Ukraine, where certain cities are the object of intense Russian bombardments, has a remarkable artistic, religious and natural heritage, including seven sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
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Read alsoFor fear of Russian bombs, Lviv's historic sculptures, statues and stained glass windows are protected
The director general of the organization, the French Audrey Azoulay, recently launched an appeal for the protection of these testimonies of the "rich history" of the country, the most emblematic of which is Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev.
This building was included in 1990 on the UNESCO World Heritage List along with two other monuments of the capital, the monastic ensemble of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and the Church of the Savior in Berestovo.
Kiev's Hagia Sophia, whose foundations date back to the 11th century, and whose current Ukrainian Baroque style appearance dates from the 18th century, is one of the country's best-known monuments with its golden onion spires, mosaics and icons.
This cathedral is a highly symbolic place for Ukrainians and for the Orthodox world: it had been designed to rival the Saint Sophia of Constantinople and to symbolize the
new Constantinople
, capital of a newly evangelized region, after the baptism of Saint Vladimir in l year 988.
Read alsoFor fear of Russian bombs, Lviv's historic sculptures, statues and stained glass windows are protected
Second in importance in the Ukrainian list of Unesco: the ensemble of the historic center of Lviv.
This city of 700,000 inhabitants, located in the west of the country, has been listed as a World Heritage Site since 1998.
Founded at the end of the Middle Ages, Lviv has kept
its medieval urban topography virtually “intact”
and keeps track of the different communities that lived there.
The city also has magnificent Baroque buildings, according to the description of Unesco.
17 other Ukrainian sites on a 'tentative list' of Unesco
More recently, the Residence of the Metropolitans of Bukovina and Dalmatia, an architectural ensemble located in the city of Chernivsti (west), entered the UNESCO list in 2011.
This imposing religious complex with monastery, church, seminary, garden and park, was built in the 19th century and extends over 8 hectares.
The list also includes since 2013 a series of wooden Tserkvas churches from the mountainous region of the Carpathians, spread between Poland and Ukraine.
Eight of these churches built in logs, dating from the 16th to the 19th century, are on Ukrainian soil, in the west of the country.
The Unesco list also includes a cross-border site since 2005: the geodesic arc of Struve, a set of geographical landmarks built in the 19th century and crossing several countries from Norway to the Black Sea, passing in particular through Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.
In 2007, Unesco also classified a natural site that concerns Ukraine, together with other European countries: the primary and ancient beech forests of the Carpathians.
Finally, Unesco classified in 2013 an ancient site in Crimea,
There are also 17 other Ukrainian sites on a Unesco “tentative list”, including sites that Kyiv intended to nominate for World Heritage listing.
These include the historic center (dating from the 19th century) of the famous port city of Odessa on the Black Sea as well as the medieval historic center of Cherniguiv, a city located about 150 km north of Kiev, intensely bombarded by the Russian army.
