On May 23, the Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, Oleksandr Tkachenko, visited the Republic of Poland and participated in a meeting in the format of the Lublin Triangle together with his counterparts Piotr Gliński, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland, and Simonas Kairys, Minister of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania. During the joint briefing, the ministers signed the Lublin Triangle Declaration. The declaration expresses support for Ukraine in the protection of its cultural heritage, knowledge exchange, support for artists, and the establishment of a European Fund for Ukraine’s cultural and creative sector.
At the invitation of Piotr Gliński, Oleksandr Tkachenko and Simonas Kairys visited the Krakow Museum of Princes Czartoryski and the exhibition “Expression. Lviv Rococo Sculpture – Works by Johann Pinzel from the Collection of the Lviv National Art Gallery” at the Wawel Royal Castle. Afterwards, they participated in the official opening of the exposition “Wilno, Vilnius, Vilne 1918-1948. One city – many stories’ ‘ at the National Museum in Krakow. This exhibition, prepared on the occasion of Vilnius’ 700th anniversary, is a joint project of the National Museum in Krakow and the Lithuanian National Art Museum in Vilnius.
During the joint briefing, the ministers of Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania signed the Lublin Triangle Declaration. The declaration reflects the agreement of the signatories to support Ukraine in various international formats for the protection of its cultural heritage and values, exchange of knowledge, provide support to Ukrainian artists and cultural professionals, contribute to the reconstruction of Ukraine, and establish a European fund for the protection and reconstruction of the cultural and creative sector.
“I am very glad to be in Krakow today, because I have two true friends by my side. If we need to fight together for the interests of Ukraine, I know who to turn to. We are immensely grateful to your two governments for their assistance with weapons and support for our artists. It is crucial that we share an understanding of the values of our cultural heritage. Thank you for supporting Ukrainian culture in Ukraine, as our cultural artists continue to work, theaters and museums remain open, and people are eager to engage with culture during the war. This year, we celebrate the anniversary of the Polish uprising, in which Ukrainians also participated. The motto of this uprising “For your freedom and ours” is still relevant even today,” said Oleksandr Tkachenko.
The ministers from Poland and Lithuania emphasized that solidarity with Ukraine is growing stronger. New measures are being developed as part of multidimensional assistance to both the Ukrainian population and the broader cultural sector. In particular, the successful digitalization of many cultural heritage objects and significant efforts towards developing a unified platform for Ukraine’s museum heritage were highlighted. Additionally, an inventory project has been initiated.
In February 2022, an online meeting of the ministers of Culture of Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania took place. During the meeting, the ministers signed the Declaration of intent for cooperation within the framework of the Lublin Triangle between the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland.
In April 2022, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland Piotr Gliński, and Minister of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, Simonas Kairys, visited Ukraine with their delegations. The visit marked an important milestone in the advancement of trilateral cooperation between Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania within the framework of the Lublin Triangle.
