Ukraine’s Banksy stamps feature art of Putin in judo match

Ukraine has issued postage stamps featuring a mural by renowned UK graffiti artist Banksy to mark the first anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The mural depicts a man resembling Russian President Vladimir Putin being flipped during a judo match with a young boy.

The original art is on a house that was devastated by Russian shelling in the town of Borodyanka, near the capital Kyiv.

A phrase with an abbreviated expletive addressing the Russian leader has been added to the bottom left corner of the stamps.

Mr Putin is a judo black belt and an admirer of the martial art.

Many Ukrainians see Banksy’s mural as a metaphor of Ukraine’s fierce resistance to the Russian invasion, which began on 24 February 2022.

Queues were reported in Kyiv on Friday as residents rushed to buy the new stamps from the main post office, Holovposhtamt.

“It’s a very cool gesture for the world to understand Ukraine, that we remain in the spotlight,” Maxime, 26, told the AFP news agency.

She added that she was delighted to see a “first stamp from one of Banksy’s works”.

Banksy has produced art works on buildings in several Ukrainian towns that have been among the worst-hit during the ongoing war.

Borodyanka was seized by Russian troops in the first few days of the invasion. After the town was recaptured in the spring, Ukrainian officials accused the Russians of committing mass war crimes there.

This followed the discovery of hundreds of bodies of Ukrainian civilians in mass graves in areas around Kyiv. Some had their hands tied and had apparently been shot at close range.

Russia denies killing civilians, and – without offering any evidence – says Ukraine staged the scenes.