On September 6, 2023, Svitlana Musiiaka, NAKO’s Head of Research and Policy, took part in a closed meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and civil society.
"Civil society organisations are a vital and vibrant part of any democracy. Glad to see these groups well-represented in Ukraine and hear about their dedication to Ukraine’s future as a free and prosperous member of the Euro-Atlantic community," Blinken wrote.
Svitlana Musiiaka emphasised civil society’s role in reforming the defence and security sector, particularly in fighting corruption. Because during the full-scale invasion, the civil society did not curtail its activity – even in such a sensitive area as defence and security; quite the opposite – it only enhanced it. One such accomplishment of joint efforts of the government, civil society and international partners is the implementation of the Ukroboronprom reform, which was finally launched in the summer of 2023. Notably, the transformation of it into a joint-stock company and implementation of the new standards following the best OECD practices.
Other participants included Mykhailo Zhernakov, Chairman of DEJURE Foundation’s Board and Vitaliy Shabunin, AntAC’s Head of Board.
This is the third time in the last four years that NAKO has participated in such meetings with civil society during the visit of the US Secretary of State.