On the collapsed cornice of St. Sophia of Kyiv
On June 10, Culture Minister Rostyslav Tochytskyi announced that the Saint Sophia Cathedral had been damaged during a night-time Russian strike.
The minister strongly condemned the attack and emphasized that Ukraine would report it at the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee in Paris.
The same day, statements of outrage were issued by the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience. Yelenskyi’s office clarified that “the blast wave damaged a plaster cornice” located beneath the church roof. Without a doubt, the missiles and drones with which Russia bombards Ukrainian cities night after night are a crime. But some of our officials’ statements inevitably raise questions. Why?
In March, a cross fell from the Church of All Saints in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. After the recent dismissal of Ostapenko, the Ministry of Culture admitted that 21 structures in the Lavra reserve are in emergency condition. Judging by the appalling state of the Church of All Saints, it was likely among them. Yet immediately after the cross fell, officials claimed that the cause wasn’t mismanagement, but vague “vibrations” from Russian shelling.
Could we be seeing a similar situation here?
In January 2022, a cross also collapsed from St. Sophia Cathedral. At the time, experts inspecting the church stated that the roof was in critical condition. A repair plan was approved through 2028, but funding has yet to be allocated.
And further questions arise.
Following the night attack, Kyiv authorities did not report any missile interceptions or impacts in the vicinity of St. Sophia. Mayor Vitali Klitschko mentioned incidents in the Dniprovskyi, Obolonskyi, Podilskyi, Darnytskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts. But not a word about the city center.
Everyone knows that explosions usually shatter windows first. There are several windows right next to the collapsed cornice section – not one of them was damaged.
Let us stress once again: we unequivocally condemn the attacks on peaceful cities. But we also do not condone attempts to use the situation as cover to shift blame onto the enemy for potential failures in one’s own responsibilities.
Of course, it’s possible that vibrations reaching from Obolon or Troieshchyna were somehow catastrophic for the Sophia cornice. But let’s be honest – the chances seem slim.
