Ukrainian publishing industry faces collapse after Russian attacks destroy 10 million books

Russian attacks on Ukrainian publishing infrastructure during July and August have destroyed approximately 10 million books, representing about 30% of the country's annual book output.

A major strike on August 1 targeted warehouses belonging to the RNK-Ranok publishing group in Kharkiv, destroying roughly 8 million books. This facility also serves as the distribution center for the KnyhoLand bookselling chain. Additionally, attacks in Kyiv resulted in the loss of over 1.5 million books, including 600,000 school textbooks. On August 16, a strike on the Pochaina book market in Kyiv destroyed several rows of stalls and vendor property.

The total loss is preliminarily estimated at nearly 1 billion hryvnias (approximately 16.5 million euros). Oleksandra Koval, director of the Ukrainian Book Institute, warned that the nation faces a potential “collapse of the entire book ecosystem.” The institute is calling for international financial support and industry cooperation to help publishers, printers, and distributors recover and to protect Ukrainian culture.