YES was founded in July 2004 in Yalta, when Victor Pinchuk invited some 30 European leaders to debate the future of Ukraine and the EU. At the conference, participants agreed to join forces and create a collective initiative to support Ukraine’s EU accession. Until 2013, the YES Annual Meetings were held in the historic Livadia Palace in Yalta, Crimea in order to transform the place where Europe was divided at the 1945 Yalta Conference into a venue for uniting a wider Europe. After the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, the YES Annual Meetings moved to Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where it is hosted at the Mystetskyi Arsenal.
Hanno Pevkur
Minister of Defence of the Republic of Estonia, YES Annual meeting 2025 "How to End the War?
«When we have an understanding that the best security guarantee for Europe today is Ukraine with the strongest army in Europe, then may be this would be easier for us to understand how to help Ukraine win this war»