Jimmy Rushton

In late June, President Volodymyr Zelensky tasked Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) with launching a "40-day influence operation" designed to compel Russia to "end the war." In the weeks following, Ukraine's mid- and long-range drones scored some headline-grabbing successes — the crippling of dozens of Russian tankers supplying occupied Crimea and, perhaps most notably, the destruction of several warehouses across the country belonging to online retailer Wildberries. But 40 days later, Russia's

Flights at Germany's Leipzig/Halle Airport were suspended overnight on Aug. 5 after a "modified drone" was sighted and later found next to a Ukrainian Antonov Airlines An-124 transport aircraft, and a second "unidentified flying object" collided with an incoming DHL cargo plane. The DHL aircraft diverted to Hanover airport where "minor damage" was discovered to the airframe. "There is no danger to life or health of passengers or airport staff. Passenger air traffic is not affected," German pro

The Kyiv Independent’s Jimmy Rushton speaks with MAGA influencer Laura Loomer during her visit to Kyiv about the dramatic shift in her stance on Ukraine after years of opposing U.S. military aid to the country, spreading Russian propaganda narratives, and cooperating with Russian state media outlets such as Russia Today (RT).

President Volodymyr Zelensky's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump took place in what Ukrainian officials described as a warm atmosphere, but it produced few results for Kyiv, people familiar with the discussions told the Kyiv Independent. The one breakthrough may have been persuading Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — Trump's two main envoys on Russia and Ukraine — to finally visit Kyiv after months of shuttling to Moscow. One U.S. official familiar with the planning cautioned that the tr

U.S. conservative influencer Laura Loomer says she spoke with President Donald Trump from Ukraine after interviewing President Volodymyr Zelensky, offering a rare glimpse into how one of Trump's closest informal advisers is reassessing her views on Kyiv. In an interview with the Kyiv Independent, Loomer said she called Trump after meeting Zelensky and plans to brief him again upon returning to Washington, sharing what she witnessed firsthand during Russia's full-scale invasion. "I spoke to the

Editor's note: The full names of some service members quoted in this story have not been disclosed for security reasons. Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi took over as Ukraine's commander-in-chief on July 21 after President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Oleksandr Syrskyi, elevating one of the military's most battle-tested commanders to its top post. "Drapatyi commands tremendous respect within the Ukrainian military — something that is extremely difficult to earn," Artem Kariakin, a soldier of th

President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 21 dismissed the Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, appointing Joint Forces Commander Mykhailo Drapatyi as his replacement. The move comes amid ongoing mass protests in Kyiv and across Ukraine, in which demonstrators have demanded that Syrskyi be removed from his post. Zelensky thanked Syrskyi for his service, praising his role in some of Ukraine's most significant military operations during the full-scale war. "Oleksandr Syrs

Latest: Zelensky dismisses Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi amid widespread protests. Thousands of protesters gathered nightly in central Kyiv in recent days, many of them calling out the name of one of Ukraine's most respected generals: "Drapatyi!" The mass protest in the capital, which began on July 15 after President Volodymyr Zelensky ousted Ukraine's popular, reform-minded Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, had turned into a call to replace Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander-in-chief. As details

A former combat medic and one of the lead figures in this week's protests against the dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister believes people "close to (Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr) Syrskyi" are "trying to intimidate me in order to stop the protests," he told the Kyiv Independent on July 17. Dmytro Koziatynskyi, who formerly served in the Da Vinci Wolves battalion, urged people to take to the streets on July 16 to "show the president that we are against constant reshuffles in the gov

A former adviser to dismissed Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has accused Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi of covering up friendly-fire incidents and the deliberate weakening of some Ukrainian brigades in the face of Russian assaults. Sternenko's livestream comes two days after Fedorov's dismissal as defense minister, a move that caused a seismic political shock in Ukraine. It also comes a day after Fedorov himself held a press conference and admitted he pushed for Syrskyi to be replaced,

Among those gathered in Kyiv on July 16 to protest the dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov were members of Ukraine's military voicing fears that the controversial decision could seriously hinder the country's war effort. "People who are actually trying to bring our victory closer keep getting removed or replaced," Serhii, a 43-year-old veteran protesting alongside active-duty soldiers, told the Kyiv Independent. President Volodymyr Zelensky's decision a day earlier to dismiss Fedoro

Former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said he suggested "drastic personnel decisions," which involved replacing both Syrskyi and General Staff Chief Andrii Hnatov, both of whom are criticized by younger soldiers and commanders for their top-down, Soviet-era command culture.

A decision to replace a popular figure widely seen as competent would likely prove controversial with both Ukrainian politicians and wider Ukrainian society.

Editor's note: The story was updated after a person familiar with the matter told the Kyiv Independent that Yuliia Svyrydenko has not yet agreed to accept the post of an ambassador in Washington. Naftogaz CEO Serhii Koretskyi is set to become Ukraine's next prime minister, a Ukrainian official and a person familiar with the matter told the Kyiv Independent. The expected appointment comes after Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko confirmed on July 12 that she would step down following President Vo

Ukraine's ambassador to the UK and former Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi warned against assuming Russia has "effectively lost the war," arguing that neither side's deep-strike campaigns can deliver a decisive blow in what he calls a grinding war of attrition.