Key facts
- A Russian lieutenant general was charged in absentia with ordering the strike on the Hryhoriy Skovoroda National Literary Memorial Museum.
- The museum, dedicated to 18th-century Ukrainian philosopher Hryhorii Skovoroda, was struck by a Russian missile on May 6, 2022.
- The general is accused of knowing the target was a cultural monument and not a military one.
- As of September 2026, 2,161 cultural heritage sites and 2,665 cultural institutions in Ukraine had been damaged or destroyed.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General announced on October 29, 2026, that a Russian lieutenant general has been charged in absentia for ordering the missile strike on the Hryhoriy Skovoroda National Literary Memorial Museum in Kharkiv Region. The attack occurred on May 6, 2022, when a Russian missile hit the museum located in Skovorodynivka, causing significant damage. The Prosecutor General stated the general, originally from Chuhuiv in Kharkiv Oblast and commanding Russia's 6th Guards Air and Air Defense Forces Army, knew the target was a cultural monument. Hryhorii Skovoroda is a significant figure in Ukrainian intellectual history, and the museum was housed in his final estate. Russia has been accused of repeatedly targeting Ukraine's cultural heritage during the ongoing conflict, with thousands of sites and institutions damaged or destroyed.