Russia has signed the Council Europe’s Convention on Offences relating to Cultural Property, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on Friday.

"The convention drafted with Russia’s active participation is a unique international treaty, which creates the legal framework for effectively protecting cultural property in Europe and beyond," the ministry noted. "It provides for criminalizing a wide range of acts, including illegal imports from third countries, illegal exports, destruction, damage and trafficking in cultural property."

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry’s experts, the mere fact of hammering out such a legal tool "demonstrates states’ concern about the current situation in this sphere, indicating their willingness to take specific measures aimed at combating this type of crime.".