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Hermitage cancels archaeological expeditions in Crimea <p>All archaeological expeditions that the State Hermitage Museum had planned to conduct in occupied Crimea have been canceled, archaeologist Alexander Butyagin told the outlet Rotonda. Butyagin was detained in Poland over excavations on the occupied peninsula before being released as part of a prisoner exchange with Russia.<p>

Russian Archaeologist Alexander Butyagin Freed in Prisoner ... Russian Archaeologist Alexander Butyagin Freed in Prisoner Exchange on the Belarus-Poland border Arte Salvata 28 Apr 2026 Aggiornato: 28 Apr 2026 By Sophia Shub Condividi Facebook X WhatsApp Linkedin Stampa E-mail Alexander Butyagin WARSAW, APRIL 28, 2026 – After nearly five months in detention and with extradition to Ukraine appearing imminent, Russian archaeologist Alexander Butyagin returned to freedom as part of a high-profile prisoner exchange carried out on the Belarus-Poland border . The “five for five” swap , negotiated among several East European governments, abruptly ended what had become one of the most controversial legal cases involving an archaeologist since the outbreak of the Crimean sovereignty dispute. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski confirmed that Warsaw had released “a Russian historian in transit to Ukraine,” while Butyagin’s lawyer Adam Domański later stated that the scholar had indeed been included in the exchange. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on the Belarus-Poland border As Etruscan Times reported , Poland had been preparing to extradite Butyagin following a Warsaw court decision …

Polish Court Approves Extradition Of Russian Archaeologist To Ukraine Share Share A district court in Warsaw has approved a Ukrainian request to extradite Russian archaeologist Aleksandr Butyagin, a prominent scholar accused by Kyiv of illegally conducting excavations in annexed Crimea and damaging cultural heritage sites. The court recognized "the full admissibility" of Ukraine's request, which followed Butyagin’s arrest in December 2025. Butyagin's lawyer said he would appeal the decision, which Russia's Foreign Ministry called “political.” The 54-year-old archaeologist will remain in custody in Poland during any appeal. Butyagin was detained in Warsaw while traveling from the Netherlands, where he had been delivering lectures, based on an international warrant issued by Ukrainian authorities. According to prosecutors, Ukraine accuses him of damaging a cultural heritage site during archaeological work in Crimea, causing losses estimated at more than 200 million hryvnyas (about $4.8 million). If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison. The charges stem from excavations carried out after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Ukraine considers such work illegal without …

Punishment for excavations in occupied Crimea: Poland has approved the ... Ілюстрація від ШІ Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Kravchenko 18 March 2026 reported that a court in Poland approved the extradition to Ukraine of Russian archaeologist Oleksandr Butyahin , who heads a sector at the “State Hermitage” . According to the Ukrainian side, this is the first case in which Ukraine ‘s request for the extradition of a RF citizen has received such a judicial assessment. As reported, this concerns the decision of the District Court of Warsaw , which found the extradition of the Russian archaeologist legally admissible. At the same time, the Office of the Prosecutor General stresses: this is not yet the end of the entire procedure, as an appeal and further decisions by the competent authorities of Poland are still possible. According to Ruslan Kravchenko , after the occupation of Crimea Butyahin for years organized and carried out illegal archaeological excavations at the nationally significant site “Ancient city of Mirmekiy” . The prosecutor’s office believes that under the cover of so‑called “expeditions” the cultural heritage site was effectively excavated, damaged and partly de…

The Hermitage has cancelled all archaeological expeditions to Crimea ... The Russian State Hermitage Museum has cancelled all archaeological expeditions in the temporarily occupied Crimea. According toCensor.NET, Espresoreportsthis, citing Russian media. More news on theCensor.NET Telegram channel According to Russian media reports, this year’s archaeological work has been moved to the Kuban region due to the deteriorating security situation. Archaeologist Alexander Butyagin, who had previously found himself at the centre of an international scandal due to his involvement in excavations in the annexed Crimea, made this statement in an interview with the Russian publication *Rotonda*. In particular, the Myrmekian archaeological expedition near Kerch, led by Butyagin, will not be working on the peninsula this year. A notice to participants stated that the decision had been taken "in light of the escalating situation". Difficult logistics and problems with travelling to Crimea were cited as further reasons. According to the publication, the Hermitage had previously carried out at least nine archaeological expeditions on the occupied peninsula. Read more:Two oil refineries, rai…

Press release on the detention of Russian citizen Alexander Butyagin ... On January12,  Ambassador of Poland to the Russian Federation Krzysztof Krajewski was summoned to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where a strong protest was expressed to him in connection with the detention in Warsaw, in December 2025, of a distinguished Russian archaeologist, Alexander Butyagin, at Kiev’s request. It was pointed out to Ambassador Krajewski  that the Kiev regime’s accusations against Mr Butyagin were absurd, being related to his scientific work as a member of the Myrmekion Archaeological Expedition in the Republic of Crimea, which is an inalienable part of the Russian Federation. The openly politicised and wild nature of the Ukrainian persecution against the Russian scientist is further underscored by the fact that the Interpol has refrained from acting on the Ukrainian request and that Mr Butyagin had travelled unimpeded to several European countries immediately prior to his arrest in Poland. The Polish Ambassador was presented with evidence confirming that Alexander Butyagin, who is a world-renowned Russian archaeologist and a staff member of the State Hermitage Museum, has conduct…

Hermitage archaeologist in Poland arrested for illegal excavations in ... Society Hermitage archaeologist in Poland arrested for illegal excavations in occupied Crimea 11 December 2025 16:08 A Russian archaeologist and employee of the Hermitage Museum, Alexander Butyatin, was arrested in Poland for illegal excavations in Crimea after the annexation of the peninsula. Now the Russian will spend at least 40 days in temporary detention. This is reported by the Polish radio station RMF FM with reference to the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports. According to the investigation, Alexander Butyagin, as the head of the Hermitage archaeological expedition, conducted excavations at a cultural heritage site in the “Ancient City of Myrmecium” in Kerch without any permission from the competent authorities of Ukraine. These actions are currently classified as a violation of Ukrainian legislation on the protection of cultural heritage, as these excavations led to the partial destruction of the Ancient City of Myrmekia in Kerch. The amount of damage is estimated at over UAH 200 million. The Ukrainian side emphasizes that Crimea remains a region of systematic dest…