Team

Alexander Khrebet
ReporterAlexander Khrebet is a reporter with the Kyiv Independent. He covers Ukraine’s foreign policy, alleged abuse of power in the country’s military leadership, and reports on the Russian-occupied territories. Alexander is the European Press Prize 2023 winner, the #AllForJan Award 2023 winner and Ukraine's 2022 National Investigative Journalism Award finalist. His was published in the Washington Times and Atlantic Council.
Articles

These mobile repair shops save Ukrainian soldiers precious time
CHERNIHIV, Ukraine – At Ukraine’s 50th Regiment's repair and restoration facility, officers, soldiers, and volunteers watched as a self-loading container truck lowered onto the ground a black shipping container with an installed repair workshop inside.
The Tvii Krok (Your Step) charity, which designed this mobile repair complex, known as Workshop Locker, was handing it over to the regiment. The workshop can be used for quick repairs in the field and is capable of handling engines, gearboxes, an

China calls on Ukraine, Russia to start peace talks ‘as soon as possible’
Geng Shuang, China's deputy representative to the United Nations, called on Ukraine and Russia to "demonstrate political will" to end the war.

Inside Ukraine’s prison recruitment efforts to bolster front-line troops
ZHYTOMYR, KYIV OBLASTS — Taras Netavrovanyi, an inmate at the medium-security prison in Zhytomyr Oblast, eagerly seized the chance to break free of his two-and-a-half-year sentence.
New Ukrainian legislation allowing military service for prisoners convicted of certain felonies, including manslaughter, offers a unique opportunity: parole in exchange for joining an assault unit, monthly pay, and social welfare for soldiers.
But Netavrovanyi says his primary motivation for wearing a pixel-camoufl

‘We set a precedent.’ Ukraine officially presents Unmanned Systems Forces
Ukraine officially presented its Unmanned Systems Forces on June 11, four months after President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree ordering the creation of a separate branch of the armed forces tasked with improving drone operations.
The announcement comes a day after Defense Minister Rustem Umerov appointed Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi, the deputy chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, as the Unmanned Systems Forces commander.
“Ukraine set a precedent that has not been seen since the creation of air

Fortifications put strain on already struggling farmers in Sumy Oblast
Viacheslav Dydarenko, a farmer in the Myropillia community in Sumy Oblast that borders Russia typifies the hardship faced by the agricultural sector in the area.
Shrapnel scars and gaping holes mark his farm buildings, and he cannot work some of his rented 4,450 acres — 70% of which is located on the Russian-Ukrainian border.
He estimates he has lost “millions of hryvnias,” but says his accountants are still trying to estimate the losses from three less-than-desirable seasons.
But following a

Defense Ministry: Ukraine destroys record number of Russian artillery systems in May
Ukrainian forces destroyed 1,160 Russian artillery systems in May, a record month since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Defense Ministry said on June 1.

Governor: Ukraine's largest hydroelectric power plant in critical state following Russian strike
Zaporizhzhia's Dnipro Hydroelectric Station, Ukraine's largest hydroelectric power plant, is in critical condition after Russian forces struck it overnight on June 1, Zaporizhzhia Oblast Governor Ivan Fedorov said on national television.

Defense Ministry: Nearly all of Ukraine's drones domestically produced
Nearly 100% of drones Ukraine’s Armed Forces use in Russia’s war are developed domestically, Deputy Defense Minister Dmytro Klimenkov said on June 1.

Zelensky says Ukraine seeking to develop ties with Southeast Asia's major bloc
President Volodymyr Zelensky told Indonesia's President-elect Prabowo Subianto on June 1 that Kyiv is interested in developing relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and is seeking formal partner status with the union.

‘A ceasefire is a trap:’ Forcing Ukraine to compromise with Russia would weaken US, Zelensky warns Trump
President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Guardian in an interview he believes such an approach would green light further attacks by Russia, “reducing to zero” the U.S.’s global influence.

Media: Truckers briefly block Kyiv-Odesa highway over mobilization law
Olena Berezhna, the National Police's spokeswoman, told Suspilne that truckers gathered in Kyrovohrad and Odesa oblasts. Later in the day, Suspilne reported that traffic on the Kyiv-Odesa highway had been restored.

UPDATE: Russian glide bomb attack injures 6, including 2 children, in Kharkiv
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Tereknov said earlier in the day that several houses were destroyed in the attack.

Decorated Ukrainian pilot killed in action
Lieutenant Colonel Vasyliuk, the brigade’s chief of staff and a deputy commander of an aviation squadron, was killed “recently” while conducting a combat mission, the brigade said.

Ukraine’s 110th Brigade downs 4 Russian aircraft in 2 weeks
Su-25s help Russia carry out intense attacks in multiple sections of the eastern front.

Zelensky: Ukraine repels Russian assault on Chasiv Yar, Russia loses troops near Kharkiv
Chasiv Yar, a largely destroyed town, has been seen as Russia’s next target after the fall of Bakhmut, while Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, is also a major Russian target.