And it all began nearly 1,000 years ago, when a monk named Anthony returned to ancient Kyiv from a monastery on Mount Athos in Greece.
He was seeking solitude and the life of a hermit, and so he secluded himself in small caves among the green hills on the banks of the Dnipro, where centuries earlier Vikings sought shelter while traveling far to the south along the great river had stopped and sought shelter.
People learned of the piety of the hermit Anthony, and disciples began coming to him in the caves. Over many years, they dug entire labyrinths in those caves, where they prayed and labored in the half-darkness -- and reverently noticed that after death the bodies of the monks remained incorrupt (of course, this was due to the unique microclimate deep inside the caves).
Thus was born the famous Kyiv Pechersk Monastery (that is, the “Cave Monastery”), which would later become the magnificent Lavra -- the foremost and greatest holy site of Christian Rus'.
A real city within a city, with magnificent ancient churches built by rulers of different eras, monastic caves, gigantic crowds of pilgrims, and, in later times, the famous 97-meter bell tower, one of Kyiv's calling cards, visible for many dozens of kilometers along the banks of the Dnipro.
Over its 1,000 years, the Lavra survived the internecine wars of the princes of Rus', the Mongol invasion, long years of decline and rebirth. It was the foremost center of learning and printing, and it was in its caves that the legendary monk Nestor wrote the famous Primary Chronicle -- the principal book of historical memory of the East Slavic peoples.
It survived the barbarity of the Bolsheviks. It survived destruction during World War II. It survived centuries during which Moscow priests, having seized it, lorded over it.
It will survive Putin and his fascist Russia as well -- no matter how the monster pukes blood in powerless rage because it cannot defeat Ukraine, and no matter how hard it tries to wipe from the face of the earth everything it cannot seize.
The Dormition Cathedral in Kyiv, which was attacked by the Russians today, is older than Notre-Dame in Paris.
Its foundation stone was laid in 1073, and construction was completed in 1078.
Construction of Notre-Dame did not begin until nearly a century later—in 1163.
The French cathedral was restored following the fire thanks to a major international campaign that raised one billion euros in donations. The reconstruction was funded by major entrepreneurs, corporations, municipal authorities, and hundreds of thousands of private individuals.
And how will the world now respond to this Russian terror?
Horrifying moment of russian drone strike on bus stop in Zaporizhzhia‼️
At least 2 people killed, at least 15 reported injured.
Bastards! Bloody terrorists!
Kasparov: Putin will keep striking Ukrainian civilians because he cannot win on the battlefield.
Terror is his way to try to break Ukraine’s iron will. From Grozny to Aleppo to Mariupol, he has shown zero allergy to blood. 5X
💔 A woman was killed while trying to save her children during a Russian attack on Kyiv
During the strike near a residential complex in the https://t.co/cTkujK2xvj area, a woman was running to a shelter with her two children.
She died from her injuries. The children were hospitalized.
According to local authorities, two more people were killed at the same location, while at least 19 others were injured.
After every Russian escalation into a NATO country we hear leaders repeating the mantra "We stand with..."
But we could do much more than standing around.
For example — we could create a European-Ukrainian defense union. Fund it with confiscated Russian frozen assets. Close the skies in Ukraine, making Ukraine and other frontline states safer.
These things are very possible and this work could start today.
Instead, I am sadly reminded of how Britain and France “stood with” Poland in 1939 while that country was being dismembered. It was called the Phony War, because mere declarations of “support” mean very little on the ground, and do nothing to prevent real war.
Actions always speak louder than words, and usually cost much less than inaction.
Terrifying video of Russian glide bomb striking right next to a typical café in Kramatorsk yesterday. No military purpose, pure terrorism.
Please watch this video and listen to the sound. This is the daily life of ordinary Ukrainian civilians in towns and cities, not only in Kramatorsk, but in dozens of places, from small villages to big cities.
Russia must be stopped, and Ukraine needs all possible help to get it done.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 2 ballistic missiles and 122 drones last night.
Relentless attack on Ukrainian civilians don't cease for a day.
▪️Odesa:
An infrastructure facility was damaged. Three people were injured, one man was killed.
▪️Dnipropetrovsk region:
The enemy attacked Nikopol, Kamianske and Synelnykove districts. Fortunately, no casualties.
▪️Poltava region:
Infrastructure facilities were damaged and a residential house was destroyed. A pensioner was rescued from the rubble.
▪️Sumy region:
Russians attacked a residential area in Romny - three people were injured. Also hit an elevator in Hlukhiv.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the Russian attack on Kyiv on May 24 has risen to three.
Zelenskyy: Russians just destroyed the Chornobyl museum — built one month ago. Crazy assholes.
We strike military targets — weapons production, energy that funds their army. Russia hits museums, schools, apartments.
1/
Oh no, Russia is once again threatening to “begin” striking Kyiv -- which is kinda what it has been dong almost daily for over 4 years now.
Imagine that.
The problem for Russia is that the free ride is over. This is no longer a one-sided game, and Ukraine now has the means to strike back in full.
And no, this still will not help them escape the total deadlock at the front, where the pompous “2nd greatest army in the world” has been hopelessly bogged down up to its neck for the fifth year now (instead of triumphantly taking Kyiv in three days).
Russia openly announces that it intends to render Kyiv uninhabitable within a month through a series of attacks.
Why?
Because Ukraine allegedly attacked a Russian vocational school and killed students.
However:
To this day, there is no verified evidence of this attack on students.
Furthermore:
According to data verified by the UN and UNICEF (as of November 2025), 1,611 Ukrainian schools have been damaged or destroyed by Russia (verified cases only). The actual figure is significantly higher—approximately 4,500 attacks on schools.
That is the Russian mindset.
We call it an excuse for further genocide.
Ukrainians hacked yesterday's secret meeting of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade on drone production in which Russians cited problems in obtaining even basic components, all now being reliant on China.
Russians laugh that they now have to even import copper wire and plastic.
For those who think Russia just wants to be left alone. They have been actively destroying and destabilizing the West for years. They just do it in secret instead of calling it a war.
Why do Trump and Vance support Orbán?
Forget MAGA. Forget national conservatism. Forget the culture war. This is about Putin.
Putin controls them both. When Vance flies to Budapest and Trump posts declarations of support on Truth Social, it is not because they admire Orbán's Hungarian model. It is because Putin needs Orbán - and has told Trump to deliver.
Orbán is Putin's most valuable asset inside the EU and NATO. He blocks sanctions, maintains Hungary's gas dependence on Russia, and serves as the Kremlin's only real back-channel to the West. He is not an ideological ally - he is a strategic instrument.
And then comes the uncomfortable question: Trump supports Orbán even when it costs him politically. Why?
Because Trump is not the one calling the shots here. Putin is.
And just imagine what will spill out about Putin's direct involvement in backing hard-right forces across Europe - and how Trump and his associates have received support, directly and indirectly, from Putin via Hungary - when Orbán finally falls.
Which is precisely why both Putin and Trump are absolutely terrified of that moment.
I fucking LOVE Ukraine 🇺🇦
To be honest, at first I doubted the ability of Ukrainians to use the "Patriot" system due to its complexity, but they have mastered it so well that now the US Army is learning from them, — a general of the US Army European Command.