Outcast, get out. Russia was expelled from the board of UNESCO and not only that

Exclusive. For the first time in history, Russia was excluded from the UNESCO Executive Council, the President of Ukraine reported. "The era of Russian influence is over, and that's right: Russian terrorists have no place at the head of important international organizations. Russia's international role will only weaken," Volodymyr Zelensky noted.

Transfiguration Cathedral in Odessa

The Executive Council of UNESCO is one of the three key bodies of the organization, as well as the main body responsible for making strategic decisions and overseeing activities. There are 58 members who are elected by the General Conference, a deliberative body that includes all members.

The era of Putin's influence in the world is coming to an end. A terrorist regime has no place in international organizations.

The barbaric behavior of the Russian army is incompatible with the principles and goals of UNESCO. The UN specialized agency is responsible for assistance in strengthening peace and security through the expansion of cooperation between states and peoples in the field of education, science and culture, as well as ensuring justice and compliance with the law, universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all peoples, regardless of race, gender , language or religion. The Supreme Council of the Russian Federation deliberately destroys schools, museums and religious buildings.

From the beginning of the full-scale invasion until September 25, 2023, Russia destroyed or damaged 835 objects of cultural heritage of Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, 23 monuments were completely destroyed, 648 monuments were partially damaged, and the degree of damage to 164 objects remains unknown. Of these, 118 monuments are of national significance, 653 are of local significance, and 64 have just been discovered. During the full-scale invasion, 1582 objects of cultural infrastructure were damaged. Among them are libraries, galleries, museums and other buildings.

Objects that are included in the list of World Heritage also suffer from Russian terrorist attacks. In particular, Russia destroyed the historic center of Odessa, which is protected by UNESCO. On the night of July 23, the Russian army attacked the Transfiguration Cathedral and damaged another 28 monuments of cultural heritage. The delegation from Italy was the first foreigners to see these destructions with their own eyes. Photographs of the destroyed monuments of the architecture of Odessa traveled around the world and were published in the international press.

Russians loot temporarily occupied territories, including museum collections and archival funds. The export of cultural values ​​from Ukraine has become the biggest theft since World War II.

In particular, more than 2 exhibits from three Mariupol museums (including priceless paintings by Kuindzhi and Aivazovsky) were taken out, as well as the collection of the Melitopol Local History Museum, including Scythian gold. Before fleeing from Kherson, the Russian occupiers took out the exhibits of the two main museums of the city - the local history museum and the art museum, as well as part of the collection of the regional scientific library. In total, more than 15 people were taken out of Kherson. exhibits The occupiers even stole the remains of Catherine II's lover, Prince Grigory Potemkin, which were in the Spassky Cathedral.

The Russian army destroys Ukrainian library funds, tries to block the access of Ukrainians to education in their native language and the satisfaction of their cultural needs. Recently, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation launched an attack on Kherson, as a result of which the regional library named after Honchar was seriously damaged. A fire broke out in the building, which was extinguished for more than an hour and a half because of the threat of repeated shelling.

Russia is causing irreparable damage to the environment in Ukraine: environmental funds are being destroyed, red-book animal safaris are being organized in nature reserves, the ecosystem of the lower reaches of the Dnieper is being destroyed, and Ukrainian forests are being burned. Wherever the foot of the Russian occupier steps, death comes for all living things.

Recently, the representative of Russia was not elected to the UN International Court of Justice. Soviet and Russian judges have been part of the judicial body since 1946, so for the first time there will be no Russian representative in the UN International Court of Justice. But this is not the end yet - terrorists must be expelled from international organizations and be held responsible for numerous crimes against Ukraine.

Vera Perovskaya