Artist Marharyta Polovinko could have spent her life creating art that challenged, provoked, and illuminated viewers. But Russia invaded her country, so she joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. A rising star in Ukraine's contemporary art scene, Polovinko made the decision to enlist in late 2024, channeling the same passion
Ukrainian author Yuri Andrukhovych spoke with Kate Tsurkan about the 40 year anniversary of his co-founding of Bu-Ba-Bu, a literary counter-culture phenomenon, and the dangers faced by pro-Ukrainian artists in the Soviet times.
Over the past three years of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, the very mention of a Russian novel or film about Ukraine has understandably evoked trepidation among Ukrainians and Ukraine's supporters. Despite Russia’s relentless missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities and the staggering number of documented war crimes
The future of Harvard’s Ukrainian Research Institute (HURI) publishing program is in jeopardy, as it has become the latest target of sweeping grant cuts under the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), an independent U.S. federal agency, informed HURI that
Russia’s war against Ukraine is a continuation of Moscow’s centuries-long goal to obliterate Ukrainian culture and statehood. Over the past three decades, however, the United States has, through missteps and inaction, emboldened Russia’s aggression by failing to confront the looming threat — a failure which, under the administration
Alexander Vindman served as the director of European affairs for the United States National Security Council in 2018-2020, during U.S. President Donald Trump's first administration. The Kyiv Independent's Kate Tsurkan sits down with Vindman to discuss how Washington has historically misjudged Russia, "succumbing to hopes and fears," and why there is no real prospect of peace between Ukraine and Russia now.
Born in Crimea and raised in Kherson, journalist Yevheniia Virlych grew up speaking both Ukrainian and Russian in her daily life. It wasn’t until 2022, when she and her family lived through the Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast, that they made the definitive choice to abandon speaking Russian altogether.
Over the past three years of full-scale war, Ukraine’s cultural figures have shifted from focusing solely on their craft to becoming diplomats, advocating for their culture abroad as the Russian army continues its relentless attempt to destroy it. At the same time, within Ukraine itself, a resurgence of national
The Kyiv Independent's Kate Tsurkan sits down with Ukrainian writer Oksana Zabuzhko to discuss the role of writers and intellectuals in wartime, the importance of decolonization in Ukraine’s education, and why she wouldn't share a stage with Russian artists until Ukraine's victory.
Instead of approaching the war in Ukraine from a geopolitical or moral perspective, U.S. President Donald Trump is framing his policy on Russia through the lens of his personal relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton. “Trump thinks Putin is
The Kyiv Independent’s Kate Tsurkan sat down with former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton to discuss why U.S. President Donald Trump considers Putin “a friend,” and why a ceasefire at this time would not be favorable for Ukraine.
For members of the U.S.-based charity organization Razom for Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump’s Feb. 28 verbal assault on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky felt like “a punch to the gut,” as it undermined years of the country’s diplomatic support for Ukraine in its ongoing fight
Listening to right-leaning alternative media in the U.S., one might come away with the impression — albeit without evidence — that Ukraine is irredeemably corrupt, President Volodymyr Zelensky is a dictator, and Russia’s invasion was somehow justified. On a December episode of comedian Tim Dillon’s podcast, podcaster Joe Rogan
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders sat down with the Kyiv Independent on Feb. 27 to share his concerns about Trump’s growing alignment with Russia and other authoritarian regimes, what a possible U.S.-Russia alliance would mean for the American people, the role of billionaires like Elon Musk in shaping both domestic and international political discourse, and why defending Ukraine is crucial for the future of global democracy.
As Ukraine enters the fourth year of Russia's full-scale invasion, shifting political dynamics in the U.S. threaten to influence the course of the war. U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly misrepresented the war’s origins, excluded Ukraine from initial negotiations, and advocated for what many see as an
Independent Russian film critic Ekaterina Barabash was placed under house arrest by a Moscow court for posting “fake news” on her Facebook account about the war in Ukraine, her son Yurii Barabash reported on Facebook on Feb. 26. Detained by the Russian Investigative Committee on Feb. 25, Barabash will remain
The specter of nuclear war cast a long shadow over the 20th century, serving as a reminder of humanity's capacity for self-destruction. Now, as the world seems to shrug off Russia’s nuclear saber-rattling against Ukraine — and by extension, all of humanity — a haunting question calls for an answer: Have
For some, Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts evoke images of coal mines, industrial sprawl, and Russian-speaking culture oriented toward Moscow. Yet to accept this as the regions’ defining reality is to ignore a deeper truth: a Ukrainian heritage that Russia has spent centuries attempting to erase. In the wake
Branded a terrorist by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko’s regime for taking part in Ukraine’s fight against Russia, Vasyl Verameichyk was paraded on state-controlled television in late January for a two-part interview titled "Confessions of a Militant." During the so-called interview, Verameichyk spoke of plans for an alleged incursion
In times of war, the fundamental questions of survival, morality, and identity not only dominate the discourse but also expose the fissures in global political ideologies. Amid the clamor of media narratives and entrenched partisan frameworks, a few voices manage to rise above the fray, offering incisive critiques and grappling
Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko declared himself the victor in the country's latest so-called presidential elections on Jan. 26, in which no political opposition was allowed to take part. The country's authorities claim Lukashenko won 86.82% of the vote, securing a seventh consecutive term in power. Despite international condemnation and
The Russian opposition is an odd bunch. While not supporting Russia's brutal all-out war against Ukraine and its people, the leaders of the so-called opposition don't want their country to lose. A number of those who oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin and his regime have petitioned for the West to
The Kyiv Independent’s Kate Tsurkan discusses with Garry Kasparov, Russian chess grandmaster and political activist based in the U.S., the current state of Russia, its continued pursuit of empire and the failures of the Russian opposition to create meaningful change.
In a newly released three-hour interview, U.S. podcaster Lex Fridman tried to persuade President Volodymyr Zelensky that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a serious person who loves his country." “He loves his inner circle. It’s only a small part of the people. He doesn't love (the Russian people)
The return of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to political life has raised uncomfortable questions about the future, not only within the U.S. but also on the global stage. This is particularly true for countries like Ukraine, which relies on U.S. aid as it’s locked in a
In his latest book, “On Freedom,” American scholar Timothy Snyder establishes a thought-provoking distinction between the word "liberation" and the Ukrainian wartime variant "de-occupation" to probe the fraught but necessary question: When is a person truly free? Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine has left countless settlements in ruins and displaced
Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in power for 30 years, is looking to reelect himself for the seventh time. In the run-up to the January 2025 presidential elections, Lukashenko has pardoned prisoners convicted of extremism, claiming that it was a "humane gesture" toward those who had "gone astray.
Autocratic regimes like Russia are becoming increasingly bold in their efforts to undermine the principles and norms that came to define the democratic world order in the aftermath of World War II. A month after the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov even declared
The year 2024 proved to be another landmark for books about Ukraine and Ukrainian literature in translation, with a continued trend in publishing in fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. Unsurprisingly, Russia’s ongoing full-scale war against Ukraine was the most common topic among these works. Whether through incisive on-the-ground reportage that
In Alexander Lukashenko's Belarus, helping to defend Ukraine against Russia gets you labeled as a terrorist. Vasil Verameichyk, a Belarusian who enlisted in Ukraine's Armed Forces just four days after Russia launched its all-out war, was detained on Nov. 13 in Vietnam in a suspected covert operation by Belarusian secret
Editor's note: For the holiday season, the Kyiv Independent has created a unique collection dedicated to Vertep. Shop now on our e-store. On New Year’s Eve in 1972, a group of Ukrainians set out to carol — a seemingly innocent holiday tradition. But for the KGB, the Soviet Union’s
Two weeks before Ukraine's pivotal 2004 presidential election, 22-year-old filmmaker Iryna Tsilyk found herself at the center of a heated exchange during a trip to Moscow. The upcoming elections were a topic of group conversation and one Russian woman, bristling with anger, demanded, “How dare you Ukrainians think you are
