The office of the military Ombudsman first represented Ukraine at the International Conference of Ombudsman Institutes for the Armed Forces Affairs

“Any armed forces exist and are held by the state to protect it-to be ready for war at a critical moment. The institutions of the military Ombudsman are created not to weaken the army with restrictions or strict rules, but to strengthen it - through the protection of human rights and the popularization of values ​​in which democratic societies believe, ”Olga Reshetilov said.

The Presidential Commissioner emphasized, in particular, that every institution of the military Ombudsman should have a plan for peacetime, for a transition period and for wartime, and a single strategy of communication that truly works during the war is trust. “It is critical to communicate for the military Ombudsman so that he is perceived as his own. And this requires the presence - constant presence in the field, many personal visits and sincere, as well as personal conversations.

Trust is not built through slogans or campaigns. It grows through actions, results and human contact. When a soldier knows that his problem is heard that someone will help, then he is ready to listen to everything else - about responsibility, equality and respect, ”she said. Olga Reshetilova also participated in the discussion panels and was able to communicate with military Ombudsmans from more than 40 countries.

In particular, she had conversations with representatives of the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Norway. Military Ombudsmans noted that Ukraine was the first in the world to create a military Ombudsman's office during the war.   On September 19, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree on the establishment of a military Ombudsman office and made a decision to appoint Olga Reshetilov, the first military Ombudsman. Before that, Parliament supported the law on the military Ombudsman.