Ukraine's National Commission for UNESCO condemns damage to National Academy of Sciences building caused by Russian attack
Ukraine's National Commission for UNESCO strongly condemned the Russian attack on Kyiv on September 28, which damaged the building of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the press service of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Telegram.
On September 28, the Russian military launched an attack on Kyiv, causing significant damage to the National Academy of Sciences building in the Ukrainian capital. The National Commission for UNESCO, Ukraine's representative body to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), strongly condemned the assault.
The UNESCO commission noted that the damaged structure houses the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the nation's premier scientific institution, and the leadership of its Science Sector. This attack on such a crucial scientific hub represents not just a loss of physical property, but a devastating blow to Ukraine's national scientific and intellectual life.
The National Commission for UNESCO highlighted that Russian aggression has been targeting various facets of Ukrainian society, including universities, libraries, museums, and archives. These attacks have resulted in the destruction of invaluable information sources, scientific accomplishments, archival materials, and other components of Ukraine's national scientific legacy.
The UNESCO commission argued that this fits into Russia's broader policy of eroding Ukraine's identity, historical memory, cultural heritage, scientific expertise, and educational infrastructure.
The commission urged UNESCO's Director-General and other relevant UN bodies, as well as Russia's member states, to acknowledge Russia's consistent destruction of Ukraine's scientific, educational, and cultural heritage. They requested UNESCO's help in documenting the damage to Ukrainian scientific facilities and collections, reinforcing international safeguards for Ukraine's scientific and intellectual assets, and aiding the rescue and digitization of threatened scientific collections due to Russian aggression.
The commission further emphasized that the destruction of Ukraine's scientific community is not just a crime against Ukraine, but a strike against the global scientific and intellectual heritage. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha had previously urged UNESCO to revoke Russia's voting privileges and its eligibility for election to UNESCO's governing and working bodies, following the attack that claimed three lives, including two academicians, and injured six others.
Written by urgent.news from Interfax-Ukraine's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
