The University for Continuing Education Krems has a close cooperation with Cappadocia University in Türkiye. In summer 2025, Berra Kızılyazı, student at the Department of Political Science and International Relations, visited Krems as an Erasmus+ intern and interviewed Ass.-Prof. Dr. Anna Kaiser, Head of the Center for Cultural Property Protection, on the impact of current armed conflicts on the global understanding of cultural property protection for the Ankara Center for Crisis and Policy Studies.
Dr. Kaiser explained how recent armed conflicts have shifted cultural property protection from a legal duty to an operational necessity. Concepts such as resilience and preparedness now shape strategies like digital surrogates, “no-strike” lists, and distributed custody. She stressed that cultural property protection must be integrated into military planning and alliance doctrines, though gaps remain between the Hague Convention’s principles and national implementation, particularly in training, site lists, and evidence collection.
Dr. Kaiser also highlighted how displacement threatens both monuments and living traditions. Forced migration disrupts custodianship and the intergenerational transfer of practices, making heritage vulnerable to loss or misuse. Emerging responses include diaspora stewardship, digital “first aid” measures, and community-led projects that sustain cultural continuity. Documentation protocols also help preserve displaced communities’ legal and historical claims. Bridging the gap between law and practice, she concluded, requires specialized units, compulsory training, and closer cooperation between cultural and legal authorities – ensuring heritage remains protected even in crisis.
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