The project, under the patronage of the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, was developed even before the full-scale Russian invasion and is aimed at disseminating Ukrainian literature in its original and translated forms in leading libraries around the world. The project's implementation is carried out in collaboration with the Office of the President, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, the Ukrainian Book Institute, the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting, and the Charitable Foundation "Kyiv School of Economics" (KSE Foundation). Currently, the "Ukrainian Bookshelf" project is successfully operating in libraries across 40 countries, with a total of 171 bookshelves and over 44,000 books.

The 39th opening ceremony of the Ukrainian Bookshelf in Pyeongtaek, Republic of Korea, was solemnly celebrated by the Ambassador of Ukraine, Dmytro Ponomarenko, together with his wife Oksana Ponomarenko and the director of the "Bedari" library, Ms. Yu Hyun Mi. The collection of presented Ukrainian books covers topics such as history, culture, traditions, cuisine, and tourist destinations of Ukraine. It also includes literature for children available in Ukrainian, Korean, and English languages.

In Washington, at Georgetown University, another "Ukrainian Bookshelf" was inaugurated , personally introduced by the President's wife, Olena Zelenska, during her visit to the United States and interaction with students. She noted, "I am pleased that today we are opening our jubilee, the 40th 'Ukrainian Bookshelf.' This project involves the dissemination of Ukrainian literature worldwide in its original and translated forms into various languages."

The First Lady emphasised the importance of the world learning about Ukraine from primary sources and understanding who Ukrainians are, their thoughts, and their roots. She shared her belief that this serves as a foundation for mutual understanding between countries and people.

Zelenska highlighted what books play a special role in the context of Ukraine's resistance to Russian aggression. She stated that just as people fight for their lives, so do books, as dozens of libraries in Ukraine have already been destroyed due to Russian shelling. The First Lady underscored that by sending books abroad, Ukrainians are essentially saving them physically.

"Books tell everything about us: who we are, what we are, what we live for, what we think, our history, culture, art – everything...This is more than 44,000 publications in the Ukrainian language and also in the language of the country where this bookshelf is located. This is the literature that we want to be distributed there," highlighted the First Lady.

She noted that bookshelves are intended not only for foreigners but also for Ukrainians, many of whom are currently abroad. She expressed hope that the number of bookshelves will continue to grow, and more world libraries, such as the London Library, will join the initiative. "I have seen the eyes of the staff of this library when we presented Ukrainian publications to them. It is truly beautiful and interesting; they are impressed by the quality of how Ukraine is printed, the quality of our publishers, and the work of our writers, who have significant achievements in this field. And it was a great pleasure for me to represent Ukraine from this perspective," shared the First Lady.