Ukrainian Institute opens its first representative office in Germany

The Ukrainian Institute, a public institution of cultural diplomacy, opens its office in Germany.

The main goal is to improve knowledge and understanding of Ukraine in German society, the state's foreign ministry says.

The opening was made possible thanks to a tripartite partnership between the Ukrainian Institute, the Goethe Institute and the Open Society Fund with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in Germany.

The representative office of the Ukrainian Institute was officially opened on March 29 in Berlin with the participation of the Ukrainian ambassador and about 300 guests. Politicians, journalists, representatives of the public and cultural sectors of Ukraine and Germany attended the ceremony.

"The opening of the representative office of the Ukrainian Institute of Foreign Affairs in Germany is a landmark event for our bilateral relations and evidence of the growing influence of Ukrainian cultural diplomacy in Europe.

With my German colleague Annalena Baerbock, we welcome this historic step, which will allow German society to better understand Ukraine and Ukrainians.

We strive to strengthen interaction not only between governments, but also between institutions, scientists, artists, public figures, business, expert circles. This lays the foundations of strong and strategic relations," Ukraine's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, says.

In 2023, the representation team is preparing a series of events in Germany. In particular:

• concerts and presentations of musical groups in Hamburg,
• exhibition of Ukrainian art in Dresden,
• theater productions in Cologne,
• discussions in Wiesbaden.

The team consists of 4 people who were chosen through a competition. The representative office is headed by Kateryna Ritz-Rakul – a specialist in modern literature, translator, author, cultural manager with many years of experience in Berlin.