First meeting of the ‘Cultural Ramstein’ format in Ukraine
On 1-2 February, Vice-Minister of Culture Dr Ingrida Veliutė participated in a high-level meeting of foreign partners and international organisations in Uzhhorod, Ukraine, dedicated to the resilience and restoration of Ukrainian culture. Ukraine aims to make such meetings a regular platform for coordination between Ukraine and its international partners, cooperating in the ‘Cultural Ramstein’ format.
‘Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, Lithuania has been supporting Ukrainian culture and media — from political support and sanctions to specific projects. I must mention the Vilnius Conference, where 31 countries and 7 organisations called for the integration of culture into the core of the process of reconstruction and restoration of Ukraine. We support the decisions to include culture in the conference on the restoration of Ukraine in Italy and later in the conference in Spain. This should have a domino effect,’ said Dr I. Veliutė at the meeting. ‘We all agree that cultural identity is directly linked to national security. We need to counter Russia’s aggressive cultural policy, which has a long track record of wiping sovereign nations off the world’s cultural map, and instead create a space for Ukrainian and European culture to flourish. International discussions with colleagues are leading to new ideas about the integration of disabled veterans returning on a massive scale. The influence of culture and heritage in this process is undeniable.’
Calling on the international community to actively preserve and promote Ukraine’s cultural heritage, in her speech, the Vice-Minister focused on three key aspects of preserving and building the resilience of Ukrainian culture: cultural heritage, cultural education, and professional competence. She presented the competence development programme launched in the country’s cultural institutions, under which more than a hundred professionals from Ukraine’s cultural heritage, museums, libraries and cinema sector will come to Lithuania this year alone to improve their knowledge and skills.
Lithuania’s specific activities in preserving Ukrainian culture and heritage include the active participation of Lithuanian cultural institutions in the safe transport, restoration and public exhibition of Ukrainian movable cultural assets, the integration of Ukrainian artists into international projects implemented by Lithuania, and the preparation of a joint application by Lithuania, Ukraine, and Poland for the inclusion of the Christmas Eve tradition uniting our countries in UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. The international project U-R-E-H-E-R-I-T, co-funded by Creative Europe and the Lithuanian Council for Culture, was also mentioned in relation to the reconstruction of Ukraine. This project, coordinated by the Lithuanian Union of Architects, is specifically aimed at integrating Ukraine’s cultural heritage into the reconstruction process in the country.
In the debate on the fight against the illegal transport of cultural assets, Dr I. Veliutė also expressed her support for the application of sanctions against individuals and organisations committing crimes against Ukraine’s cultural heritage. The Vice-Minister of Culture stressed that Lithuania fully supports Ukraine’s EU membership and that the Ministry of Culture is ready to assist Ukraine in bringing its legislation into line with EU laws and standards in the fields of culture, media, and copyright.
Representatives from 25 countries and international organisations attended the first ‘Cultural Ramstein’ conference entitled ‘Cooperation for Resilience’. The meeting outlined key priorities for strengthening the resilience of Ukraine’s cultural sector, discussed common threats to cultural heritage, measures to combat the illicit transport and sale of cultural assets, an action plan for concrete results, and adopted a joint declaration of the countries.
Photo by Tomas Ivanauskas
Last updated: 04-02-2025