The Armed Forces of Ukraine have created a new unit for the protection of cultural heritage. It will function within the structure of civil-military cooperation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
"This initiative is yet another proof that Ukraine adheres to international law, fulfils its obligations, and makes the most of all existing mechanisms and tools for the protection and preservation of cultural property in armed conflict," the General Staff said in a statement.
Thus, the new unit will include military personnel with education and previous experience in the field of culture, archeology, history and museum work.
The main task is to coordinate actions aimed at protecting, preserving and preventing the destruction of cultural heritage sites that may be threatened by hostilities.
The General Staff adds that the Armed Forces of Ukraine once again reaffirm their compliance with international humanitarian law, including the provisions of the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, adopted in The Hague on 14 May 1954, and its two protocols on the establishment of a specialised unit for the protection of cultural heritage.
The Hague Convention of 1954 is the main international treaty in the field of protection of cultural property from the dangers of armed conflict.
The document was the first international agreement of a universal nature to focus exclusively on the protection of cultural property during armed conflict. Ukraine ratified the First Protocol for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict in 1956, and the Second Protocol in 2020.
The creation of a special unit is another measure to implement the provisions of Article 7, paragraph 2, of the Convention for the Protection and Preservation of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict at the national level.
The decision was made by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It was approved by a joint directive of the Minister of Defence of Ukraine and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine after extensive consultations with international partners, the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, and the public.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has destroyed or damaged 1,147 cultural sites in Ukraine.