The Cabinet of Ministers proposes to recognize Ukrainian identity as one of the priorities of state policy
The Cabinet of Ministers proposes to officially include the affirmation of Ukrainian national and civic identity in the list of principles of the state's domestic and foreign policy. The corresponding draft law No. 15326 has been registered in the Verkhovna Rada.
Why the government considers the changes necessary
Currently, the existing Law "On the Principles of Domestic and Foreign Policy" contains only a mention of national-patriotic education and does not define separate policy principles in the field of affirming Ukrainian national and civic identity. According to the authors of the draft law, the state's ability to counter internal and external threats is directly related to the level of national self-identification of citizens, their civic responsibility, and readiness to defend the country.
Therefore, state policy in this area should be based on three key directions: national-patriotic education, military-patriotic education, and civic education.
In particular, national-patriotic education forms a defensive consciousness and a sense of belonging to the Ukrainian nation, military-patriotic education prepares citizens for national resistance and enhances the prestige of military service, while civic education should develop competencies necessary for the responsible fulfillment of civic duties.
In view of this, there arose a need to amend the legislation.
What is proposed to be changed
The draft law provides for amendments to the Law "On the Principles of Domestic and Foreign Policy," which defines the strategic priorities of the state in various fields.
It is proposed to include the affirmation of Ukrainian national and civic identity in the list of principles of state policy.
In particular, in Article 3 of the law, after the provision on the comprehensive development and protection of the state language, it is proposed to add a norm on the affirmation of Ukrainian national and civic identity.
Also, in Article 10, it is proposed to update the approach to humanitarian policy. While the current law speaks about conducting national-patriotic education activities, the new version envisages a broader goal — promoting the affirmation of Ukrainian national and civic identity, defensive consciousness, civic resilience, and readiness for national resistance through national-patriotic education, military-patriotic education, and civic education.
Furthermore, in Article 11, which concerns foreign policy principles, it is proposed to supplement the provision on ensuring the national-cultural and linguistic needs of Ukrainians abroad with a norm on the formation and preservation of Ukrainian national and civic identity.
The government expects that the implementation of the law will result in strengthening Ukrainian national and civic identity, defensive consciousness, and civic resilience both among citizens of Ukraine and among Ukrainians abroad.
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