Role of Polish Armed Forces and Crisis Management System in Cultural Property Protection – review and analysis

Abstract

Deterring a crisis or war requires the commitment of large forces and resources that may include armed forces, security services or other non-military defense elements. The entire crisis management system is organized by the public administration. A crisis and the threat of war necessitate the implementation of a wide range of tasks aimed at securing life, health and property. Cultural property is a special category of property protected under the Polish legal system. The Republic of Poland undertook to protect it upon accession to the Hague Convention of 1954 on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Time of an Armed Conflict. This international agreement, along with the Polish experiences of the Second World War, laid the foundations for building an efficiently functioning system for the protection of cultural property during an armed conflict. Recent years have brought an increase in global interest in this area. Asymmetric threats against cultural heritage objects forced the involvement of military entities in developing security mechanisms. The author will provide an overview of national institutions tasked with the protection of cultural property in times of peace, assess the quality of these institutions as well as propose de lege ferenda postulates that could improve their functioning.