No targets of military value were located in the city's beautiful historic centre, a UNESCO world heritage site
Most of you who are reading these words have never been to this city — it is just a name and a dot on a map. Yet this place was my home for most of the past year. Please, listen to me when I explain the injustice of these recent attacks.Media coverage of Russia’s invasion predominantly focuses on the front lines, inevitably spotlighting smaller towns and countrysides that have been destroyed beyond repair.
It was immediately apparent that popular stereotypes of the country’s backwardness were inaccurate and patronizing. Many Ukrainian cities are architectural gems that brim with culture and history, and, similarly, Ukrainian society is vibrant and cosmopolitan, even in war. It is not hard to be a Ukrainophile — and, indeed, many of the volunteers and reporters who come to this country speak longingly of returning once they leave.
Local residents walk among the rubble of buildings damaged in a Russian missile strike on Odesa on July 23, 2023.I mention these things because comprehending the stakes of war requires an understanding of what there is to lose. Ukraine is more than just charred ruins and trauma. It deserves more than pity — there is dignity and beauty, and so much else that is worthy of admiration.
Among the greatest of Ukraine’s jewels is Odesa, which has long enjoyed a fabled reputation in the region. In the 19th century, Russian poet Alexander Pushkin lived in the city and was enchanted by it. More recently, before the war, tourists would flock to its shores every summer. My own mother, who grew up in Yugoslavia, had romantic notions of the city and had always wanted to visit it.
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