Theodora Dell, deputy USAID mission director in Ukraine, says that the purpose of Russian aggression is to erase Ukrainian culture and national identity.

She said at the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage forum in Kyiv on Thursday that Russia's full-scale aggression is aimed at many monuments, archives, libraries and cultural sites. The purpose of this aggression, according to her, is to erase Ukrainian culture and national identity of Ukraine from the pages of history.

Dell stressed that it is extremely important to unite to preserve the Ukrainian cultural heritage.

She said that strengthening Ukrainian culture is a collective effort that requires cooperation between the government, civil society and the private sector.