According to Ukrinform, he announced this during an event marking the 975th anniversary of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

“Here, at the Lavra, and at other places like this—at our national shrines—you feel like you’re part of something much greater and longer-lasting than your personal history, your personal experiences, and your personal memories. We must preserve every one of these national shrines. And we must do so all the more now, when the challenges of the passage of time have been compounded by the challenges of a completely godless, senseless Russian war against Ukraine and against all the places that embody our culture, history, and memory—against all the places that embody humanity,” Zelensky emphasized.

During his speech, the President also announced the preparation of a draft law on Ukrainian national shrines in time for Independence Day. He called on lawmakers to support this initiative “to clearly define what constitutes our shrines and what steps are needed to protect them throughout Ukraine.”

The decree “On the National Sacred Sites of the Ukrainian People” has been published on the President’s website under No. 726/2026.

According to the document, the Cabinet of Ministers has been tasked with ensuring that a draft law is developed by August 24, which will provide for:

the establishment of criteria for granting the status of a national shrine of the Ukrainian people and the inclusion in the relevant list of sites with the status of a monument of national significance and/or a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site that are outstanding and unique centers of the Ukrainian people’s historical memory, spirituality, and culture, as well as the formation of the Ukrainian political nation and statehood;

standardizing the process for compiling the list of national shrines of the Ukrainian people;

additional measures for the protection of sites included in such a list, and the corresponding powers of government authorities, in particular regarding the approval and implementation of state programs to protect these sites, taking into account international standards and practices;

liability for the destruction and damage of sites designated as national shrines of the Ukrainian people;

Among other things, the President directed the government to organize, in accordance with established procedures, the preparation and promotion of nominations of Ukrainian cultural heritage sites of outstanding universal value, for inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List and to take additional measures to improve state policy in the field of protecting monuments of national significance and UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites in the context of the Russian Federation’s armed aggression against Ukraine, in particular by introducing effective mechanisms and innovative approaches in this area.

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has been instructed by the relevant decree to take measures to:

widely inform the international community about Russia’s crimes against UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites on the territory of Ukraine and other sites of Ukrainian cultural heritage;

intensifying cooperation with foreign states and international organizations to develop effective measures to hold Russia accountable for crimes against Ukraine’s cultural heritage, particularly as part of the world’s cultural heritage;

facilitating the proper submission and support within UNESCO of nominations for Ukrainian cultural heritage sites, and mobilizing international support for their inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List;

to secure funding from international financial organizations, investors, international technical and/or repayable or non-repayable financial assistance, reparations, or other recoveries from the Russian Federation, as well as from other sources not prohibited by Ukrainian law, for the protection, preservation, and restoration of Ukraine’s historical and cultural monuments.

As reported, a solemn state-church ceremony was held on August 15 to mark the 975th anniversary of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Among those attending the event were President Volodymyr Zelensky, UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany, and Metropolitan Epiphanius of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

Photo: Office of the President