22/06/2026 Culture, Science, Education and Media
In a declaration adopted unanimously today, the Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) strongly condemned the drone strikes that hit the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery on 15 June 2026.
Saint Sophia Cathedral and the monastic buildings of Kyiv Pechersk Lavra are two outstanding complexes on the UNESCO Word Heritage Site list. Founded by Saint Anthony and Saint Theodosius in the 11th century, the Pechersk Lavra monastery became a prominent spiritual and cultural centre that made a significant contribution to the development of education, art and medicine.
The same attack also damaged the Dovzhenko Film Studio and Mystetskyi Arsenal in Kyiv, the Kharkiv Art Museum, and the Dnipro House of Organ and Chamber Music, further endangering Ukraine’s cultural and historical heritage.
Assembly Resolution 2558 (2024) concludes that the Russian Federation is using cultural cleansing as a weapon of war within its broader campaign of extreme violence, to deny the existence of Ukrainian cultural identity and erase its historical roots, values, heritage, literature, traditions and language. The 15 June attack is yet another proof.
This cultural erasure and the deliberate destruction and looting of cultural property in Ukraine are blatant violations of both treaty and customary international law.
In line with the Assembly Resolution, the committee considers that the destruction and looting of cultural heritage constitute war crimes. It calls for robust sanctions for arbitrary military destruction and the strengthening of international legal frameworks to protect cultural property during armed conflicts.
The committee urges member states of the Council of Europe to support Ukraine in documenting the damages wrought and, in its efforts, to safeguard and preserve its cultural heritage with a holistic strategy, including transitional justice and post-conflict recovery efforts.