Kyiv, July 16, LETA–UKRINFORM. The Russian army is purposefully destroying cultural heritage objects throughout Ukraine – from Luhansk to Lviv region, Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Policy Katerina Chuyeva announced during an informal meeting at the UN Security Council.
“The cultural heritage of the entire country – both tangible and intangible – is under attack today and needs to be protected for all humanity,” Chuyeva said in an online conference mode.
Out of 453 damaged or destroyed cultural objects inspected by employees of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, 128 have monument status, 147 are cult buildings, 33 are museums and reserves, 59 are cultural centers, theaters and cinemas, and 40 are libraries.
136 buildings belonging to Christian communities, another four belonging to Muslim and six to Jewish communities have been destroyed or damaged.
Chuyeva recalled that some Russian attacks were directly aimed at the destruction of cultural objects, among which are the Hrykhory Skovoroda Museum in Kharkiv Oblast and the Ivankiv Regional History Museum in Kyiv Oblast.
Damage and devastation caused by rocket attacks, bombing and artillery fire have been recorded in 15 regions of Ukraine.
The occupiers have kidnapped and taken away some museum collections, for example in Mariupol and Melitopol, added Chuyeva.
On Friday, the UN Security Council held an informal meeting “Destruction of cultural heritage as a consequence of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine”, which was organized by Albania, which presided over the Security Council in June, in cooperation with the delegations of Ukraine and Poland.
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