Ukraine-Russia War Latest: Orthodox Leader Calls Putin ‘Antichrist’ After Airstrike on Historic Kyiv Cathedral
By Arpan Rai
Moscow launches new wave of overnight strikes on civilian targets hours after Trump tells Putin to end war
A fire has broken out after Russian airstrikes hit the Dormition Cathedral in Kyiv, part of a monastic complex that is protected by Unesco as one of the holiest sites in Orthodox Christianity.
The leader of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine denounced Vladimir Putin as the “Kremlin Antichrist” after the attack on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra complex.
Photos after the overnight attack showed the large parts of the cathedral were still on fire, and Kyiv’s military administration head Tymur Tkachenko said the damage at the complex was substantial.
The overnight strikes also killed five in Kharkiv and wounded at least 20 others, as Russian attacks pounded other parts of the war-hit nation.
Earlier, Donald Trump spoke on the phone with Vladimir Putin, telling him that ending the conflict in Ukraine was vital and he is ready to help.
Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said the two leaders spoke for just under an hour yesterday, as the US president said he was ready to act with European partners and Kyiv.
He also quoted Trump as saying that a rapid resolution would allow “perspectives to open for a new quality of US-Russian relations”.
