Moldova,Ukrainian culture ministers discuss critical situation of cultural heritage of Ukraine, hit by Russia's war

Chisinau, 9 January /MOLDPRES/ - Moldova reaffirms its openness for cooperation with Ukraine, in the spirit of the cultural solidarity. Culture Minister of Moldova Sergiu Prodan and his Kiev counterpart Mykola Tochytckyi have discussed the critical situation of Ukraine’s cultural heritage, hit by Russia’s war, during a phone conversation.  
According to the Ukrainian minister, the cultural heritage of Ukraine is subjected to massive destructions, caused by the Russian military aggression. Mykola Tochytckyi unveiled an assessment of the damages inflicted to the Ukrainian cultural heritage objects and stressed the importance of the international cooperation for the preservation of the national identity and cultural values of his country.  
Minister Sergiu Prodan expressed solidarity with the Ukrainian people and reiterated Moldova’s commitment to support the protection of the cultural heritage in this difficult context, noting that there was an unprecedented openness for Ukrainian artists in Moldova. Many of them were employed in culture institutions from Moldova and successfully create in Moldova.    
The Ukrainian minister invited Sergiu Prodan to the Meeting of Culture Ministers from the Partner States on the protection of the cultural heritage and national identity of Ukraine – an even scheduled to take place in Uzhhorod, Ukraine, on 31 January – 2 February 2025. This meeting will provide an important platform for the consolidation of the regional and international efforts for the protection of the cultural heritage, affected by the war, and will allow exchanging experience and good practices in this vital sector.     
A similar forum took place in Lviv in the summer of 2022 and as a result – the 2023 year was declared Year of Ukrainian Culture in Moldova, during which numerous events took place, meant to support and encourage the spirit of the Ukrainians hit by the war.    
Since the beginning of the wide-scale invasion, Russia has destroyed over 1,000 cultural heritage sites from Ukraine. A number of 457 of them are sites protected by the UNERSCO. The cultural monuments are not destroyed only by bombardments, but also by so-called ‘’restorations’’ made by Russians, which lead to the loss of the authentic historical look of the building, The Kyiv Independent reports.