Media: Latvia starts digging anti-tank ditch near border with Russia
The Latvian army has started to dig an anti-tank ditch as part of its first defensive line near the border with Russia, Latvian public broadcaster LSM reported on May 2.
Russia's war
Daryna Shevchenko: It’s time we stop waiting for the Russian people to stop the war
“Do you cooperate with independent Russian journalists to reach a Russian audience?” We at the Kyiv Independent hear variations of this question at every event we attend, and the audience rarely likes our answer: “No, we don’t; we don’t see the point.” A beautiful room in the old
US intelligence chief: Russia's war against Ukraine 'unlikely to end anytime soon'
Moscow is likely to continue its "increasingly aggressive tactics" against Ukraine, including attacks on energy infrastructure, Director of U.S. National Intelligence Avril Haines said on May 2, according to Reuters.
Opinion: Russia's war may have opened Pandora's box for Belarus
As Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine rages on, the stability of neighboring Belarus, which has been backing Russia's aggression, appears to be fracturing. Has Russian President Vladimir Putin's war of aggression opened a Pandora's box for a regime that is practically a remote wing of the Kremlin? Recall that, in
Opinion: Russia's nuclear giant is falling through the sanctions cracks
Even as the 38th anniversary of the Chornobyl nuclear disaster has come and gone, the nuclear threat posed by Moscow continues to grow. Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy company, has a hand in this – namely, by financing Russia’s war against Ukraine, fostering global energy dependencies that threaten to
Opinion: Trump is Putin's only hope now
The news this past week was undoubtedly met with relief in Kyiv and with grief in the Kremlin. The U.S. Congress finally broke its six-month logjam and approved a new package of military aid for Ukraine (as well as for Israel and Taiwan). And the breakthrough came only days
Opinion: A look at the drone arsenal Russia uses against Ukraine
Drone combat in Russia’s war against Ukraine is changing warfare. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are being used at an unprecedented scale for which neither the Ukrainian nor the Russian armies were quite prepared. Both militaries have made significant progress with respect to drones, sometimes modernizing them in the midst
The Counteroffensive: A look at the Russian military's war dolphins
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on April 14, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. In a country at war, death is all around. But Pavel Goldin is
Russian drone attack injures 2 in Kherson Oblast
Russian troops hit the village of Odradokamyanka in Kherson Oblast with an FPV drone on April 14, local authorities reported.
Ukraine war latest: Ukrainians should prepare for possible power outages, energy minister says
Key developments on April 12: * Energy minister says Ukraine's energy system stable, urges citizens to prepare for 'any scenarios' * Bloomberg: Ukrainian army collapse 'cannot be ruled out,' US official says * Netherlands allocates additional $1.5 billion in aid for Ukraine * Ukraine additionally allocates close to $100 million for fortifications
Intense fighting, lack of resources leave wounded soldiers on their own
Editor’s note: The Kyiv Independent is not disclosing the full names of the soldiers introduced in the story, as they didn’t have a formal authorization to speak to the press. DONETSK OBLAST – Mykhailo arrived at a dugout less than an hour after it was hit by Russian drones.
Opinion: What should Ukraine do about its Russia-linked church?
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), presented a "revolutionary" order on March 27: “The Present and Future of the Russian World.” The order claims: “From a spiritual and moral point of view, a special military operation (Russia’s term for its war against Ukraine)
The Counteroffensive: Sleep deprivation is Russia's silent torture weapon
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on April 11, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. On more than one occasion, I've gotten under the covers utterly exhausted from
Zelensky meets Czech, Romanian presidents in Lithuania
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with his Czech and Romanian counterparts, Petr Pavel and Klaus Iohannis, while visiting Lithuania on April 11, according to Ukraine's Presidential Office.
Russian ex-warlord asks to fight in Ukraine
Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, who was convicted of extremism back in January, will ask to be sent to fight in Ukraine. Girkin, also known by his alias "Strelkov," is an ex-intelligence officer who played a pivotal role in Russia's aggression against Ukraine in 2014.
Russia claims Ukrainian attack thwarted over Belgorod, Yaroslavl oblasts
Russian air defense systems thwarted a Ukrainian attack over Belgorod and Yaroslavl oblasts, Russian authorities claimed on March 31. A woman was allegedly injured in Belgorod Oblast.
UK Defense Ministry: Russia enhances Novorossiysk port's defense against Ukrainian attacks
"Recent imagery analysis has identified four barges positioned at the entrance to the Black Sea Fleet facility of Novorossiysk Sea Port. This is an effort to enhance the defenses of the port against attacks from Ukrainian Uncrewed Surface Vessels," the U.K. Defense Ministry reported.
General Staff: Russia has lost 442,170 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022
Russia has lost 442,170 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on March 31.
Opinion: Defeatists will be on the wrong side of history
Over two years into Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the mood among Ukraine’s supporters is dropping. There are several reasons for this, including Ukraine’s unsuccessful counteroffensive last year, the replacement of the popular Valerii Zaluzhnyi as commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, tension among Ukraine’s leadership,
Opinion: Ukraine may have no choice but to lower its fighting age
Editor’s Note: Brian Bonner, the Kyiv Post’s chief editor from 2008-2021, is the host of Hromadske Radio’s podcast “Ukraine Calling.” This weekly English-language program, released on Fridays, can be found on Hromadske’s YouTube channel and website, as well as on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Google Podcasts,
Zelensky visits Sumy Oblast, inspects fortifications
President Volodymyr Zelensky was briefed on the project for the construction of a platoon stronghold near Sumy, which includes reinforced concrete structures, firing positions for tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, and corrugated steel shelters.
FT: Russia begins ‘arms-for-oil’ trade with North Korea, defies sanctions
Russia is defying U.N. sanctions by supplying North Korea with oil, likely in exchange for weapons, the Financial Times (FT) reported on March 26.
Drone-dropped bomb injures civilian in Beryslav
A bomb dropped from a Russian drone has injured a 50-year-old man in Beryslav, the Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported on March 26.
UK Defense Ministry: War may hamper expansion of Russian army in other parts of the country
Russia is recruiting for its new 44th Army Corps in an attempt to expand its armed forces but may have to send it to Ukraine to sustain operations, the U.K. Defense Ministry said on March 26.
Air Force: Ukraine downs 12 Shahed drones overnight
The Air Force said the drones had been launched from Cape Chauda in Russian-occupied Crimea along with two S-300 anti-aircraft guided missiles in the direction of Donetsk Oblast.
Author Serhiy Zhadan to enlist in National Guard
"It seems to me that today there are no writers or non-writers, musicians or non-musicians — there are citizens of Ukraine who feel responsible for their country," he said.
Opinion: Why ISIS attacked Russia and why Russia blames Ukraine
DOHA – The terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall concert venue in a Moscow suburb was no bolt from the blue. The Kremlin dismissed U.S. intelligence warnings of an imminent attack by “extremists,” possibly to shift the blame to a convenient scapegoat when the attack came. The murder of
Opinion: Troops in Ukraine? France-Germany spat plays into Putin's hands
Whoever doubts that Europe is in danger of an ominous divergence on Russia and Ukraine should take a look at the forced smiles of the “triple handshake” between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk when they met in Berlin last Friday, ostensibly
Warsaw to ‘demand explanations’ from Moscow after Russian missile entered Polish airspace
The Russian cruise missile entered Poland's airspace for 39 seconds, Jacek Siewiera, chief of Poland’s National Security Bureau, said on X on March 24. He also said the NATO allies had been briefed about yet another violation of the NATO border by a Russian cruise missile.
UK announces more air defense systems, surveillance drones for Ukraine
The U.K. has announced a further 60 million pounds ($75.5 million) in military aid for Ukraine that will provide new surveillance drones and air defense systems, the U.K. Defense Ministry said on March 22.
Danylo Mokryk: Say the word ‘genocide’
In the spring of 2022, right after Russia’s atrocities in Bucha were exposed, several Western leaders uttered the term “genocide.” U.S. President Joe Biden, former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former Colombian President Ivan Duque, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did so in short succession, albeit
Kyiv Independent's new documentary debuts on YouTube
"Genocide is the crime of crimes. So, is Russia committing one in Ukraine?" The new documentary by the Kyiv Independent's War Crimes Investigations Unit, "Destroy, in Whole or in Part," debuted on YouTube on March 22.
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