At a ministerial meeting of donors at the Louvre Museum in Paris yesterday, Luxembourg joined a roughly 40-strong alliance for the protection of cultural heritage during armed conflict. At the invitation of the President of the French Republic, François Hollande, the Grand Duchy was represented by the secretary of state for culture, Guy Arendt.
Minister Arendt thanked France and the United Arab Emirates for taking the initiative to create this protection fund and underlined the importance of acting.
"If in all conflicts our primary goal is to protect the civilian population, heritage protection is by no means a secondary undertaking. For what the belligerents seek to destroy through the cultural and artistic heritage is the individual, his cultural roots and his history. In a nutshell: his identity and his dignity."
France and the United Arab Emirates initiated the alliance in December last year, with respective contributions of $30 million and $15 million each. The aim is to raise $100 million. Luxembourg has pledged to contribute €3 million over the coming years. An aggregate amount of $75.5 million (€70 million) has thus far been announced.
