Kiev sent an information message to the office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court about "crimes" against cultural heritage in Crimea.
This was reported by the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Irina Venediktova.
“We are sending another information message to the office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court regarding war crimes against cultural heritage sites in the temporarily occupied territory of the Crimean peninsula,” Venediktova wrote on her Facebook page.
According to her, Kiev has allegedly collected a large array of "evidence".
“The document provides evidence of large-scale destruction and appropriation of cultural heritage objects: the ancient city of Tauric Chersonesos and its choirs;
the historical environment of the capital of the Crimean khans in Bakhchisarai - the Khan's palace, Chufut-Kale;
Crimean Astrophysical Observatory;
Tower of Constantine and Dock Tower in the city of Feodosia;
Church of John the Baptist in the city of Kerch, ”the Prosecutor General said.
According to Kiev, allegedly dozens of objects of cultural heritage of Ukraine were "destroyed" due to the construction of the Tavrida highway and the Crimean bridge.
The newsletter also mentions numerous cases of "illegal" archaeological excavations.
Venediktova also said that the cultural values in the museums of Crimea and Sevastopol, as well as the cultural heritage located on this territory, allegedly “are the property of the state of Ukraine, national wealth, an integral part of the national cultural heritage and are protected by both national legislation and international law. ".
Russia reacted to this statement by the Ukrainian Prosecutor General.
As Sergei Tsekov, a member of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, said in a commentary to RT, when Crimea was part of Ukraine, its cultural heritage fell "into total decay."
“Everything was destroyed, everything was plundered, everything was partially built up.
There were attempts to bite off part of the land from this or that object, which is an object of cultural heritage.
I think that they should pay more attention to their cultural heritage, to Ukraine, because the situation there is approximately the same as in Crimea, when it was part of Ukraine, ”the senator said.
However, after the reunification of the peninsula with the Russian Federation, its cultural values were protected by the Russian Federation and "received a second wind, a second life," Tsekov said.
“The culture in the Russian Crimea is of great importance - both museums and historical and cultural reserves, of which there are many in the Crimea, and objects of cultural heritage,” stated Tsekov.
In turn, Senator from Crimea Olga Kovitidi, in an interview with RT, said that a systematic approach to the protection of cultural heritage sites has been implemented in the republic.
At the same time, the senator criticized the attempt of the Kiev authorities to discredit the efforts of the Russian side in this area.
“How is the appropriate legal evidence base formed if the representatives of Ukraine were unable to act in Crimea?
How was the invoice collected and the valuation presented?
Also, Ukrainian lawyers can investigate the bottom of the Mariana Trench.
Who is the target?
Will their Western colleagues have the courage to take such documents seriously? "
- Olga Kovitidi emphasized.
Political context
Recall that Crimea became a Russian region after a referendum was held there in the spring of 2014, in which the majority of residents spoke in favor of reunification with the Russian Federation.
Crimea view
RIA News
© Ilya Pitalev
However, Ukraine did not recognize the will of the Crimeans and still considers the region "temporarily occupied".
Not so long ago, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an interview with the Dom TV channel called Crimea “his land”, noting that this territory allegedly “would never be Russian”.
In addition, Kiev from time to time promises to "return" the lost lands.
Thus, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov announced a possible, in his opinion, scenario for the “return” of Crimea, suggesting that this would happen “in the foreseeable future”.
In addition, Ukraine initiated the creation of the "Crimean Platform" - according to Zelensky, this is "an international platform for the search and further implementation of a set of measures to de-occupy the peninsula and protect the rights of Crimeans."
However, Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the question of ownership of the peninsula is closed.
As previously reported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, the referendum was held "in strict accordance with international law, with the charter of the United Nations."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that "the fate and future of Crimea is forever with Russia, whether someone likes it or not."
At the same time, he called the "Crimean Platform" a "sabbath" at which Western countries will "continue to nurture neo-Nazi, racist sentiments of the modern Ukrainian government."
"Warm up the interest of the world community"
As Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics of the Moscow State Pedagogical University, noted in a conversation with RT, Ukraine's "unfounded and contradictory" statements about "crimes" against cultural heritage in Crimea and sending a corresponding message to the International Criminal Court should be considered primarily in the context of preparations for the summit "Crimean platform".
“Under this key ideological event, Kiev is pulling up this kind of artificially created news feeds.
They are designed to demonstrate the importance of the Crimea theme for Ukraine, as well as support for the country's actions by the international community.
In this context, Kiev is undertaking large-scale propaganda efforts aimed primarily at Western countries in order to form an appropriate opinion there about what is happening in Crimea, ”the analyst said.
In turn, Vladimir Olenchenko, senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at the IMEMO RAS, in an interview with RT, noted that the statements of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine are "profanity and naked propaganda", voiced on the eve of the Crimean Platform summit.
“But even this will not help this event.
On it, the Baltic countries will admire the consistency of Ukraine on the so-called "Crimean issue", and Kiev will sing praises to how cleverly the Baltic republics organize their propaganda on this matter.
But none of the participants in this summit will have specific materials for discussion.
Now Kiev needs to somehow stir up the interest of the world community in this topic, ”the analyst explained.
At the same time, as Shapovalov said, it is already clear that the summit of the "Crimean Platform" "failed".
“Kiev has positioned it as a project to promote its interests, but none of the world's leading leaders of significant countries in the world will visit the Crimean Platform.
But the Ukrainian authorities still strive to consolidate in the minds of the Western average person the image of Ukraine as a country that cares about Crimea and its historical heritage, ”the expert said.
However, in fact, it was during the period of Crimea's joining Ukraine that Kiev not only did not care about its cultural values, but also destroyed them, Shapovalov stated.
According to him, the policy of the Ukrainian authorities contributed to the plundering of the peninsula, since without any control from the state, lands related to cultural heritage sites were seized and illegal buildings were erected.
“In addition, the Ukrainian authorities have practically not allocated any resources to maintain the historical and cultural heritage of this region.
They were never interested in Chersonesos or the Khan's Palace in Bakhchisarai, but the emphasis was on embroidered shirts, ancient ukras, and so on.
Now, when Crimea is a Russian territory, Moscow has sent colossal funds there to preserve the legacy of the peninsula, ”the analyst emphasized.
The territory of the national reserve "Chersonesos Tauric" in Sevastopol
RIA News
© Vladimir Astapkovich
Shapovalov recalled that the total amount of funding for activities under the state program for the development of culture, archival affairs and the preservation of cultural heritage sites of the Republic of Crimea from 2017 to 2024 is more than 28 billion rubles.
This money will be used, among other things, for the overhaul of cultural and cultural heritage sites, the restoration of military graves, the installation of memorial signs and work with archival documents.
“At the same time, all archaeological activities are being carried out and will be carried out absolutely legally and in accordance with the norms of Russian legislation,” the expert concluded.