On September 20, in Naples, a bilateral meeting took place between the Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, Mykola Tochytskyi, and the Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office of Germany for International Cultural Policy, Katja Keul.
“russia doesn’t need more territory, as it already has plenty. This is more about the trauma of the Soviet Union’s collapse, fueled by the narrative that without Ukraine, russia can never be an empire. putin continues to push his strategy of restoring the USSR, under the guise of culture and cultural heritage,” said Mykola Tochytskyi. “Regretfully, we have lost many historical sites during this war. Some we will never be able to restore, as they have been completely destroyed. But I am convinced that culture is the identifier that distinguishes Ukrainians from russians and enables us to fight and remain strong.”
During the meeting, the ministers discussed the need for effective countermeasures against disinformation and russian propaganda. Mykola Tochytskyi referred to the situation surrounding a film by a russian-Canadian director, which was recently shown at the Venice Film Festival and the Canadian TIFF.
“This film portrays the so-called ‘good russians’ as people supposedly forced to fight. This is dangerous, as indirect funding of such projects by democratic governments supports russian propaganda,” noted the Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine.
As a result of the negotiations, the parties agreed to collaborate in the field of strategic communications and to exchange experiences on building partnerships between business and culture.
