Key facts
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed replacing a toppled Lenin statue in Kyiv with a monument to Cossack leader Ivan Mazepa.
- The move is part of Ukraine's ongoing decolonisation and identity reclamation efforts.
- Mazepa, historically portrayed as a traitor by Russia, is being reclaimed as a national hero.
- Monuments to Soviet and Russian cultural figures like Lenin and Mikhail Bulgakov are being removed.
- A new bust of Mazepa has been erected at the Pechersk Lavra monastery, which was recently hit by Russian missiles.
Kyiv is considering replacing a toppled statue of Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin with a monument to Ivan Mazepa, a Cossack military and political leader who fought for Ukraine's independence. The plinth where the Lenin sculpture once stood has been empty since 2013, after it was dismantled during the Maidan revolution.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed the swap, stating, 'I am certain that where Lenin fell, Mazepa will stand firm.' This initiative is part of a broader effort in Ukraine to decolonize and reclaim national identity, a process that has accelerated since Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and its full-scale invasion in 2022.
Experts and commentators view the move as a significant step in Ukraine's struggle to define itself independently from Russia. Professor Nataliia Kryvda of Taras Shevchenko National University described the process as an 'unfinished period of decolonisation,' emphasizing Ukraine's distinct mindset and historical destiny. She supports the Mazepa monument, calling him an 'architect of European Ukraine,' despite his complex historical portrayal.
Writer Alim Aliev highlighted that Ukraine is now discussing its past 'without mediators,' citing the removal of statues of Russian figures like Pushkin and Bulgakov as examples of this shift. The director of the Bulgakov museum noted that while Bulgakov was a satirist, his writings from a Russian imperial perspective make him unacceptable in the current climate.
A bust of Mazepa has been erected at the Pechersk Lavra, an ancient Kyiv monastery that was recently struck by Russian missiles. Mazepa, who historically allied with Sweden against Russia, has been depicted as a traitor by Russian narratives, a portrayal Ukraine is now actively countering.