Christian Castagna, the advocacy manager for Pour l'Ukraine, explains to Tyzhden the investigative approach to the premeditated looting of cultural property, the role of the Duma, the FSB, and the Ministry of Culture, and the complementarity of Pour l'Ukraine's approach (premeditation) with that of its Ukrainian partners (specific crimes). He details the case of Chersonese, the dismantling of which was documented by satellites from 2015 to 2024.

Looting of Ukrainian cultural property, a double Russification

From February 24, 2022, the Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation, the Army of the Russian Federation, the Russian Ministry of Culture and the occupying authorities of the affected regions of Ukraine have carried out a systematic policy of destruction, appropriation and illicit export of Ukraine's cultural and historical heritage.

Following the annexations, the authorities of the Russian Federation have equipped themselves with a legislative arsenal aimed at modifying the ownership regime of all cultural property in the annexed Ukrainian regions.

The occupation, which began in February 2022, resulted in only minor thefts, but enabled the systematic, widespread, and organized "official" plundering of Ukraine's cultural heritage. Planned at the highest level and coordinated among various Russian federal and regional authorities, it has followed the same pattern since the first phase of the Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014.

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The Russian occupiers systematically confiscated inventories and other administrative documents listing the collections of Ukrainian museums and attesting to their ownership. Works looted since 2014 or 2022 have already been used in public exhibitions in Russia.

The spoliation consists of a double Russification or de-Ukrainization: both of the ownership of the alienated cultural property and of the narrative surrounding it.

Read the full interview with Christian Castagna on Tyzhden.fr

The UNESCO World Heritage site of Chersonesus in Crimea was systematically dismantled between 2015 and 2024, as evidenced by satellite images. This historical site was transformed into a museum glorifying "Novorossiya".

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"This is a crime against humanity. We have all the evidence, but [...] which jurisdiction is handling this situation?"

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The Duma legalized the plundering of Ukrainian culture through a methodical system reminiscent of Soviet planning.

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By collaborating with our Ukrainian partners, we have developed complementary approaches: they document specific cultural crimes (theft, destruction) while our team proves their systematic premeditation. Our research, although "cultural genocide" is not recognized under international law, provides evidence demonstrating that the deliberate erasure of Ukrainian heritage could constitute a component of the crime of genocide before the ICC.

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