here to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg just a few days ago to sign the agreement on establishing the Special Tribunal, he said:
“Justice must work so that war criminals have nowhere to hide — not in Europe, not anywhere.”
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Let us make this promise to all Ukrainian children — in Ukraine and across our member States.
To the millions who have lost years to this war.
For some, their entire young lives.
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Let me conclude by thanking the Maltese Presidency for supporting and co-organising this conference.
Thank you to all the representatives from government, international organisations, and civil society here today — including those who travelled from Ukraine.
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The mission to protect Ukraine’s children is too important to risk diluted impact or duplication.
Our strength lies precisely in our collective and co-ordinated response.
Your presence and commitment remind us that a society is measured not by its power — but by how it treats its children.
And that everything we are doing now is for the next generation.
We should never forget this!
Thank you.