This Week in Ukraine Ep. 36 – Is Ukraine losing the war?
Episode #36 is dedicated to the dark new phase in Russia’s war, and why the possibility of losing is once again a risk for Ukraine.
Francis Farrell
Articles
Francis Farrell: Ukraine could still lose the war. Let’s get some things straight
This November has been a particularly grim one here in Ukraine. Over the past month, two media sensations in big Western magazines served as a sober wake-up call about the state of the war. First, Simon Shuster’s profile in TIME magazine on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s “lonely fight”
How Russia’s homegrown Lancet drone became so feared in Ukraine
In the bubble of pro-Ukraine communities on the Internet, the constant inflow of battlefield videos showing the destruction of Russian equipment regularly lifts the moods of hundreds of thousands of supporters of Ukraine’s struggle around the world. Wander over to the Russian side of the internet, whether it’s
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 32 – How Russia is losing superiority in the Black Sea
Episode #32 is dedicated to Ukraine's surprising successes in the Black Sea.
Understanding Russia's offensive on Avdiivka
The Russian offensive in Avdiivka has been an undisputed failure so far. Russian gains have amounted to little more than a handful of treelines on the flanks. The Kyiv Independent's Francis Farrell explains how it happened and what to expect in the future.
Record Russian armor, personnel losses in failed attempt to take Avdiivka by storm
Starting on Oct. 9, Russian forces launched an offensive at the flanks of the city of Avdiivka. It has been an undisputed failure so far.
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 30 – ATACMS, and Russia's offensive on Avdiivka
Episode #30 is dedicated to recent front-line updates, including Ukraine's first use of ATACMS and Russia's offensive on Avdiivka.
The dead villages: Hope and despair side-by-side in the liberated south
NESKUCHNE, DONETSK OBLAST – Vitalii Ivanov stepped gingerly across the messy floor through the kitchen to what was once the living room of his family home. Scattered across the floor and countertops were the iconic markers of a space that was once occupied by Russian soldiers. Cardboard military ready meals complete
Overcoming setbacks, NATO-trained brigade breaches Surovikin line in Zaporizhzhia Oblast
Editor’s note: The soldiers featured in this article are identified by first name and callsign only for security reasons. ZAPORIZHZHIA OBLAST – Even months before it started, just the idea of Ukraine’s large-scale counteroffensive in 2023 carried on its shoulders a historic weight. Having held back waves of brutal
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 26 – Is the counteroffensive almost over?
Episode #26 is dedicated to the question of when Ukraine’s counteroffensive might end, and what comes next for Ukraine when it does.
Russia’s ‘peacekeeper’ act crumbles as Azerbaijan overwhelms Nagorno-Karabakh
On Sept. 19, just under three years after the end of the last major war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Baku moved decisively to finish what it started in 2020. Shortly after the announcement of the launching of “anti-terrorist” measures by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry,
Deadly drone arms race intensifies as Ukraine, Russia embrace the future of war
Editor’s note: The soldiers featured in this article are identified by first name and callsign only for security reasons. DONETSK OBLAST – One sunny day in eastern Ukraine, two grown men in pixel camouflage sit together in the shade of lush summer bushes on the edge of a field, playing
Ukraine bids farewell to legendary volunteer commander killed near Bakhmut
In a scene all too familiar for central Kyiv and for Ukraine as a whole, a large column of mourning soldiers and civilians walked through the capital’s streets on Aug. 28 to say goodbye to another high-profile commander killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Serhii Ilnytskyi, call sign
Inching forward in Bakhmut counteroffensive, Ukraine’s hardened units look ahead to long, grim war
Editor’s note: Though the commanders quoted in this story are public figures, the other soldiers are identified by first names and callsigns only due to security reasons. DONETSK OBLAST — In a wide field in Donetsk Oblast, the silence of what would otherwise be a sleepy August afternoon is broken
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 21 – Counteroffensive progress: Expectations vs. reality
Episode #21 of our weekly video podcast “This Week in Ukraine” is dedicated to Ukraine's counteroffensive, gains and setbacks of the last two months, and what to expect going forward.
Exclusive: New insights point to Hungary’s collaboration with Moscow on transfer of Ukrainian POWs
In early June, a bizarre and mysterious joint operation was carried out between two of Ukraine’s neighbors, one to the east and one to the west. Eleven Ukrainian soldiers, after having been held in Russian captivity for an unknown amount of time, were moved from Russia to Hungary. Although
Ukraine’s counteroffensive lurches forward: Key moment looms as more forces committed
Fresh videos of Western-made armor rolling across open fields, a new settlement liberated, and a lot of noise on Russian military blogger Telegram channels heralded to the world on July 28 that the Ukrainian summer counteroffensive had upped its gear. Almost eight weeks into the long-awaited operation that began on
On the edge of disaster: What could really happen if Russia destroys Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant?
In late June, 16 months into the full-scale Russian invasion, President Volodymyr Zelensky alerted his nation of an unprecedented threat. Russia, the president said, had rigged the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant with explosives, and was ready to set off the charges and cause radiation to leak into surrounding areas.
Francis Farrell: As the world watches the counteroffensive, a sober hold on reality is Ukraine’s greatest weapon
This June was meant to be all about the great Ukrainian counteroffensive. After months of waiting, dozens of public statements from exasperated Ukrainian officials bound to silence, and even more analyses from experts and commentators in the media, the moment finally came when Ukrainian soldiers on their Leopards and Bradleys
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 14 – Wagner’s mutiny attempt in Russia, and its consequences
Episode #14 of our weekly video podcast “This Week in Ukraine” is dedicated to Wagner mercenary group's failed attempt to take on the Russian military establishment and its consequences.
Russia comes to the brink of civil war: How we got here and what it means
Visually, the scene was a familiar one. Russian armored vehicles emblazoned with the Z logo in the central streets of a once peaceful city, masked soldiers standing at key intersections, and confrontational conversations with bemused local civilians. But this wasn’t a Ukrainian city in the first days of Russia’
Kyiv’s frustration boils as flow of Western chips for Russian missiles continues uninterrupted
Destroyed apartments, burnt-out cars, lives upturned or extinguished altogether: Russia’s June 13 missile attack on the city of Kryvyi Rih was, in many ways, nothing out of the ordinary for wartime Ukraine. The evening after the attack, which killed 13 civilians, President Volodymyr Zelensky came out in his daily
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 12 – Ukraine's counteroffensive finally began. What's next?
Episode #12 of our weekly video podcast “This Week in Ukraine” is dedicated to the beginning of Ukraine's much-awaited counteroffensive, its early results, and what to expect in the weeks to come.
Ukraine makes gains 1 week into counteroffensive but decisive battle yet to begin
Ukraine’s large-scale counteroffensive, anticipated for months, spearheaded by new Western tanks and armored vehicles, has finally begun. No longer limited to shaping operations or localized counterattacks, evidence shows the beginning of major Ukrainian offensive pushes to break through fortified Russian lines along several axes. Though Ukraine’s offensive operations
Saving lives from Russia’s flood: Inside inundated, shelled Kherson
KHERSON – Since Russia’s full-scale war began, first came eight months of terror under occupation, then came seven months of intense shelling across the river, then came the river itself to Kherson. Over 24 hours after Russian forces destroyed the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant and its massive dam over the
Russian forces destroy Kakhovka dam, triggering humanitarian disaster
The dam of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant across the Dnipro River, occupied by Russian forces, was destroyed on the morning of June 6, sparking a large-scale humanitarian and environmental disaster across southern Ukraine. Ukraine's Southern Operational Command reported early in the morning that Russian forces blew up the dam.
Russia reports Ukrainian ground attacks in Donetsk Oblast in possible launch of counteroffensive
In the early hours of June 5, the first announcement of what looks like it could be the start of a large-scale Ukrainian counteroffensive came from an unusual source. At 1:31 a.m. Kyiv time, the Russian Defense Ministry, which famously floundered in silence in response to Ukraine’s
On Ukraine’s southern front line, tension reigns before decisive counteroffensive
Editor’s note: As per the regulations of the unit, soldiers interviewed for this article, many of whom have relatives remaining in Russian-occupied territory, are identified by first name and/or callsign only. SOUTHEASTERN UKRAINE – After months of seeing Russia’s war against Ukraine through the drab gray-brown landscapes of
Who does Crimea really belong to?
This chapter of Ukraine's True History will explore the historical context that led to Crimea as it is today and answer why Russia doesn't have a "historic right" to annex Ukrainian Crimea.
Who does Crimea really belong to?
Russia's war against Ukraine began in Crimea. In February 2014, as the pro-Russian regime in Kyiv was killing protesters on the barricades of the EuroMaidan Revolution, thousands of Russian troops without insignia began occupying strategic locations and military bases in the Crimean Peninsula. Within a month, Russia had illegally annexed
Russia takes Bakhmut: Taking stock of the war’s bloodiest battle so far
CHASIV YAR, Donetsk Oblast – Ten months after Russia's assault on the once-flourishing city in Donetsk Oblast began, Bakhmut has now been effectively occupied by Russian troops. This hasn’t been confirmed yet by Kyiv, but is evident based on both official statements and those made by soldiers on the ground
This Week in Ukraine Ep. 8 – How Ukrainian air defense denies Russia air superiority
“This Week in Ukraine” is a video podcast hosted by Kyiv Independent’s reporter Anastasiia Lapatina. Every week, Anastasiia sits down with her newsroom colleagues to discuss Ukraine’s most pressing issues.
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