According to the World Bank, the losses in Ukraine’s culture and tourism sector, including lost revenues, amounted to USD 19.6 billion. This data only relates to Ukrainian-controlled and de-occupied territories. This was stated by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during the conference “United for Justice. United for Heritage”.

He added that USD 8.9 billion was needed for the long-term restoration of what had been damaged and destroyed.

“The enemy is committed to an ideology of total destruction. It destroys homes, schools and kindergartens, hospitals and power plants, factories and farms. It also wipes out churches, museums, theatres, historical buildings and monuments,” Denys Shmyhal said.

The Prime Minister stressed that the United for Justice platform should be used to develop joint solutions and mechanisms to implement the “russia will pay” principle.

The Head of Government noted that the aggressor did not hesitate to destroy what it had declared yesterday to be its cultural heritage. That is why Kharkiv, Donetsk and Odesa regions suffer the most from russian attacks on cultural heritage. In total, the russians have targeted more than 900 historical and cultural sites.

In addition, more than 20,000 cultural monuments of national and local significance are under occupation.

“putin’s regime is continuing the centuries-old tradition of cultural plunder that began in the russian Empire and continued in the USSR. That is why we need an immediate international response to the shadow trade in cultural goods. We need to create a reliable legal framework, strengthen security measures and improve cooperation between law enforcement agencies of different countries,” the Prime Minister stressed.

The Head of Government underlined the importance of a thorough and accurate assessment of losses and damages in the cultural sector. According to him, this information will form the basis of evidence for international judicial institutions.

“Therefore, all cultural heritage sites destroyed or damaged as a result of the russian aggression will be entered into a special state register. It will be one of the tools for determining the amount of compensation from russia,” said Denys Shmyhal.

According to the Prime Minister, the world needs a precedent for punishing vandalism and savagery in the cultural sphere. This will be of great importance for all mankind, for the protection and preservation of the heritage of our civilisation in all parts of the world and on all continents.

The Prime Minister thanked UNESCO for its effective cooperation during the war, in particular for granting enhanced protection status to 20 Ukrainian sites, for excluding russia from the organisation’s Executive Board and for electing Ukraine to the World Heritage Committee.

The Prime Minister also thanked the partners who agreed to patronise the restoration of historic sites.