News & Analysis Policy Briefs

Ukraine: Emerging as a “Textbook” Case for Advancing Women, Peace and Security during Active War

March 25, 2026

• Ana Lejava

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As the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) concludes—under a renewed global focus on advancing gender equality and strengthening the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action—it is critical to reflect on Ukraine’s trajectory during the fourth year of full-scale invasion and what has been its harshest winter to date. Ukraine has emerged as a global “textbook case” for advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda despite continuing to experience devastating active war. The country has achieved unprecedented milestones in elevating women’s leadership in peace and security: almost doubling the number of female combatants within the armed forces, issuing the world’s first update of a National Action Plan (NAP) 1325 during wartime, and the pioneering of interim reparations for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). This progress is commendable and serves as an important reminder that WPS is not merely a policy on paper, but a practical, impactful tool for increasing security and stability.

However, more is needed to turn these efforts into a full success story. A critical implementation gap persists. Despite the indispensable role of women leaders across civil society and the private sector, official development finance and recovery funding are largely underutilised in advancing gender equality outcomes, and women continue to be largely excluded from official peace negotiations. 

This brief, informed by the insights of Ukrainian women leaders, outlines Ukraine’s recent domestic and international progress from a WPS perspective and identifies the key pressure points where sustained international political support and targeted donor funding are essential. Closing these gaps will be decisive in ensuring that Ukraine’s recovery and peace processes are not only resilient but also just, inclusive, and sustainable.

I. Interim Reparations and Transitional Justice: Ukraine is currently redefining global transitional justice standards and processes by investigating war crimes and delivering reparations in “real-time” rather than waiting for the war to end. The urgency, dedication, and coordinated efforts by public officials, survivors, and civil society leaders are shifting the narrative from justice being a costly post-conflict undertaking to a strategic necessity of accountability, without which sustainable recovery is untenable.

• Wins and Milestones:
  • Interim Reparations: Initiated in 2023 by the Global Survivors Fund, in partnership with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine and the Government Commissioner on Gender Equality Policy, the landmark legislation, the Bardina Law enables the delivery of urgent interim reparations for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). To date, over 1,080 survivors of CRSV have been identified and provided with immediate support, setting a global precedent for survivor-centered justice during active hostilities and war. 
  • Legal Victories: Sustained advocacy by the Ukrainian government and civil society led the UN Secretary General’s report on CRSV to include Russia on the warning list of countries committing sexual violence in conflict—the first time this category was utilized (for Russia and Israel). Additionally, on March 12th, 2026 the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, operating under the Human Rights Council in Geneva, concluded that the deportation and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children by Russian authorities, as well as enforced disappearances, amount to crimes against humanity.
  • Precedent for Aggression: On June 25, 2025, the Council of Europe formally launched the process for the creation of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression (STCA), with the mandate to prosecute senior political and military leaders for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. The process has now moved to adopting the Enlarged Partial Agreement (EPA)—the legal framework required to operationalize the tribunal—with Estonia becoming the first country to adopt the convention. Sustained political support and ensuring the swift adoption of the EPAs are crucial steps in delivering justice and accountability for Ukraine. 
• Where More Work is Needed:
  • Financing Justice: Urgent action is required to design concrete financial mechanisms for interim reparations, reskilling, and economic empowerment programs for survivors of CRSV. Initial funding for the interim-reparations scheme under the Bardina law, provided by Ukraine’s international partners, is now exhausted. To sustain these efforts, Ukraine needs additional financial commitments and, eventually, a political decision to utilize assets from the aggressor state. 
  • Supporting Survivor Networks: Grassroots survivor networks like SEMA Ukraine and Numo, Sestry! must receive sustained support for community building, which is vital for survivor reintegration and healing. Furthermore, greater effort is needed to combat the persistent underreporting of war crimes, especially CRSV, which is frequently attributed to stigma, trauma, and a lack of trust in reporting mechanisms.
  • Domestic Capacity to Prosecute War Crimes: With over 200,000 registered war crimes and only 10,000 prosecutors, the international community must support Ukraine’s capacity to investigate and function. Initiatives like the Atrocity Crimes Advisory (ACA) should be supported and scaled to provide Ukrainian prosecutors with the necessary technical surge capacity.
  • The “Shame List”: Ahead of the release of the UN report on CRSV (expected in spring or summer 2026), the international community must demand Russia’s immediate transfer from the “warning list” to the official “Shame List.” Russian armed forces and affiliated groups are already cited in the UN Secretary-General’s report on children and armed conflict for violations in Ukraine, including “killing, maiming, and attacks on schools and hospitals.” Listing a permanent member of the UN Security Council on a shame list for countries accused of committing CRSV would further underscore Russia’s moral failure and, from a practical standpoint, bar it from UN peacekeeping operations.

II. Wartime and Post-Conflict Recovery: Ukrainian women are the primary drivers of the wartime economy and humanitarian response. With the labor force strained by mobilization, women are also increasingly occupying non-traditional roles in critical sectors like energy, construction and agriculture. At the same time, women still constitute the majority of those internally displaced or refugees, and represent over 70% of social service recipients. 

• Wins and Milestones:
  • Integration of Grassroots Expertise: The 71-member CSO consultative mechanism under the Platform for Ensuring Gender Mainstreaming and Inclusion in Recovery, along with the 25 regional coalitions have been successfully localizing the NAP 1325, ensuring that grassroots expertise is integrated into municipal recovery efforts. 
  • International Gender Alliance: The Gender Alliance for Ukraine’s Recovery, launched at 2024 Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) in Berlin, is now 100+ members strong. In a promising development, the German government has agreed to fund a dedicated Secretariat to coordinate the Alliance’s work and improve the monitoring of gender-related financing, cooperation, and policy advocacy. 
  • EU Support and Accession: On February 4, 2026, the European Union (EU) and UN Women Ukraine established the Gender Equality Facility (GEF). This EU-backed initiative will provide technical assistance to the Government of Ukraine, helping them integrate gender equality into public policy and recovery planning, and supporting Ukraine’s path toward EU membership, aligning with European and UN standards and accelerating progress towards UN Sustainable Development Goals. (SDGs). 
• Where More Work is Needed:
  • URC 2026 Strategy: International pressure is essential to ensure the upcoming Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) in Gdansk, Poland, moves beyond conversations about inclusion to concrete deliverables, such as mainstreaming gender across all recovery priorities and earmarking funding for women’s organizations, which are currently facing a decrease in support. One of the suggestions is to create a Multi-Donor Fund for gender-inclusive recovery and a blended finance facility for women-led SMEs, which can serve as a critical step for sustainable economic reintegration.
  • The Funding Gap for Gender Equality: Only 5% of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and 27% of humanitarian aid currently include gender equality objectives. Major financial packages and private sector investments still lack rigorous gender markers. Norway and Germany are showing promising policy innovations to increase their ODA commitment to gender equality, while Switzerland is a best practice example for integrating gender into humanitarian aid, according to the OECD.
  • Care Infrastructure & EU Accession: While the institutional framework for care infrastructure exists via the EU accession and enlargement documents, more political will is required to implement these requirements on the ground.

III. Inclusive Peace Processes and Sustainability: As Government Commissioner for Gender Policy, Dr. Kateryna Levchenko stated, “If we do not define what just peace is, others will define it for us.” It is crucial that peace processes at both the political and societal levels include the voices of women leaders in decision-making roles, CSOs, and WPS working groups.

• Wins and Milestones:
  • Diplomatic Tools: The OSCE utilized the Moscow Mechanism to investigate possible contraventions of OSCE commitments, violations of human rights and International Humanitarian Law (IHL), and potential war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the arbitrary deprivation of liberty of Ukrainian civilians, treatment of Ukrainian POWs, and the forcible transfer or deportation of children from Russian-controlled parts of Ukraine to the Russian Federation. This process provides crucial, unbiased evidence to inform negotiations and prevent Russia from escaping impunity via a political settlement.
  • Women Fighters & Veteran Integration: In collaboration with the Ukrainian NGO Arm Women Now and in partnership with NATO’s WPS Special Representative, female-specific uniforms, body armour, and other non-lethal equipment have been developed and distributed to women serving in Ukraine’s armed forces. This effort underscores the ongoing need for gender-sensitive adaptation to build a more inclusive military. With over 70,000 women now serving, representation in the officer corps has risen significantly—from 4% in early 2023 to 21% today. As these service members transition back to civilian life, robust, gender-responsive veteran reintegration strategies will be essential to prevent patriarchal backlash and sustain these gains.
  • Women-led Efforts to Foster Peace: Women-led CSOs are actively defining “just peace.” Organizations like JurFem, the Ukrainian Women’s Fund, and others have fostered social cohesion and a unified platform for women leaders to influence the peace process. Furthermore, the GIWPS-supported high-level convenings have developed peace agreement priorities through a cohesive Ukraine Compact.
• Where More Work is Needed:
  • Women Missing from the Table: While former Deputy Prime Minister Stefanyshina and current Prime Minister Svyrydenko have participated in high-level negotiations with the United States, no woman is a member of the official negotiating team present at trilateral talks between Russia, the United States, and Ukraine. Two actions are critical: first, to rectify this by including a qualified woman military or public servant who would add value and perspective to the negotiating team; and second, to establish a semi-formal CSO consultative mechanism that works closely with the negotiating team, as suggested by the Government Commissioner for Gender Policy and CSO leaders.
  • Conditional Funding: International funding for implementing any peace agreement should be contingent on the meaningful and documented participation of women in the negotiations and in the implementation of the agreement. 
  • No Amnesty for War Crimes: International partners must remain steadfast in the demand for no amnesty for war crimes. Failure to prosecute the crime of aggression now will permanently normalize it and invite further global instability. UN policy frameworks and international law must be considered during the negotiation process so that the question of amnesty is not used as a bargaining chip. Several UNSC resolutions are clear on this matter, especially UNSC Resolution 2106, adopted in 2013, which stresses “the need for the exclusion of sexual violence crimes from amnesty provisions in the context of conflict resolution processes.” This is crucial not only for preventing further violence in conflict but also for achieving a dignified and just recovery for survivors.

Below are the four urgent policy recommendations for implementing WPS in Ukraine: 

1. To International Donors (EU, G7, IFIs): Establish a sustainable financing mechanism for interim reparations and survivor support, including a dedicated multi-donor fund and a clear pathway toward the lawful use of immobilized Russian state assets. Funding should also prioritize long-term economic empowerment and reskilling programs for survivors of CRSV.
2. To the United Nations & Member States: Strengthen accountability and global norms by formally transferring Russia from the CRSV “warning list” to the official “Shame List” in the next UN Secretary-General report and maintain a firm commitment to no amnesty for war crimes, including CRSV, in any negotiated settlement. This should be paired with increased political and technical support to scale Ukraine’s prosecutorial capacity. 
3. To Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) Co-Chairs & International Donors: Move from commitments to implementation by institutionalizing gender-responsive recovery financing at URC 2026, including the creation of a multi-donor fund for gender-inclusive recovery and a blended finance facility for women-led SMEs. All major recovery and investment packages should be required to include robust gender markers and dedicated funding streams for women’s organizations.
4. To the Government of Ukraine, OSCE, and International Mediators (US, EU): Ensure women’s meaningful participation in peace processes by appointing women in military or government roles to official negotiation teams and establishing a formalized CSO consultative mechanism linked to political negotiations. International partners should condition political and financial support for any peace agreement on the documented inclusion of women in both negotiation and implementation phases.