The Cyprus Security and Defence Academy and the Polish Naval Academy co-organised a pilot course on the protection of intangible cultural heritage in armed conflicts and in the post-conflict, this week, under the auspices of the European Security and Defence College, a press release from the Defence Ministry said on Friday.
It is noted that the activity was organised with the support of the Deputy Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Cyprus and the Cyprus National UNESCO Committee and took place in Larnaca between September 19 and 22.
‘The seminar focused on intangible cultural heritage, which has a significant impact on local community resilience during conventional and hybrid conflicts,’ it said. The seminar, it added, presented the link between intangible cultural heritage and social resilience during crises, armed conflicts and post-conflict periods. In addition, the participants were briefed about the EU institutions, the competent bodies of the Member States involved in the prevention and management of crises and conflicts, as well as in the stabilisation and recovery after the conflict, in view of the need for the protection of the intangible cultural heritage.
A total of 21 participants from Greece, Poland, Georgia, Ukraine, Germany, Cyprus and Romania participated in the seminar. From Cyprus, personnel from the Ministry of Defence, the National Guard and the Cyprus Police participated.
The participants who successfully completed the seminar as well as the online courses of the European Security and Defence College that preceded it, were awarded certificates of attendance, signed by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell.
The opening ceremony on September 19, was attended by ambassadors of Greece, Austria, Romania and other diplomats, the permanent secretary of the Deputy Ministry of Culture, Emmanuela Lambrianides, and the Ambassador of Poland to Cyprus, Marek Szczepanowski.
Source: Cyprus News Agency