The Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack on St. Sophia's Cathedral in Kyiv, emphasizing that it is a continuation of Moscow's imperial policy aimed at destroying our national identity and Ukraine's contribution to world history and culture. This is stated on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reports UNN.
On the night of June 10, as a result of another massive Russian shelling of Kyiv, St. Sophia's Cathedral, a unique monument of the 11th century, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Kyiv: St. Sophia's Cathedral and related monastic structures, Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra", was damaged. The blast wave damaged the plastered cornice of the central apse of the eastern facade of St. Sophia's Cathedral
The ministry stressed that since 2023, the site has been on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to Russian attacks. The cathedral is also under enhanced protection under the Second Protocol of 1999 to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemns Russian terror, which threatens not only civilians, but also unique historical monuments with a thousand-year history, which are a cultural heritage of world level. This is a continuation of centuries of Moscow's imperial policy aimed at destroying our national identity and Ukraine's contribution to world history and culture
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also stressed that the destruction of historical monuments is a direct violation of international humanitarian law, and those responsible for it must be held accountable, and the aggressor state must be deprived of the right to vote at international platforms, in particular, the UN and UNESCO, as one that systematically violates their fundamental principles.
We call on UNESCO and the international community to increase pressure on the aggressor, who does not shy away from crimes against the cultural heritage of mankind, and to support our state in protecting its cultural values and sovereignty
We will remind
As a result of the night attack of the Russian Federation, St. Sophia's Cathedral in Kyiv and the Odesa Film Studio in Odesa were damaged.
The Ombudsman of Ukraine, Dmytro Lubinets, called on UNESCO, the UN and all international partners to give a clear assessment of the damage to St. Sophia's Cathedral in Kyiv due to the Russian attack, and to strengthen monitoring of the state of cultural and spiritual heritage sites of Ukraine.
The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience emphasized that by attacking the center of the Ukrainian capital and damaging St. Sophia of Kyiv, Russia committed a cynical crime against world culture. The attack on St. Sophia of Kyiv is an act of Russian vandalism at the state level.