WAR AS A THREAT TO CULTURAL HERITAGE: PRESERVATION AND RESTORATION ON THE PATH TO PEACE

Abstract

The tangible and intangible cultural heritage is the basis of the existence of any nation and human civilization itself. Russia's war against Ukraine is a struggle for identity. On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which marked a new stage in the war that began in 2014. It is the largest war in Europe since World War II. Many objects of Ukraine's material cultural heritage were destroyed, damaged or threatened by the hostilities. The destruction of cultural heritage is one of the elements of the liquidation of a nation. Destruction of cultural heritage sites is a war crime under the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of 1954.