Strike on Dormition Cathedral undermines Kremlin's propagandist narrative about Russia as 'Christianity’s defender', experts say

EUvsDisinfo, as quoted by Detector Media, explained how Russian propaganda links the defense of Orthodoxy to attacks on churches.

EUvsDisinfo investigated the Russian strike on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in June 2026. As a result of this attack, the Dormition Cathedral — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — sustained damage. The report notes that this incident undermines the Kremlin’s propaganda narrative, which claims that Russia acts as a protector of Orthodox holy sites and would never target sacred locations.

In an effort to shift the blame for the destruction of the Lavra, Russian propaganda accused Ukraine of shelling its own holy site, asserting that Russia adheres to international norms regarding the protection of cultural heritage. However, EUvsDisinfo emphasizes that these statements contradict documented facts. According to UNESCO and Ukrainian authorities, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has damaged or destroyed 536 cultural heritage sites, including the historic centers of Odesa and Lviv, St. Sophia Cathedral, and the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

Additionally, experts have rejected the Kremlin’s claims regarding the so-called “Russian” origins of Ukrainian holy sites. Russian propaganda systematically appropriates the history of Kyivan Rus’, neglecting to mention that Prince Volodymyr the Great ruled in Kyiv, while Moscow emerged much later. The Kremlin uses this historical manipulation to justify its political claims on Ukraine.

The article also points out that Russia accompanies its missile strikes with information campaigns that deny responsibility for the destruction of Ukrainian culture and accuse the West and international organizations of indifference toward Ukrainian heritage. In reality, international and Ukrainian data indicate significant destruction of cultural sites, looting of museum artifacts, and multibillion-dollar losses caused by Russian aggression.

Analysts note that strikes on cultural sites escalate amid Russia’s increasing military difficulties on the battlefield. They believe the Kremlin is attempting to compensate for its setbacks by targeting cultural heritage while simultaneously using disinformation to hide its war crimes and maintain a false image as a “liberator.”