The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) announced that it has added the historic center of Ukraine's Odessa city to the World Heritage in Danger list, despite opposition from Russia.

It is hoped the status, awarded by a UNESCO panel meeting in Paris, will help protect Odessa’s cultural heritage which has been under threat since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and enable access to financial and technical international aid.

The 21 member states of UNESCO's world heritage committee approved inscribing designated areas of the city, often called "the pearl of the Black Sea", with six votes in favor, one against and 14 abstentions.

Odessa has been bombed several times by Russia since its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

In July 2022, part of the large glass roof and windows of Odessa’s Museum of Fine Arts, inaugurated in 1899, were destroyed.