Almost UAH 2 mln raised at annual charity fair, MFA head thank ambassadors for helping Ukraine

A meeting of Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha and his wife Tetiana Sybiha with heads of foreign diplomatic missions participating in the annual diplomatic charity fair Charity Fair 2025 took place in Kyiv region on Friday.

According to an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent, almost 30 ambassadors of foreign states took part in the event. As the Ukrainian foreign minister stressed, the main purpose of the meeting was to thank partners for the assistance provided to Ukrainians.

"My wife and I organized this together. This is a very important event, because Ukraine knows how to value help and knows how to give thanks. We value the contribution of each of our partners for any assistance provided to us during the full-scale invasion. That is why my wife and I decided to gather the heads of foreign missions accredited in Ukraine who last year took part in a charity event dedicated specifically to raising funds to support children, our military, rehabilitation centers and other areas that are currently extremely necessary for Ukrainians," Sybiha said.

Tetiana Sybiha called this project especially important for her. She also said that the International Women’s Club and the Association of Spouses of Ukrainian Diplomats were involved in fundraising. The foreign minister’s wife recalled that the project has been running for the third year in a row.

"The idea emerged in 2023, when the military approached us and we tried to collect assistance for their humanitarian needs. At that time, only five countries joined; in 2024, there were already 25 countries, and now we had 28 participants. But each time, the amount raised increases fivefold. This year, we raised UAH 1.7 million. The funds were distributed for humanitarian needs, for children in the frontline zone and for our military. Today, this is an opportunity for us to thank everyone and report on where every hryvnia went, as well as to motivate other embassies to join next year," she said.

The Ukrainian foreign minister and his wife presented letters of gratitude to a number of diplomats for their support, separately noting Chinese Charge d’Affaires Ma Shengkun for the largest contribution.

A separate element of the program was the demonstration to foreign diplomats of achievements of Ukraine’s defense industry, in particular unique aerial and ground unmanned systems Skyfall and Ratel.

The event was attended by heads of diplomatic missions, including ambassadors of Austria, Azerbaijan, Argentina, Brazil, China, Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Pakistan, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia and Turkiye, as well as charges d’affaires of Armenia, Georgia, Iraq and Poland, and the president of the International Women’s Club of Kyiv.

Military personnel were also present at the event. Head of the communications department of the 21st Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Major Serhiy Dibrov, and head of the brigade’s armored service, Major Maksym Horbatiuk, thanked foreign diplomats for their support for Ukraine’s Defense Forces.

As reported, at the end of November, at the initiative of the wife of the Ukrainian foreign minister, Tetiana Sybiha, head of the Association of Spouses of Ukrainian Diplomats, and with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the annual diplomatic charity fair Charity Fair 2025 was held at Ukraine’s Expo Center.