The UK national committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM UK) is deeply concerned for the safety and security of ICOM members and museum personnel in Ukraine.
Cultural heritage in Ukraine is now facing considerable risk – and we are appalled that museums have already been damaged, with the Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs reporting that the Museum of Local History in the town of Ivankiv in the Kyiv region has apparently burned down.
Russia and Ukraine are both signatories of the 1954 ‘Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of Armed Conflict’ which protects cultural property, such as monuments of architecture, art or history, archaeological sites, works of art, manuscripts, books and other objects of artistic, historical or archaeological interest, as well as scientific collections of any kind regardless of their origin or ownership. The State Parties to this Convention must guarantee respect for cultural property situated on their own territory or on the territory of other State Parties.
We will work closely with our international partners and do all we can to support our members in Ukraine and its museum community. The thoughts of all of us at ICOM UK are with our friends and colleagues at ICOM Ukraine.
