The event was attended by MPs of Ukraine, the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Parliamentary Secretariat, representatives of the State Protection Department of Ukraine, NGOs and the media.

At the beginning of the conversation, the Chairman of the Committee on Freedom of Speech, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, thanked the Armed Forces of Ukraine for enabling the Parliament and the media to work fully.

He noted that the issue of journalists' access to better coverage of the work of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has been one of the Committee's priorities since the beginning of his term as Chairman of the Committee. 

"It immediately became clear that we need to work on the aspect of journalists' coverage of the Parliament's work more qualitatively, as there is an ongoing discussion about the efficiency and quality of work. And I am extremely grateful to the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Apparatus, who became allies in persuading our special services and security services (to resolve this issue — ed.)," said Yaroslav Yurchyshyn.

Ruslan Stefanchuk, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, emphasized that today is the time for important changes in this area. But the basis for these changes should be "a professional discussion. It is not a political, but a state discussion, where all approaches should be provided."

For his part, the Chief of Staff of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Viacheslav Shtuchnyi, emphasized that the security aspect for journalists is of priority importance in this issue, as the Parliament has a rather limited number of places in shelters. And the Secretariat, according to him, is actively developing options for solving this problem.

He also recalled that a meeting with media representatives had recently taken place to discuss the possibility of "returning to the practice that was in place during COVID-19, where 20-30 media representatives could be present at a time, as there would be a plenary session."

For her part, Ukrainian MP Iryna Gerashchenko also thanked the organizers of the roundtable for raising the important issue of covering the activities of the Parliament. According to her, this issue should be resolved in order to show firsthand the work of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, where "an important process is taking place — and this always distinguishes Ukraine from russia."

MP Dmytro Razumkov, in particular, emphasized the importance of the topic and thanked the Committee for its activity in this area. He emphasized the importance of a balanced representation of all media in the Parliament, "really in terms of their recognition and readability and influence on the minds and perceptions of people in Ukraine and abroad." "It should include representation of Ukrainian media and media that will represent foreign publications in order to convey the position of the Parliament."

The head of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, Serhiy Tomilenko, welcomed the openness of the Parliament, especially on the eve of World Freedom of Speech Day. In particular, he noted that previously the issue of accreditation was not fully regulated, which was used by many unauthorized persons as a channel of access to the Parliament. "We are ready, as a professional community, to help with the criterion, with certain controversial issues," said Tomilenko.

Svitlana Ostapa, the Chair of the Supervisory Board of the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine, spoke about the idea of creating an association of parliamentary journalists. According to her, such an initiative should come from media representatives, so that journalists themselves can create an initiative group, develop rules, a charter, and resolve other issues necessary for this.

"Creating an association is a very difficult path, although it is a very good idea. If everything goes well and there is a possibility for at least 30 journalists to work in the Parliament, it will be possible to organize it," she said.

Olha Chervakova, the Director of the Department for Interaction with Public Authorities of Suspilne Ukraine, also emphasized that the discussion about accreditation had been going on for several years. But today, in the new conditions of war, the issue of national security is especially important.  "The issue is that it is up to journalists themselves to decide who is a journalist and who is a "non-journalist" within their community. "We are now coming close to the issue of self-regulation and co-regulation. It is very important: there should be a co-regulatory body," emphasized Olga Chervakova.

Summarizing the results of the discussion, the Chief of Staff of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Viacheslav Shtuchnyi, expressed hope that "we will see journalists in the corridors of the Parliament in the near future."