International Roundtable Advances Scholarly Communication and Publication Ethics in Ukraine

Thursday, 1 January 1970

On 8 July 2026, the roundtable “Development of Scholarly Communication in Ukraine: Publication Ethics, Journal Quality, and Integration into the European Research Area” was held by the Ukrainian Regional Chapter of the European Association of Science Editors. The event convened experts from key international – the Committee on Publication Ethics, the Directory of Open Access Journals, the European Association of Science Editors, the European Diamond Capacity Hub – and Ukrainian – the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the State Scientific and Technical Library of Ukraine, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the Association of Ukrainian Editors, the Ukrainian Research Integrity Office, the Ukrainian Diamond Open Access Capacity Centre – institutions and organisations. The audience comprised editors-in-chief, editorial board members, and editorial staff of Ukrainian scholarly journals.

Recognising the need for coordinated national and international action to advance reforms in scholarly communication, Open Science, and journal quality, the event provided a platform to review the outcomes of the Commission on Publication Ethics of MoES of Ukraine, discuss the further development of the National Scholarly Journals’ List, align national practices with international standards, and develop joint mechanisms for identifying and preventing predatory publishing practices.

The roundtable was moderated by Iryna Izarova, Co-Chair of the EASE Regional Chapters Committee and COPE Council Member.

National Policy, Research Infrastructure, and Outcomes of the Commission on Publication Ethics of MES of Ukraine

The opening session focused on national policy initiatives and the ongoing transformation of Ukraine’s scholarly publishing landscape.

Denys Kurbatov, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, highlighted Ukraine’s ongoing efforts to transform its scholarly communication system in line with international and European standards. He noted that Ukraine had successfully completed the screening of Chapter 25 (Science and Research) within the European integration process, while stressing that further work remains necessary. He outlined key reforms introduced over the past year, including an updated regulatory framework, the relaunch of the National Scholarly Journals’ List, the establishment of the Commission on Publication Ethics, and the development of a fully digitised and transparent journal database. He emphasised the need for continued support and professional development for scientific editors to ensure the successful implementation of best publishing practices and Ukraine’s integration into the European Research Area.

Tetiana Yaroshenko, Deputy Director for Research and International Cooperation of the State Scientific and Technical Library of Ukraine, presented the digitalisation of processes for the application, evaluation, and monitoring of Ukrainian scholarly journals using the Journals Module of the Ukrainian Research Information System, URIS (nauka.gov.ua). The speaker presented an overview of the history and development of the National Scholarly Journals’ List, noting that the vast majority of journals included in the List are published by universities and research institutions on a non-commercial basis, without the involvement of commercial publishers. She explained the reasons behind recent reforms, describing the transition from a paper-based and largely static accreditation system to a more transparent, competitive, and continuously monitored digital model. According to the speaker, these changes are intended to improve journal quality, support Open Access, promote alignment with international publishing standards, and strengthen trust in Ukrainian scholarly journals. Particular attention was given to the digitalisation of journal evaluation and monitoring processes, which has increased transparency and efficiency. The speaker also highlighted common shortcomings in editorial policies and stressed the importance of adopting clear, comprehensive, and internationally compliant publishing practices.

Artem Artiukhov, Chair of the Ukrainian Research Integrity Office, examined the main academic integrity challenges facing Ukrainian scholarly publishing. He noted that while most journals have academic integrity policies in place, the key issue is ensuring that these policies are implemented in practice rather than remaining formal declarations. He highlighted the pressures created by publication requirements, the persistence of predatory publishing practices, fraudulent conferences, and ghostwriting services, and stressed the need to focus on publication quality rather than publication quantity. He expressed confidence that the recent reforms, the updated National Scholarly Journals’ List, and ongoing monitoring mechanisms would help strengthen academic integrity and improve the quality of Ukrainian scholarly journals.

International Standards of Quality and Ethics

The second session demonstrated how international institutions and organisations contribute to strengthening editorial quality and publication ethics worldwide while supporting the Ukrainian community of science editors.

Nancy Chescheir, President of the Committee on Publication Ethics, discussed global challenges in publication ethics, noting that many of the issues facing Ukrainian scholarly publishing are shared worldwide, and emphasised that safeguarding the integrity of the scholarly record requires collaboration among all the stakeholders. The speaker outlined COPE’s organisational structure, which includes trustees, council members, advisors, and an executive office. She highlighted the extensive resources COPE offers, including published case studies, flowcharts, guidelines, discussion documents on emerging ethical issues, webinars, and educational videos. Members also have access to forums, seminars, e-learning opportunities, and journal audit tools. She emphasised on the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, developed in collaboration with WAME, DOAJ, and OASPA, and COPE’s commitment to core practices and core principles, which help strengthen trust and ethical standards in scholarly publishing. Iryna Izarova, COPE Council Member, warmly encouraged Ukrainian scientific editors to embrace COPE’s membership opportunities, as a way to raise together the quality of Ukrainian scholarly publications and their prestige in the international arena.

Iva Grabarić Andonovski, Vice-President of the European Association of Science Editors, presented EASE as an association of scholarly editors and communication professionals from all over the world, with a mission to raise general quality, improve trust in research, provide expertise, resources, guidance and training, build a strong international network of members, and drive excellence in every stage of editorial work. She explained that EASE offers practical solutions through guidelines, checklists, resources, webinars, and training schools to help editors, authors, reviewers, and publishers strengthen their workflows and policies. She concluded by inviting everyone to join EASE and work together to “raise the standard of journals” and improve the “quality and transparency of published research.” Nataliia Bazeliuk, Chair of EASE Ukraine, spoke about the Ukrainian regional chapter of the Association and its activities, including EASE’s joining the International Coalition for Science, Research and Innovation in Ukraine, cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, the organisation of national and international events, translation initiatives, etc. She also presented EASE Ukraine’s current key areas of focus.

Johan Rooryck, Co-Coordinator of the European Diamond Capacity Hub, presented the initiative, which emerged from several EU-funded projects to strengthen and coordinate the Diamond Open Access publishing ecosystem across Europe. EDCH aims to support European national, institutional, and disciplinary Capacity Centres by providing coordination, sustainability, shared infrastructure, technical tools, and services at scale. The speaker outlined EDCH’s integrated services, including a registry of organisations involved in Diamond OA, a forum for Diamond OA communities of practice, the Diamond Discovery Hub, the Diamond OA Standard with a self-assessment tool, and a forthcoming Certification Framework. Additional services include a training platform, publishing tools, and a collection of resources and guidelines. He also highlighted the strategic importance of National Capacity Centres, which understand local academic traditions, higher education structures, national policies, and publishing in national languages. Currently, 15 NCCs have been established, with 7 more in the making. Taras Kotyk, Head of the Ukrainian Diamond Open Access Capacity Centre, described the recent launch of the Ukrainian Centre and its cooperation with the EDCH. He encouraged publishers and editors to join the initiative, participate in its discussion forum, use its resources and self-assessment tool, and collaborate in strengthening the Diamond Open Access community.

Iemima Ploscariu, Ethics and Integrity Team of the Directory of Open Access Journals, spoke about Quality Criteria for Open Access Journals. She highlighted DOAJ’s role in helping researchers identify trustworthy, high-quality Open Access journals and promoting ethical publishing standards beyond traditional citation metrics. She explained that journal quality is ensured through transparent inclusion criteria, rigorous evaluation and review processes, investigations by her Team, and regular re-evaluations of indexed journals. The speaker also described DOAJ’s efforts to investigate questionable journals and publishers, address emerging threats such as paper mills and hijacked journals, and support under-resourced journals through guidance, training, and improved quality standards. Emphasising a shift from reactive to proactive quality assurance, she noted that DOAJ is developing automated screening processes and working closely with integrity experts to strengthen trust and credibility in scholarly publishing. Yuliia Hartman, DOAJ Managing Editor responsible for Ukrainian journals, presented Ukraine’s current position within DOAJ and shared recent statistics illustrating the country’s continued growth in Open Access publishing.

Mykhailo Holubiev, Deputy Head of the Department for the Certification of Highly Qualified Personnel at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, spoke about the best Ukrainian scholarly journals. He emphasised that the success of scholarly journals depends not only on meeting formal requirements but also on building a strong editorial reputation through transparency, rigorous peer review, international visibility, Open Access, high-quality metadata, and trustworthy publishing practices.

The discussion from the participants also addressed issues related to ensuring proper peer-review processes and preventing the misattribution of Russian affiliations to Ukrainian universities located in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in scientific publications.

Experiences of Research Institutions and Professional Associations

The discussion session brought together representatives of research institutions and professional associations to consider the future development of editorial professionalism in Ukraine.

Myroslava Prykhoda, President of the Association of Ukrainian Editors, presented the activities of the Association, a non-profit organisation that has been active for seven years and brings together more than 200 editors committed to advancing editorial practice in Ukraine. She highlighted the Association’s fruitful cooperation with the European Association of Science Editors and its Ukrainian regional chapter since 2021. Emphasising the importance of editorial education, professional standards, research, and innovation, she noted that the Association’s key priority is the professionalisation of editorial work, particularly in scholarly publishing. Maryna Zhenchenko, Vice-President of the Association of Ukrainian Editors, discussed the development of a professional standard for scientific editors in Ukraine. She explained that, although scientific editors play a crucial role in scholarly publishing, the profession is not formally recognised in Ukraine. To address this gap, the working group analysed international best practices and scholarly literature to identify the competencies required of scientific editors. The proposed standard aims to establish clear professional qualifications, support editor training and career development, improve the quality of scholarly publishing, and provide greater professional recognition and remuneration for scientific editors. The draft standard is currently being finalised and will be released for public consultation.

Volodymyr Ustymenko, Member of the Presidium, Deputy Chair of the Scientific and Publishing Council of NAS of Ukraine, presented an overview of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the oldest research organisation in the country, highlighting its role in providing scientific expertise, supporting state policymaking, conducting legislative reviews, and coordinating research activities. He described the Academy’s structure, extensive network of research institutions, and its community of nearly 24,000 personnel. Particular attention was given to the Academy’s publishing activities, which include 279 scholarly journals and a broad range of scientific publications. The speaker emphasised ongoing efforts to improve the quality, visibility, and international recognition of Ukrainian research through journal support programmes, inclusion in leading scientometric databases, and cooperation with international professional organisations. Anna Radchenko, Director of the Akademperiodyka Publishing House of NAS of Ukraine, explained that Academperiodika is Ukraine’s only officially recognised scientific publishing house, responsible not only for publishing research but also for developing scientific publishing practices. The speaker highlighted its 30-year history, support for NAS of Ukraine journals, and efforts to improve journal quality through editing, digital publishing, supporting Open Access, and international indexing.

Conclusions and Future Directions

The roundtable concluded with a discussion on the future development of scholarly communication in Ukraine and the measures needed to strengthen the national scholarly publishing system. Several priority areas for further action were identified, including:

• the establishment of a national programme for the training and certification of editors-in-chief and members of editorial boards;
• the development and implementation of the professional standard “Scholarly Editor”;
• the promotion of publication ethics and Open Science principles;
• the revision of the regulatory framework governing National Scholarly Journals’ List;
• the improvement of journal account management within the Ukrainian Research Information System (URIS);
• the continued expansion of cooperation between Ukrainian institutions and international organisations, including COPE, EASE, DOAJ, and EDCH.

By bringing together representatives of international scholarly publishing and research integrity organisations, government bodies, research-support institutions, professional associations, universities, research institutes, publishers, and scholarly journals, the roundtable provided an important platform for dialogue and knowledge exchange.

The discussions reaffirmed a shared commitment to strengthening the quality, visibility, and international integration of Ukrainian scholarly journals and highlighted their strategic importance for the development of national research and Ukraine’s further integration into the European Research Area.