Russia strikes Kramatorsk daily. The city is putting its monuments out of harm’s way

Kramatorsk dismantled some of its monuments and shipped them outside Donetsk Oblast on 13 May, the city council announced. The decision came as the front line approaches and Russian attacks on the city continue. Specialists are now studying whether additional heritage objects can also be moved.

Monuments and sculptures out of Donetsk Oblast

The dismantled works include monuments to Ukrainian national poet Taras Shevchenko and the actor Leonid Bykov. Workers also removed a bas-relief of dissident poet Vasyl Stus. The sculpture compositions "Born in Ukraine" and "Scythian Girl" also left their pedestals.

Workers craned the busts off their pedestals and loaded them onto trucks. All are now in safe storage outside Donetsk Oblast.

What may follow

Specialists are studying the technical possibility of dismantling and evacuating the memorial honoring liquidators of the Chornobyl nuclear disaster. Work continues to determine the historical and cultural value of other objects that may require additional preservation measures during wartime.

"Preserving cultural heritage is not only a question of memory, but also responsibility before future generations of Ukrainians," the Council said.

A city under daily Russian fire

Russian forces struck Kramatorsk five times on 13 May, the city council reported the next day. The 23:15 strike on the private sector wounded one woman. Earlier strikes hit homes, parking lots, and apartment blocks using Molniya-2 and first-person view (FPV) drones. Russia hit the city center with aviation bombs on 5 May, killing residents.