Cultural Heritage in the Russo-Ukrainian War: a Victim in the Conflict

Abstract

This paper discusses the devastating impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war on cultural heritage in Ukraine. It highlights the destruction and plundering of cultural sites and artifacts in a broad historical context. The study traces the Russian historical narrative and its connection to state ideology, emphasizing the ideological use of archaeology to support territorial claims of nowadays Russia. The authors discuss the impact of the military conflict on museums in Ukraine since 2014. The article details the challenges faced by museums during the conflict, including the occupation of Crimea and certain areas of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, as well as the destruction and relocation of museum collections. The analysis highlights the severe consequences of hostilities on Ukraine's archaeological heritage. The loss of archaeological sites and museum collections due to conflict-related activities, looting, and destruction is emphasized. The paper discusses the challenges faced in monitoring and documenting these losses and proposes initiatives to address the crisis. Finally, the authors provide some recommendations on minimizing the consequences of war for objects of cultural heritage, stressing that these recommendations could be useful for any country, even if its involvement in a large-scale military conflict currently seems unlikely.