Ukrainians in the Khanenko Museum in Kyiv take defensive precautions to protect their last-standing art collections against what they say are "deliberate attacks" made by Russians against their cultural identity.
Last October, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine documented evidence of Russia's intentional killings and war crimes including torture and sexual violence, but one crime yet to be documented is cultural attacks against Ukraine.
This photograph taken on November 6, 2023 shows the entrance of the National Fine Arts Museum which was damaged in a late strike the day before in Odesa, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Ukrainian Interior Minister said 20 residential buildings, an art museum and infrastructure facilities were damaged in the city.
Russia's Heritage War Against Ukraine
Ihor Poshyvailo, co-founder of The Heritage Emergency Response Initiative, told CBS that Russia's objectives are to clearly "cast away" Ukrainian traditions, beliefs, and cultures as they are not needed by the aggressors.
Cultural institutions spread across Ukraine have been bombarded by Russian forces, and thousands of unique pieces of art have been reportedly looted.
Russian soldiers have also been arresting and "kidnapping" museum employees, leaving no one to safeguard important cultural artifacts.
In efforts to minimize the damage imparted by Russian missiles, the Khanenko Museum has moved all of its paintings, sculptures, and artifacts to an undisclosed location, leaving only barren halls within the museum where pieces of art used to be hung.
"It's very sad, generation of people grows without the museum, without this art, without this culture, because they cannot see it," said Yulia Vaganova, acting director of the museum.
That said, Vaganova explained that the art collection's protection from the attacks is not a hundred percent impregnable. With missiles constantly barraging Ukraine, even in a more "sheltered" location, the art won't be "totally protected."
For Vaganova, justice will only be achieved when Russia finally returns all of the stolen art, pays for all the destruction caused, and confesses to the crime they have committed.
"This is only the way," Vaganova stated.
The Khanenko Museum remains open to those who wish to visit its vacant rooms and be reminded of what has been lost.
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