(MENAFN- UkrinForm) Together with the EU Culture Ministers, Ukrainian Culture and Information Policy Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko has called on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to change the place of the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee from Russia's Kazan to Lviv.
The relevant statement was made by Ukrainian Culture and Information Policy Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko on Telegram , an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
“UNESCO supports Ukraine in preserving its cultural heritage and urges Russia to refrain from destroying and seizing cultural property. The relevant declaration on the protection of Ukraine's cultural heritage was adopted at the second extraordinary meeting of the UNESCO Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict on March 18, 2022,” Tkachenko wrote.
According to Tkachenko, together with the EU Culture Ministers, he is calling on UNESCO to cancel the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee in Russia's Kazan and hold it in Lviv instead. In addition, UNESCO should deprive Russia of the member status.
“Now, back to the declaration. With this declaration, UNESCO called on Russia to fully respect the international humanitarian and international human rights law, including the obligations stemming from the 1954 Hague Convention and ratify the Second Protocol to the Hague Convention; to prevent and put a stop to any form of theft, pillage or misappropriation of, and any acts of vandalism directed against, cultural property, and to refrain from requisitioning movable cultural property situated in Ukraine,” Tkachenko noted.
In addition, this declaration encourages Ukraine, in close coordination with UNESCO, to consider marking as quickly as possible key historic monuments and sites across Ukraine, as well as the transport of cultural property, with the distinctive emblem of the 1954 Hague Convention and invites all Member States, UNESCO and relevant cultural heritage expert organizations to provide Ukraine any support or advice it may be able to give in protecting and safeguarding of cultural heritage of Ukraine.
In addition, the UNESCO Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict endorsed a decision to provide Ukraine with urgent support, in particular financial support, and expressed readiness to grant the enhanced protection status to the key cultural property objects according to the 1954 Hague Convention and its Protocols.
“The Ukrainian Culture and Information Policy Ministry will continue holding a dialogue with UNESCO and insisting that requirements and sanctions for Russia should be tighter,” Tkachenko added.
mk
MENAFN18032022000193011044ID1103874558
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.