Kharkiv

Kharkiv is only 30 kilometers from Russia. Most people there speak Russian as their first language and it was earlier very proRussian city. Later, already before the war, the language changed to Ukrainian and the visits to Russia stopped. Putin was and still is openly hated. He promised to liberate the city, but he unleashed hell on its citizens.

Known from its many poets, Kharkiv was, one of the most important centers of education and culture in Ukraine. The city was also a major industrial center, where the defense equipment industry was a part of it. Kharkiv was founded in 1654–1655 when the Ukrainian Cossacks built a fortified settlement on the plateau next to the Lopan and H’arkiv rivers. Although the fort was under Russian rule, the Cossacks had extensive autonomy. The small defensive fortress quickly grew into a trade center and an important traffic hub.

On the first day of the war, Russia attacked along the entire length of the border between Russia and Ukraine. Kharkiv was one of those cities. The Russians occupied Kharkiv for several months until Ukraine succeeded to banish the Russian soldiers from the city and its surrounding areas in September 2022.

In March 2022 Kharkiv was awarded with the title Hero City of Ukraine.

Kharkiv is still in the firing line. This beautiful city loses its monumental and historical buildings all the time. And its people.