The Armed Forces of Ukraine have created a unit for the protection of cultural heritage, which will operate within the structure of civil-military cooperation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine informs about this.
The new unit will include military personnel who have 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 under threat as a result of hostilities.
"This initiative is another proof that Ukraine adheres to the norms of international law, fulfills its obligations, and makes maximum use of all existing mechanisms and tools for the protection and preservation of cultural values in conditions of armed conflict," the message says.
It is noted that the Armed Forces of Ukraine once again confirm compliance with the norms of 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 May 14, 1954, and two protocols thereto on the creation of a specialized unit for the protection of cultural heritage.
The 1954 Hague Convention is the main international treaty in the field of the protection of cultural property from the dangers of armed conflict.
The document became the first international agreement of a universal nature focused 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 at the national level the provisions of part two of Article 7 of the Convention for the Protection and Preservation of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
The corresponding 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 Defense of Ukraine and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine after lengthy consultations with international partners, the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, as well as the public.
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