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Monday, November 17, 2025
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Asami Terajima photo

Asami Terajima

Reporter

Asami Terajima is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent covering Ukrainian military issues, front-line developments, and politics. She is the co-author of the weekly War Notes newsletter. She previously worked as a business reporter for the Kyiv Post focusing on international trade, infrastructure, investment, and energy. Originally from Japan, Terajima moved to Ukraine during childhood and completed her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in the U.S. She is the winner of the Thomson Reuters Foundation's Kurt Schork Award in International Journalism 2023 (Local Reporter category) and the George Weidenfeld Prize, awarded as part of Germany's Axel Springer Prize 2023. She was also featured in the Media Development Foundation’s “25 under 25: Young and Bold” 2023 list of emerging media makers in Ukraine.

a.terajima@kyivindependent.com

Articles

National Police of Ukraine’s White Angels unit in Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, on June 19, 2025.
War

What the fall of Pokrovsk would mean for Ukraine — and Russia

by Asami Terajima
With Russia throwing enormous forces into Pokrovsk to finally capture the eastern coal-mine city, questions are rising over what will happen next and whether Ukraine is ready. Taking advantage of foggy weather that hampers drones to ramp up the offensive, Russian troops are trying to end the more than a yearlong battle. After capturing what’s left of Pokrovsk, Russian troops would likely push toward the town of Dobropillia to the north, according to Pasi Paroinen, an analyst with the Finland-b
Politics

Rage, panic, and a glimmer of hope in Ukraine as corruption scandal unfolds

by Chris York, Yuliia Taradiuk, Asami Terajima, Anastasiia Verzun
Ukraine is being rocked by the biggest corruption scandal of President Volodymyr Zelensky's term. In the halls of power in Kyiv, the mood is one of dread and uncertainty about what to expect next. "It's a huge blow, but the worst part of it is that I'm not sure that we are at the end of it, it might still be unfolding," a pro-government Ukrainian lawmaker speaking on condition of anonymity told the Kyiv Independent. "What I would recommend the president to do right now is to take serious acti
War

How Russian drones are turning Ukraine's front line into a no-go zone for journalists

by Asami Terajima
With incessant Russian drones flying all over areas near the front that once were safer, it has become increasingly difficult for journalists covering the war in Ukraine to keep doing their jobs. In October alone, three journalists were killed and five were wounded while working in eastern Donetsk Oblast. The Russian attacks happened relatively far from the front, sometimes more than 20 kilometers (12 miles) away. “October 2025 showed a new risk for journalists with an increase in Russian firs
War

Ukraine war latest: 170,000 Russian troops deployed in Pokrovsk sector, Zelensky says

by Asami Terajima
Hi, this is Asami Terajima reporting from Kyiv on day 1,346 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today's top story: About 170,000 Russian troops are deployed in the Pokrovsk sector in eastern Donetsk Oblast to aiming capture the semi-surrounded city, President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists on Oct. 31. "All their forces are there," Zelensky told journalists in a briefing, as cited by Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform. "There are Russians in Pokrovsk. Our guys are destroying them, d

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