The Warsaw-Kyiv Resilience Forum demonstrated innovative solutions in civil protection, cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure protection that have proven particularly valuable during Russia's military aggression against Ukraine.

The high-level segment featured key announcements from distinguished speakers.

Gen. Oleksandr Poti, Chairman of Ukraine's State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection, proposed the development of a Kyiv-Warsaw International Protocol and extended an invitation to host the next Forum in Kyiv.

Mr. Zbigniew Muszynski, Director of Government Security Centre, underscored the vital importance of societal resilience and outlined state entities' substantial efforts to support it.

Minister Wieslaw Lesniakiewicz, Undersecretary of State at Poland's Ministry of Interior and Administration, emphasized the significance of new civil protection legislation in Poland and highlighted the crucial role of local communities and civil society in building resilience.

Deputy Mayor Hanna Kułakowska-Michalak announced Piaseczno Municipality's commitment to developing as a societally prepared community and revealed plans for the National Local Government Forum on Civil Protection and Social Resilience to be held in Piaseczno on February 27-28, 2025.

Mr. Emil Peña, Former U.S. Deputy Energy Secretary, praised the International Manual on Cybersecurity, Reliability and Resilience Assurance as a landmark achievement of Polish-Ukrainian-U.S. cooperation, emphasizing that robust security measures should be viewed as strategic investments rather than costs, as they yield substantial returns through prevented disruptions, reduced risks, and lower insurance premiums. He also presented the concept of Regional Hub for Nuclear Safety and Security Resilience as a transformative vision for enhancing community resilience near nuclear facilities.

Mr. Albrecht Broemme, Honorary President of The Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW), Germany, emphasized the critical importance of European resilience and the need for comprehensive preparation by communities and governments for all types of emergencies and disasters. He strongly endorsed the Forum's role in combining Ukraine's hard-won resilience experience with European resilience frameworks, creating a more robust approach to civil protection.

The Forum showcased six major initiatives:

• The inauguration of the International Manual on Cybersecurity, Reliability and Resilience Assurance in the Critical Industries, a milestone achievement in trilateral cooperation between Poland, Ukraine, and the U.S., which introduced new standards for critical infrastructure protection. The implementation of proposed resilience measures should be viewed as a cost-saving investment, as enhanced security and preparedness frameworks can significantly reduce insurance premiums and operational costs for industries and communities.
• The POL-UKR Resilient Communities Initiative aims to establish Warsaw and Kyiv as model resilient capitals, while developing smaller municipalities like Shatsk and Piaseczno as examples of resilient communities
• The Societal Resilience Centre in Złotokłos (Piaseczno Municipality), providing comprehensive emergency and disaster preparedness through hands-on training and practical exercises for local administration, emergency services, businesses, and citizens
• The Regional Hub for Nuclear Safety and Security Resilience, coordinating expertise development, training programs, and emergency response capabilities among regional partners, with particular emphasis on integrating cyber defense, operational safety, and emergency response protocols
• READY - An innovative Mobile Application for Citizen's Resilience, enabling systematic household emergency preparedness, helping users track food, water, medicine, and critical supplies while integrating real-time alerts from government systems
• The inauguration of the International Centre for Civic and Societal Security, which marks the strategic evolution of the International Centre for Chemical Safety and Security from its chemical safety and security foundations toward a comprehensive approach to societal resilience and CBRN preparedness.

The Forum also featured the successful launch of an innovative AI-powered translation system developed by ICCSS, which provided real-time screen translations in Polish, Ukrainian, and English, enabling multilingual communication by instantly displaying spoken presentations in all three languages simultaneously. This AI-powered translation system has the potential to operate across multiple languages for future international events.

The successful launch of six concrete initiatives and the strong commitment to their implementation marks a significant advancement in transforming policy and administrative resilience frameworks into practical solutions.

"The Warsaw-Kyiv Resilience Forum has demonstrated how civil society-led cooperation, supported by academic institutions and governments, can transform ambitious resilience concepts into practical solutions that serve communities, cities, and nations," said Ambassador Krzysztof Paturej, ICCSS President. "Through our continued partnership with Ukrainian and American colleagues, we are creating a new model of international security cooperation that begins with local communities and extends to the European level, proving that societal resilience is not just a concept but a practical pathway to enhanced security and preparedness."

The Forum's success and significance were affirmed by the decision to continue the dialogue at the next Forum scheduled for June 26, 2025, in Kyiv.