The third Mariupol Forum held in Kyiv, Ukraine, focused on the constitutional identity of Ukraine and its alignment with the European integration process, especially amidst the ongoing war. The event was organised with the support of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, the OSCE Support Programme for Ukraine, and the EU/Council of Europe joint programme “Partnership for Good Governance”.

A pioneering training brought together for the first time representatives of Ukraine's police, prosecution, and judiciary from various regions. The training aimed to help these professionals identify, classify, and counteract hate speech in their work. By gathering different professional groups, this initiative broadened their perspectives and understanding of hate speech.

Legal professionals, representatives of non-banking financial organisations of the real estate sector, accountants and auditors attended four consecutive days of training sessions, organised by the Council of Europe with the support and collaboration of the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Republic of Moldova, to help them identify and report money laundering or terrorist financing. Each of the four sessions was tailored to the specifics of the profession and participants were guided by Council of Europe experts.

The Consultative Council of European Prosecutors collection of opinions, now available in Armenian, was presented in Yerevan, jointly with the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Armenia. The importance of the access to these Opinions was highlighted as they enable the country’s prosecutors to align their work with the standards of the Council of Europe, ensuring consistency within domestic legal systems.

Dialogue on gender-based violence was promoted through the innovative approach of a café discussion in Baku. The event gathered civil society members, legal professionals, and youth to exchange ideas and raise awareness about gender equality and international standards. Participants shared experiences and emphasised the need for systemic change to combat domestic violence.

Judges, prosecutors, and judicial representatives from the Eastern Partnership and Western Balkans regions gathered in Tirana to discuss women's access to justice. Key topics included combating technology-facilitated violence against women, Artificial Intelligence's impact on gender equality in judicial systems, and regional co-operation.

The Quick Response Mechanism (QRM) is a Partnership for Good Governance tool, by which the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) and other Council of Europe bodies may provide ad hoc legal and policy advice to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, linked to priority reforms on: strengthening justice, countering economic crime, promoting equality and non-discrimination and advancing women’s access to justice and combating violence against women.

At its 140th plenary session (held on 11-12 October 2024), the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe adopted, among others:

Armenia

• Joint Opinion of the Venice Commission and the Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law (DGI) of the Council of Europe on the draft amendments to the Judicial Code of Armenia (regarding judicial evaluations).
• Joint Opinion of the Venice Commission and the Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law (DGI) of the Council of Europe on the draft amendments to the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code concerning the collection of evidence without consent in criminal investigations.