Oleksandr Korniyenko: the russian federation is deliberately waging a war against Ukrainian culture
08 July 2022, 18:32
This was stated by the First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Oleksandr Korniyenko, during the visit of the French delegation led by the Chairman of the Senate of the French Republic Gerard Larcher to the de-occupied Borodyanka in the Kyiv region.
According to the First Vice-Speaker, russian soldiers knew they were destroying cultural objects, meaning that their actions were deliberate.
"In front of us is a monument to Taras Shevchenko, which was shot during the occupation. russian soldiers could not fail to know this. And this means that they did it purposefully. This once again proves that today russia is not just at war with Ukraine. It is deliberately waging war against Ukrainian culture, trying to destroy our heritage, property, and history," Oleksandr Korniyenko stressed.
The First Vice-Speaker also recalled how, in the first days of russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, russian troops fired missiles at the local history museum in Ivankiv, Kyiv region, and how in May, as a result of russian shelling, the Hryhoriy Skovoroda museum in Kharkiv region was destroyed.
"There are cases not only of the destruction of objects of the cultural heritage of Ukraine but also of theft of exhibits. We understand that this is a purposeful policy of the russian federation - to destroy, steal, and take away cultural property to later say "there was nothing here." But we won't let it happen!
The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy records war crimes committed by russian troops against the cultural heritage of Ukraine. It is clear that the final accounting will be possible only after the return of all our territories, but already today we call on our Western partners to help restore Ukraine and preserve our cultural heritage," Oleksandr Korniyenko summarized.