No one was hurt in an explosion that happened near a stele with a Ukrainian flag on top in the city of Kharkiv last night.

"No one was killed or injured. However, the explosion blew out windows in nearby buildings and damaged the pedestal of the stele," a spokesman for the Kharkiv region Prosecutor's Office has said.

The blast is being investigated as a terrorist attack, the spokesman said later.

"The Ukrainian Security Service's branch for the Kharkiv region is conducting a preliminary investigation. The regional Prosecutor's Office is coordinating the process," he said.