Mayor's appeal
Mayor Jacek Majchrowski, who has served as the President of the Organisation of World Heritage Cities since June 2019, has issued an appeal condemning the Russian Federation's actions against Ukraine.
Appeal of Jacek Majchrowski, Mayor of Kraków
Yesterday Russia launched a military attack on the territory of Ukraine. The invasion is a threat to world peace and a serious blow to international law and order as it is, in fact, targeted not only against Central and Eastern Europe, but the entire world. It puts the development of our cities, as well as the prosperity and safety of their residents at great risk. War brings hazard to priceless cultural assets and leaves behind a trail of individual human tragedy and social harm in the form of migration or family breakdown.
As the Mayor of Kraków, a city which is now home to almost a hundred thousand Ukrainians, I condemn the military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
In the spirit of the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, and in particular Protocol II thereto, which sets out a catalog of measures protecting cultural property from the effects of military conflict and the principles of their protection to be applied during wartime operations and occupation, I appeal for cooperation for the protection of cultural property endangered by warfare.
Kraków stands in solidarity with Ukraine and declares readiness to help and support Ukrainian citizens. Together with the national government and local civil society organisations, we are already implementing emergency measures to address the needs of refugees and inhabitants of Ukrainian cities under attack. I have contacted my Ukrainian colleagues and partners: the Mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klychko and the Mayor of Lviv Andriy Sadovyi, expressing my support and solidarity.
World peace preconditions further development and a successful future of our cities. In this day and age, prosperity and stability of every city and every country are strongly correlated and interdependent. Today, war has arrived at our doorstep. Let us spare no effort to offer tangible support and efficient help to Ukrainians in this time of peril.
Jacek Majchrowski
