On May 28, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Chairperson of the National Commission of Ukraine for UNESCO, Mariana Betsa, delivered remarks at the opening of the conference “Localizing the Sustainable Development Goals through museums and libraries.”

Mariana Betsa expressed her gratitude to Ukraine’s partners, including UNESCO and the Latvian National Commission for UNESCO, for co-organizing the event held at the Lviv Cultural Hub.

In her online address, the Deputy Minister emphasized the role of museums and libraries as carriers of knowledge and culture in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, and the urgent need to protect them amid the ongoing Russian aggression — including with the support of UNESCO.

“Russia has deliberately targeted museums and libraries, as they are the guardians of culture, memory, and our identity. Today, Russia is waging a genocidal war primarily against Ukrainian identity, which the aggressor state seeks to destroy,” emphasized Mariana Betsa. She informed participants about the number of Ukrainian museums and libraries that have been destroyed, damaged, or looted by the Russian aggressor.

The conference also featured welcome remarks from Ernesto Ottone, Assistant Director-General for Culture at UNESCO; Agnese Lāce, Chair of the Latvian National Commission for UNESCO; and Iryna Kulynych, Deputy Mayor of Lviv.

The conference brought together museum and library professionals from Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Moldova, Georgia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, who discussed the crucial role of preserving and developing museums and libraries in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.