UNESCO withholds approval for Moscow Vladimir the Great statue

Despite previous reports that UNESCO had approved Moscow’s controversial Vladimir the Great statue, RIA Novosti reports today that the UN cultural and scientific body has not approved the erection of the monument on Borovitskaya Ploshchad.

The Russian authorities notified UNESCO of the statue due to its anticipated location on Borovitskaya Ploshchad near the Kremlin, which is included on the UNESCO World Heritage list along with Red Square.

UNESCO has stated, however, that the decision to erect the monument to Vladimir the Great on Borovitskaya Ploshchad was taken without the consultation of the Russian Foreign Ministry and does not adhere to the requirements of the Convention on the Protection of World Heritage.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (an advisory body to UNESCO) said that “the installation of the monument [in this location] could have a negative impact on the outstanding universal value of the object” and suggested that “to eliminate the possibility of such effects it is recommended that another location be chosen for the monument”.

It was previously reported that UNESCO had approved the statue on the condition that it did not exceed eight metres in height.

The statue was initially set to be 24 metres high and placed on Sparrow Hills, visible from much of Moscow. After tens of thousands of Muscovites signed a petition against this location, the Moscow authorities voted to erect the statue on Borovitskaya Ploshchad.

Source: RIA Novosti (in Russian)