Only when the aggressor knows that there will be a tough response to aggression, he will not attack - Yusov

The optimistic truth is that peaceful, stable and secure life is possible when the Russian aggressor knows that the response to the attack will be tough and ruthless, and Ukraine is ready to fight back.

This was stated by Andriy Yusov, representative of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, on Tuesday, 27 May, at the expert roundtable "Ways to Strengthen Ukraine's Social Resilience: Values-Based Expertise". The event, held in Kyiv at the Interfax-Ukraine news agency's press centre, featured leading Ukrainian experts who discussed the most pressing issues of Ukraine's defence capability.

The roundtable was organised by the Conservative Platform, a joint project of the NGO "Foundation for the Promotion of Democracy" and the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Ukraine, in cooperation with the Ukrainian Security Club.

During the discussion, Andriy Yusov spoke about the key challenges facing the country and possible responses to them. He noted that despite the desire of many Ukrainians to return to their pre-war lives, in the coming years, and possibly decades, the former peaceful life will no longer exist, so Ukraine needs to constantly improve its security system.

"Ukraine is doomed to build a powerful security system, to make defence and protection of the country a top priority not only for the state but for the whole society.  One of the elements of this is the principle "Either in the Defence Forces or for the Defence Forces," Yusov said.

A separate component is the involvement of civil society in the intellectual dimension of war, the development of relevant solutions and reforms, an example of which Andriy Yusov called the expert roundtable "Ways to strengthen the social resilience of Ukraine: expertise based on values".

The event was a step towards uniting the efforts of civil society and military leaders to consolidate Ukrainian society in wartime and ensure the social foundations of Ukraine's defence capability.