Ukraine Opens to the United Kingdom: High-Level Visits Week Begins

On 10 November in Belfast, the High-Level Visits Week officially started as part of the Ukrainian Week in the United Kingdom 2025 (Open Ukraine: Week of Knowledge and Culture), strengthening UK-UA educational, scientific, and cultural ties.

The initiative is delivered by the Global Coalition of Ukrainian Studies (GCUS) under the patronage of First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska, together with the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Education, Science, and Sports. Support comes from the Ukrainian Institute, the Office of the President of Ukraine in Crimea, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the UK–Ukraine Twinning Initiative, and Cormack Consultancy Group.

‘The Ukrainian Week in the United Kingdom is our practical step to ensure the world sees and hears Ukraine without distortion, in the language of facts. Despite the war, our scientists continue their research, our artists create, and our youth study. We are grateful to our British partners for their solidarity at a time when our state is countering Russian aggression not only on the battlefield but also in the information space,’ emphasised Olga Budnyk, Adviser to the President of Ukraine on the President’s Fund.

Events run 10–13 November offline (following a series of online events on 3–9 November) at leading university venues — Queen’s University Belfast, the University of St Andrews, Cardiff University, the University of Cambridge, Birkbeck and Senate House. Meetings, lectures, exhibitions, and discussions will unite Ukrainian and British educators, researchers, artists, and diplomats. A unique element is the visit of a Ukrainian government delegation, which will visit the University of Cambridge for the first time since the full-scale invasion.

Thematic Days

• 10 November, Belfast / Queen’s University Belfast: Historical Memory and the Affirmation of Ukrainian Statehood.

• 11 November, St Andrews / University of St Andrews: Contemporary Ukrainian Culture.

• 12 November, Cardiff / Cardiff University: focus on Science, Technology and Innovation.
• 13 November, Cambridge & London (Birkbeck & Senate House): cultural events at the University of Cambridge (video address by First Lady Olena Zelenska) and a Twinning Conference at Birkbeck, followed by a closing reception and the signing of memorandums of cooperation between Ukrainian and British institutions in Senate House.

Why It Matters

Ukraine is currently defending its territorial integrity and the truth about itself in the global information space. Education and culture are our ‘soft power’, capable of rallying allies around Ukraine. The Ukrainian Week in the United Kingdom embodies a new wave of cultural diplomacy. It deepens academic contacts: the more the West knows about Ukraine’s real history, language, education, and culture, the fewer chances Russian disinformation has. Such cooperation creates opportunities for Ukrainian youth — from joint research projects to new study programmes and knowledge exchange.

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