Groundless accusations expressing the distorted views of the Russian leadership on the role of Ukraine in the development of the multilateral cooperation within UNESCO contained in the text of the interview by the Permanent Delegate of the Russian Federation to UNESCO Alexander Kouznetsov to the Russian RIA Novosti media outlet disseminated by the Permanent Mission of Russia to UNESCO on 19 May 2020 have been perceived with surprise and indignation in Ukraine.
With surprise, since Mr. Kouznetsov is a professional diplomat who has been holding the post of the Permanent Delegate of a UNESCO Executive Board member state for a significant period, thus there is no way he could be unaware of the clear and unwavering position of the UN system unconditionally condemning the occupation of Ukrainian Crimea by the Russian Federation. This position is unambiguously reflected in the relevant resolutions of the UN General Assembly and the decisions of the UNESCO Executive Board. In addition, the sanctions imposed by the Ukrainian side on state bodies and private institutions of the Russian Federation directly involved in gross violations of international law in connection with the occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol (Ukraine) constitute an integral part of a large-scale international policy of sanctions imposed on Russia in diverse spheres andaimed at restoring the rule of international law in Crimea (Ukraine) as well as at protecting sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In this context, the attempts to question key documents of the UN system, including the decisions of the UNESCO Executive Board, run counter to the high diplomatic status of the author of the views expressed in the interview.
With indignation, because it was precisely because of Russia's occupation of Crimea that Ukraine has lost a significant part of its cultural, scientific, research, and educational potential, which had been involved in active multilateral cooperation within the framework of UNESCO's program activities. In particular, the Hermitage Museum, mentioned by the Permanent Delegate of Russia, played an active role in trying to legalize the unprecedented in their scale and brazennessillegal excavations in the Ukrainian Crimea, by holding a large exhibition "Ancient Archeology of the Hermitage in the Crimea". It should be noted that illegal archeological expeditions to the occupied peninsula, during which priceless artifacts of Crimean antiquity have been seized in a barbaric manner, were organized with the direct participation of Hermitage Museum staff, and this was what the Russian press has been openly bragging about. It is no coincidence either that the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences has become the object of these sanctions, as it permanently authorizes and organizes illegal archeological activities in the occupied Ukrainian Crimea, and as it was directly involved into the illegal seizure of Ukrainian research centers and historical and cultural heritage sites on the peninsula.
Despite all the problems and losses caused by the occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol (Ukraine), our state does not reduce the intensity of its work in all areas of UNESCO's key program activities, rather it spares no efforts to constantly provide an “added value” of Ukraine's participation in practical multilateral cooperation within the areas, which are of special priority for the Organization in the 21stcentury. Active participation of Ukraine in the activities of UNESCO Category 2 Centers, proactive support for global education reform, significant contribution to the Man and the Biosphere Program and to the development of a Global Network of Biosphere Reserves, active participation in transboundary natural heritage protection projects, recent ratification of the Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, nomination of the young Ukrainian researcher to 2020 l'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Award - these are just a few recent examples of Ukraine’s “added value” at UNESCO.
During the current phase of global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, UNESCO’s leadership has supported two significant international initiatives put forward by Ukraine with the participation of UNESCO Artists for Peace, "Art Against the Pandemic" and "In the Name of Life", designed to unite the efforts of the universally respected personalities in the cultural domain in overcoming the negative consequences of this humanitarian catastrophe as well as to express the world's gratitude to the doctors who are at the forefront of the fight against it.
It seems that the Permanent Delegate of Russia decided to deliberately ignore all the aforementioned facts.
Ukraine, in close cooperation with other Member States of the Organization and the Secretariat of UNESCO, will continue to increase its efforts both in protecting the human rights in the occupied Crimea (Ukraine) as well as in all other important areas of UNESCO's activities without any exception. The opposition to this work by the Russian Federation merely shows that the Russian side still seeks to exploit the unique multilateral platform of our Organization to promote its own political interests. We hope that the respected UNESCO Member States, which work on a daily basis together with Ukraine on the implementation of the key goals of our Organization, will makea realistic and constructive assessment of such actions undertaken by the Russian Federation.