Rare Wartime Dissent in Moscow Over Plans to Dismantle Russia’s ‘Eiffel Tower’

What the report says

The New York Times reported that a state broadcaster in Russia says it does not have the money to restore a 1922 steel tower in Moscow, a landmark often described as a modernist icon and sometimes likened to the Eiffel Tower. The proposal has triggered unusual public dissent during wartime, with a movement emerging to preserve the structure rather than dismantle it.

The tower, known as the Shukhov Radio Tower, has long been regarded as an important piece of early Soviet engineering and architecture. According to the Times’ report, the debate centers on whether the broadcaster should proceed with plans that would remove or dismantle the tower, or instead commit to a restoration effort.

The case has drawn attention because visible disagreement over a cultural heritage issue is uncommon in Russia at a time of war and tight political control. The preservation campaign suggests that, despite those conditions, some residents and advocates are still willing to press for the protection of historically significant sites in Moscow.

More broadly, the dispute highlights the tension between budget constraints, state ownership, and heritage preservation in Russia. It also underscores the symbolic value of the tower, which supporters see not only as an old broadcast structure but as a notable artifact of 20th-century design.