The Estonian delegation to the PACE presents in Strasbourg the story of a young Ukrainian who found his wings at an Estonian school
The Estonian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), headed by Kadri Tali, is organising a concert during the PACE summer session to tell the story of the young Ukrainian refugee pianist Havryil Sydoryk.
The concert, entitled “Music that Speaks Louder than Thousand Words”, reflects the experiences and traumatic events in the lives of many Ukrainian children now in Estonia. “Music is a universal medium that allows us to bring together different nations through shared experiences,” emphasises the head of the Estonian Delegation Kadri Tali.
The concert takes place at 1 p.m. on June 24 in the Lobby of the Committee of Ministers in Strasbourg. The piano concert is performed by Havryil Sydoryk, the Ukrainian-Estonian pianist who won the Estonian Television young classical musicians competition in 2025. The patron of the event is the President of the PACE Petra Bayr, while the Estonian Minister of Education and Research Kristina Kallas will say words of introduction. The head of the Ukrainian delegation to the PACE Mariia Mezentseva-Fedorenko and member of the Estonian delegation Eerik-Niiles Kross will also speak.
“The life of the young Ukrainian pianist Havryil Sydoryk took an unexpected turn after he fled the war. He now performs on great stages around the world on the strength of the education he received in Estonia,” said Tali. She added that the concert was dedicated to the lost children of Ukraine who have not only been removed from their families, but also their culture and roots. “We hope to use the concert to improve awareness of the situation of Ukrainian children and the young Ukrainian talents who live among us and need our support more than ever to keep their culture and identity alive. This is not just a national mission, but a moral obligation. It is not a question of choice, but of human rights,” she said.
The PACE Summer Session, which starts today, focuses on the protection of the rule of law and democracy. Today’s agenda includes presentations on election observation missions to Hungary and Bulgaria. As part of the Presidency of the Council of Europe, the Minister of State of Monaco Christophe Mirmand will speak to the Assembly. The Tuesday agenda includes the functioning of democratic institutions in Serbia, as well as the state of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in Iran. On Wednesday, the Minister of Education and Research Kristina Kallas will speak on protecting democracy from disruptions caused by AI. Members of parliament will also discuss eliminating gender stereotypes in the media, reports on silencing critical voices in Azerbaijan, functioning of democratic institutions in Georgia, and ensuring food security.
Other topics that will hopefully be added to the agenda include a discussion on the access of women to the court system, follow-up activities of the Chișinău Declaration, the fate of the Chinese political prisoner Jimmy Lai, the functioning of the Turkish court system and the suppression of the opposition, as well as the protection of the right to education in Gaza.
The Estonian delegation includes in addition to Kadri Tali and member Eerik-Niiles Kross, who recently chaired a much-publicised sitting of the PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights in the Riigikogu, also Aleksei Jevgrafov.
Riigikogu Press Service
Merje Meisalu
+372 631 6300, +372 529 9512
[email protected]
Questions: [email protected]
