Ukraine's National Commission for UNESCO strongly condemned the Russian attack on Kyiv on September 28, which damaged the building of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the press service of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Telegram.
The commission said the damaged building houses the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine – the country's leading national scientific institution and the central body for organizing and coordinating scientific research in Ukraine – as well as the leadership of the Science Sector of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO.
"Therefore, the damage to the Presidium building is not only physical damage inflicted on a historic structure but also a serious blow to the institution that is the heart of Ukraine's scientific and intellectual life," the statement reads.
The National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO also said that Russian attacks are systematically causing damage to Ukrainian scientific, educational, and cultural institutions. According to the commission, universities, libraries, museums, and archives are being damaged, and unique information sources, scientific achievements, archival materials, and other elements of the national scientific heritage are being destroyed.
"This is part of the Russian Federation's systematic policy aimed at destroying Ukrainian identity, historical memory, culture, science, and educational potential," the commission said.
The National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO has appealed to the Director-General of UNESCO, the relevant bodies of the Organization, and member states, demanding a principled assessment of Russia's systematic destruction of Ukraine's scientific, educational, and cultural heritage, in particular the attack on the building of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
The commission called on UNESCO to assist in documenting and recording the damage caused by Russian attacks on Ukrainian scientific institutions and collections, to strengthen international mechanisms for the protection of Ukraine's scientific and intellectual heritage, and to facilitate the preservation and digitization of scientific collections threatened with destruction as a result of Russian aggression. In addition, the commission called for drawing the international community's attention to Russia's systematic destruction of Ukraine's scientific and intellectual potential, increasing international pressure on Russia, and ensuring that those responsible are held accountable.
"The destruction of Ukrainian science is not only a crime against Ukraine. It is a blow to the world's scientific and intellectual heritage," the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO said.
As previously reported, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha had earlier called on UNESCO to strip Russia of its voting rights and the right to be elected to the organization's governing and working bodies following Russia's strike on the building of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in central Kyiv, which killed three people, including two academicians, and injured six others.
