Ukraine has called for an urgent meeting with the UN Security Council to discuss Russia’s latest massive strikes, including the attack on the UNESCO World Heritage site Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.
According to a statement from Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, the meeting will convene on Monday, June 22 at 10 p.m. local time, held at Kyiv’s request in response to Russia’s missile and drone barrages.
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“We expect Council members to deliver a clear message,” Sybiha said. He added: “Russia should realize that neither Ukraine nor the international community will compromise on the principles of the UN Charter and international law.”
Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra: Russia’s war on Ukrainian culture
Overnight June 15, Russia launched a massive combined air assault, firing 681 aerial weapons, including missiles and drones on Kyiv as the primary target.
“Such attacks leave scars far beyond the battlefield – taking lives, devastating communities, and damaging cultural heritage that carries the memory and identity of a nation,” Sybiha said.
Maksym Ostapenko, director of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Preserve, said more than 20 fire crews worked under continuing missile and drone threats to contain the fire before it spread inside the cathedral.
According to Ostapenko, around 800 square meters (8,600 square feet) of roofing were damaged, while artifacts and relics dating from the 16th to 18th centuries that were on display inside the cathedral were evacuated.
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“When the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra comes under attack, this is not only about Ukraine. It is about heritage that belongs to all humanity,” Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Minister of Culture Tetyana Berezhn wrote on Facebook, noting the site’s enhanced protection under international cultural property conventions.
Continuous attempts at erasing Ukrainian identity
The strike on Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra carries a deeper meaning and memory of the identity of Ukraine’s nation, as it is one of the country’s most important religious and cultural landmarks.
Beyond the physical damage, these kinds of attacks are framed as seen as deliberate attempts of erasing tradition woven into Ukraine’s history.
The Russian attack on June 15 also hit the Mystetskyi Arsenal, one of Ukraine’s leading cultural institutions and a major museum and exhibition complex, with another strike affecting the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Film Studio, where a fire destroyed Ukraine’s largest and oldest costume collection.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has stolen or destroyed 2,336 cultural valuables from Ukraine as of April 1, 2026, with 289 individuals and 53 legal entities identified as involved in the looting.
The database – launched jointly by the Ministry of Culture and Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence – shows that more than 1,233 paintings were stolen from the Kherson Art Gallery alone.
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