Challenges to national defence in contemporary geopolitical situation

The protection of cultural heritage is an important element of a country’s cultural policy. The article describes the nature of threats posed by armed conflicts to cultural heritage and the destruction of Ukrainian cultural property by Russian aggression in 2022. The article aims at discussion of the consequences of Russia’s deliberate destruction of Ukrainian cultural heritage and offers an interdisciplinary insight into protection of cultural heritage during the contemporary armed conflict. These initial observations from Russian aggression against Ukraine serve as a starting point for a discussion on challenges related to the protection of cultural heritage during a potential armed conflict in Central and Eastern Europe. Drawing on practical observations from Ukraine, the article calls for improvements to the protection of cultural heritage in Poland.