116 Features / Cultural Property Protection JFQ 74, 3 rd Quarter 2014 Military Involvement in Cultural Property Protection An Overview By Joris D. Kila and Christopher V. Herndon I n June 2009, the United States ratified the 1954 Hague Conven- tion for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Con- flict (the 1954 Hague Convention). This makes government protection of cultural property mandatory. Recent conflicts in Iraq, Egypt, Libya, Mali, and Syria have triggered renewed interest in Cultural Property Protec- tion (CPP). The obligations of CPP are included in international treaties and military regulations and com- plicated by various stakeholders with different levels of understanding and willingness to invest in training and application. Dr. Joris D. Kila is a Senior Researcher in the Kompetenzzentrum Kulturelles Erbe und Kulturgüterschutz at the University of Vienna and a Reserve Lieutenant Colonel in the Royal Netherlands Army. Colonel Christopher V. Herndon, USA, is Division Chief for Central Africa in the Strategy, Plans, and Programs Directorate (J5), U.S. Africa Command. Repatriation ceremony including nine colonial paintings, monstrance, and four pre- Columbian objects marks return of collection of cultural property, art, and antiquities looted from Peru; pictured: Saint Rose of Lima painting (ICE/Paul Caffrey)