Ukraine’s pre-WWII cultural infrastructure has been a focus of the press and comprises the vast majority of listed buildings in Ukraine’s state database. Examples of Soviet-era architecture are, however, systemically less protected. Their plight is being well-documented by social media activists like ukrainemodernism and has reignited a debate amongst preservationists inside Ukraine as to their rightful place in a country some feel is under threat of losing its national identity.

“Any way you put it, it’s our heritage,” photographer Dmytro Soloviov told Al Jazeera of his personal philosophy. “Regardless of your political affiliation, these are buildings and art objects that were created by Ukrainians.”

The preservationist cause is also being folded into the country’s plans to rebuild following the cessation of hostilities. Some hope they will include the Stalinist and Soviet-era structures (a great deal of which are located in Kharkiv) alongside the restoration of damaged cultural property and effort to remake places as Kharkiv into what Norman Foster recently called “cities of the future.”

“After the war, we will have a chance to do everything right. Currently, architects, urban planners and builders are in discussion with foreign experts. Historic buildings and architectural monuments should be restored to their original appearance,” representatives of the group Save Kvity told the Al Jazeera. “Of course, we will need temporary, quick solutions, but we should also think about what we want to see in our cities in 10, 20, 50 years. The desire to rebuild the country quickly should not affect the quality of this reconstruction.”