Key points:
- In 2025, 307 cultural heritage sites in Ukraine were damaged due to the war.
- A total of 261 cultural infrastructure facilities were affected by shelling and hostilities.
- Total losses since the start of the full-scale invasion exceeded 4,000 cultural sites.
- The eastern and southern regions of Ukraine suffered the most damage.
- The Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund was created to protect and restore heritage sites.
In 2025, as a result of Russian aggression in Ukraine, 307 cultural heritage sites and 261 cultural infrastructure facilities were destroyed or damaged. These figures are cited in the field of cultural policy, emphasizing that the actual scale of losses may be higher due to the temporary occupation of part of the territory.
Read also:
The environmental consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, damage has been recorded to 1,640 cultural heritage sites and 2,446 cultural infrastructure facilities. Among the monuments that have been damaged, 153 have national significance, 1,333 have local significance, and 154 have just been discovered. Damage has been recorded in 18 regions of Ukraine.
The greatest losses were suffered by monuments in the Kharkiv region, where 344 cultural heritage sites were damaged. Significant destruction was also suffered by the Kherson region (297 sites), Odesa (182), Donetsk (175), and the Kyiv region, including the capital (163 monuments).
Large-scale losses of cultural infrastructure are recorded separately. A total of 2,446 objects were affected, of which 498 were completely destroyed. The most difficult situation remains in the Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Kyiv, Sumy, and Mykolaiv regions.
Clubs suffered the most damage, with 1,193 facilities damaged or destroyed. The library network suffered significant losses, with 854 institutions affected. In the field of arts education, 188 institutions were destroyed. The hostilities also affected 136 museums and galleries that preserved the cultural and historical heritage of the regions.
In addition, 50 theaters, cinemas, and concert halls, 11 parks and zoos, nine nature reserves, and four circuses were damaged. The destruction of a film studio in Kyiv is noted separately.
Due to the temporary occupation of almost the entire territory of the Luhansk region, as well as significant parts of the Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Kherson regions, it is currently impossible to accurately count the number of destroyed monuments and cultural institutions.
In response to the large-scale destruction, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, together with international partners, created the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Fund. Its mission is to mobilize international and national resources to protect, restore, and develop Ukrainian culture as the foundation of Ukraine’s identity, democracy, and European belonging. Work to overcome the consequences of the destruction and restore the country’s cultural potential continues.
Read also:
Russians intensify propaganda among children in occupied territories
