Steven Moore, founder of the Ukraine Freedom Project, told EWTN News Nightly that Russia’s “real objective” is “a war against Christianity in Ukraine” after a Russian missile attack damaged the 11th-century Dormition Cathedral at the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. The cathedral, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, caught fire on June 14, 2026, after Russia launched 70 missiles and 611 drones at Ukrainian cities. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attack killed 4 people, injured 28, and called the damage to the Eastern Orthodox cathedral “one of the most serious crimes that Russia has committed against Christian culture to date.”
Moore said the strike was “undoubtedly deliberate,” pointing to Russia’s record of destroying 750 churches and killing about 80 pastors and priests in Ukraine.The Russian Defense Ministry denied responsibility. In a June 15 statement, it claimed the cathedral was hit by a missile from a US Patriot air defense system, possibly due to expired Western-supplied missiles. “The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation do not plan or carry out attacks against civilian infrastructure,” the Kremlin stated. Moore rejected that explanation, saying “The Kremlin says it was an accident, but there are many accidents; every week there is an accidental attack on a church. Putin is not making mistakes.”
He added that “Putin won’t stop until someone forces him to” and dismissed diplomatic efforts as “pure talk.”Moore is in Washington, D.C., lobbying Congress and planning to premiere films, including one on Ukrainian children trafficked in Russia. He said he plans to meet Senator John Kennedy on June 16 and will focus on Republicans because Russia spends an estimated $2 billion annually on global propaganda, much of it targeting conservatives. “The Russians are attacking these conservatives with disinformation,” he said, citing figures like Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson.
Foreign leaders condemned the attack, with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot comparing it to bombing Notre-Dame in Paris. Moore responded that while French statements are strong, France has not sent Leclerc tanks to Donbas and continues buying Russian fossil fuels. “On any given day in April, the French were buying enough petroleum products, mainly liquefied natural gas, from Russia to finance about 220 Shahed drones a day,” he said. He called on the international community to sever all financial ties with Russia, arguing “Nothing else works because Putin only understands force.”