The war in Ukraine has damaged dozens of churches, historical buildings, and museums, according to the United Nations cultural agency, which is particularly concerned about Chernihiv in the north.
In light of Russia’s invasion, UNESCO announced last month that it has strengthened conservation measures for Ukraine’s endangered cultural assets, including the use of a ‘Blue Shield’ logo to highlight cultural sites and monuments.
‘We are deeply concerned about both the humanitarian and (cultural) heritage situations. The heritage of humanity is at jeopardy (in Ukraine),’ UNESCO’s assistant director-general for cultural, Ernesto Ottone, said in a press conference.
According to UNESCO, the first preliminary list of damaged sites included 29 religious structures, 16 historical buildings, four museums, and four monuments.
UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay wrote to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in early March to remind him that Russia is a signatory to the Convention on the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Times of War, according to the organisation.
UNESCO later stated that it had received a response from Moscow, in which Russia stated that it was aware of its commitments and was ‘committed’ to them.
Moscow, which refers to its efforts in Ukraine as a ‘special military operation’ to demilitarise the country, announced this week that in order to develop confidence, it would halt offensives near Kyiv, the capital, and Chernihiv, a nearby city.
Russia is withdrawing soldiers from those areas, according to Kyiv and its allies, not as a gesture of goodwill, but to regroup after suffering serious losses.
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