During his visit to the United States, President Volodymyr Zelensky participated in a ceremony to return cultural valuables that were stolen by Russian occupiers from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
This information is reported by the President’s office.
It is noted that in the presence of the Head of State, the US Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, and the Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States, Oksana Markarova, signed the corresponding certificate for the transfer of Ukrainian artifacts confiscated by US law enforcement agencies.
The President thanked all those involved for their work, which is also aimed at supporting Ukraine.
“Every time something is returned to Ukraine, something stolen by the Russians, it means the return of life and justice, which is very important”, he stated.
On her part, Markarova noted that Russians constantly try to steal Ukraine’s history, its national identity, and artifacts.
It is known that in June 2022, the US Customs and Border Protection detained an antique item, which, after a corresponding investigation, turned out to be a European iron ax from the 17th century with a hammer on the back. The ax was illegally exported from Ukraine to the territory of the United States.
Artifacts illegally imported into the US from Russia were also confiscated. These include three iron axes from the 17th century, three picks from the 17th century, two iron Scythian swords (akinakes) from the 6th century BC, and one iron spearhead from an estimated period of 500-1200 BC. These artifacts were confiscated for transfer to the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States through administrative procedures.
It is worth noting that on June 9th, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands ordered an archaeological museum in Amsterdam to transfer 565 exhibits from the exhibition “Crimea: The Golden Island in the Black Sea” to Kyiv. They were brought to the country in 2014 before the occupation of Crimea by Russia.
Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine
