Zelensky to make first-ever visit to Serbia on Aug. 8, source says
President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to make his first trip to Serbia on Aug. 8, a senior Ukrainian official told the Kyiv Independent.
Team
Kate Tsurkan
Culture ReporterKate Tsurkan is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent who writes mostly about culture-related topics. Her newsletter Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan, which focuses specifically on Ukrainian culture, is published weekly by the Kyiv Independent and is partially supported by a generous grant from the Nadia Sophie Seiler Fund. Kate co-translated Oleh Sentsov’s “Diary of a Hunger Striker,” Myroslav Laiuk’s “Bakhmut,” Andriy Lyubka’s “War from the Rear,” and Khrystia Vengryniuk’s “Long Eyes,” among other books. Some of her previous writing and translations have appeared in the New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Harpers, the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and elsewhere. She is the co-founder of Apofenie Magazine and, in addition to Ukrainian and Russian, also knows French.
Articles
Germany arrests Ukrainian man suspected of spying on defense company for foreign intelligence
The Munich General Prosecutor's Office and the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office said that there are "strong grounds" to suspect the man was a "low-level agent" acting on behalf of the intelligence service of a foreign nation.
Ukraine wants a National Pantheon to honor its heroes. Now it has to decide who belongs there
Ukraine is moving to establish a National Pantheon to honor generations of people who defended, built, and shaped the nation.
The effort comes after years of Russian attacks that have damaged churches, museums, historic landmarks, and other cultural sites, reinforcing what Ukrainian officials and many cultural experts describe as a broader assault on the country's history and identity.
"The names of all the heroes who, across centuries and eras, fought for Ukraine and inspired its people will
Opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin sucessfully flees Russia despite exit ban
The Russian authorities prohibited Nadezhdin on July 16 from legally leaving the country, less than a week after labeling him a foreign agent.
Zelensky, Vance discuss Ukraine's air defense needs in 'productive' call
Zelensky underscored that strengthening Ukraine’s air defenses remains Kyiv’s top priority amid ongoing Russian attacks, with particular emphasis on obtaining additional Patriot missile interceptors to protect against ballistic missile attacks.
'Nature of the threats has changed' — Kyiv removes protective structures from city monuments
"After more than four years of war, the nature of the threats has changed, and so have our approaches to preserving monuments," Serhii Anzhyiak, director of the city's Department of Culture, said.
Russian propagandist Xenia Fedorova faces deportation from France
French authorities said that her "conduct undermines the fundamental interests of the state," and her continued presence on French territory "therefore constitutes a particularly serious and immediate threat to public order."
'Away from Moscow!' — The enduring cry of writer Mykola Khvylovy, the voice of a generation purged by Stalin
Editor's Note: This story is part of the "Hidden Canon" – a special series celebrating Ukrainian classic literature and aiming to bring it to a wider international audience. The series is supported by the Ukrainian Institute.
One late morning in May 1933, the 39-year-old Ukrainian author Mykola Khvylovy excused himself from the guests in his apartment, telling his fellow writers that he would fetch his new manuscript to read to them.
Instead, upon entering his study, he shot himself in the he
Ukrainian publishers stand strong despite enormous financial losses from Russian attacks
The moment Svitlana Paveletska, co-founder of Knyholav, received the news that the mass attack on July 19 had wiped out her publishing house's warehouse in Kyiv, she felt an overwhelming wave of grief that was difficult to put into words.
"Every book represents months, and sometimes years, of work by our entire publishing team, including the author, translator, editor, proofreader, designer, and printer," Paveletska told the Kyiv Independent.
Books are not military targets, but according to th
Ancient ruins in Russian-occupied Crimea added to UNESCO's world heritage sites in danger list
The Ancient City of Tauric Chersonese and its Chora was founded by the Dorian Greeks in the 5th century B.C. It was designated a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 2013.
EU suspends its funding for Venice Art Biennale over Russia's return
"Cultural events funded by European taxpayers' money should safeguard democratic values and foster open dialogue, diversity, and freedom of expression — values which are not respected in today's Russia," European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said.
Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin banned from leaving country
On July 10 this year, Russian authorities designated Nadezhdin as a “foreign agent,” effectively preventing him from running in any future elections.
Ukrainian banknote honoring poet killed by Russia faces redesign after Russian-style typeface backlash
"There must be no Russian shadow on a banknote honoring the poet whom Russia killed," said Andriy Pyshnyy, governor of the National Bank of Ukraine.
German photo prize shortlists Kremlin media-linked photographer for occupied Mariupol series
A Russian photographer with ties to Kremlin-backed media has been shortlisted for one of Germany's leading photography awards for his series on occupied Mariupol, raising concerns about how Russian narratives are reaching Western audiences through major cultural institutions.
Since 1979, the Leica Oskar Barnack Award has honored photographers from all over the world whose work captures humanity's relationship with the environment.
The photos in Valery Melnikov's series "Open Wounds" portray de
Famous Ukrainian dissident writer to feature on new banknote
"He became a symbol of the unbreakable Ukrainian spirit and the embodiment of personal responsibility to the nation, the state, and future generations," National Bank Governor Andriy Pyshnyy said during a press briefing.
Editors' Picks
The downfall of Ukraine’s ex-ambassador to US, explained
What did Ukraine's '40-day campaign' against Russia deliver?
Ukraine wakes to find 8 civilians killed on train station platform near Kyiv after ‘terrifying’ Russian attack
