"Absurd": Ukraine's Foreign Ministry responds to UNESCO statement on Russia's strike on Kyiv Pechersk Lavra
Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has criticised a statement released by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) regarding the attack on the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra.
The ministry condemned UNESCO for failing to state that Russia was responsible for the strike. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi described the organisation's official statement as "absurd".
Source: Tykhyi on X (Twitter); UNESCO
Quote from Tykhyi: "The organisation tasked with protecting cultural heritage does not even know whom it protects it from. Why is it so hard to just say 'Russian strike'?
Sadly, under Director-General Khaled El-Enany, UNESCO continues to show lack of leadership, weakness, and inability to fulfil its mandate," Tykhyi said.
Earlier, Ukraine's National Commission for UNESCO called on the international community to prevent Russia from participating in the organisation's key governing bodies.
"We call on the international community to stop tolerating these crimes, to increase political, economic and legal pressure on the aggressor state, and to take decisive measures to bring Russia's aggression to an end as soon as possible," the statement said.
The Commission also appealed to the leadership of the UNESCO Secretariat, demanding a "firm and unequivocal response".
UNESCO later published an official statement condemning the strike on the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra.
"In the context of the escalation of the war in Ukraine following the invasion by the Russian Federation, UNESCO condemns the reported strike on 15 June that hit the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, within the World Heritage property 'Kyiv: Saint-Sophia Cathedral and Related Monastic Buildings, Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra', one of Ukraine's most significant spiritual and cultural landmarks," UNESCO said.
UNESCO also stated that it "stands ready to support relevant authorities in assessing damage to cultural and educational institutions and identifying urgent measures within its mandate".
Background: Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko has announced that the government will allocate funds from the state budget's reserve fund for the restoration of the Dormition Cathedral at the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra.
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