A pioneer in the protection of cultural heritage, Greece was elected, on 3 December 2019, to the UNESCO Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, for 2020-2023.
This major success comes in the wake of important initiatives our country has taken in this field, such as hosting of the international conference on Protection of Cultural Heritage from the impacts of Climate Change, the results of which were presented by the Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, at a special event held on the margins of the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Week in New York this past September.
This new success is practical recognition of Greece's prominent role in Culture and is indicative of the trust put in it by UNESCO in the critical and very demanding sector of protection of cultural assets.
More specifically, the following countries were elected to fill the 6 empty seats on the Committee in question: Austria, with 63 votes; Greece, with 62 votes; Estonia, with 59 votes; Morocco, with 53 votes; the Czech Republic, with 46 votes; and Nigeria, with 45 votes. Afghanistan and Libya received 39 and 32 votes, respectively.
December 4, 2019