The halting of deliveries of air defense missiles from the U.S. will lead to“major casualties among civilians,” a deputy commander in Ukraine’s air defense told the Kyiv Independent. Politico reported on July 1 that the U.S. Defense Department (DOD) had halted shipments of some weapons previously
Russia’s Shahed drone swarms are pummeling Ukraine on a nightly basis, inflicting ever more death and destruction in cities that had managed to carve out some sense of normalcy amid wartime. Civilian alarm has grown. With traditional air defense stockpiles running low, the government is banking on newly created
Russia’s war in Ukraine has drained Western ammunition stocks. Despite years of claimed weapons ramp-ups, NATO’s arms manufacturing is still not refilling those stocks apace, let alone making it to Ukraine in needed mass. The West has come to recognize that these shortages are due to the offshoring
Israel’s strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities have alarmed none more than Russia, the country that first brought nuclear power to Iran in defiance of Western objections. We’re “millimeters from catastrophe,” said Kremlin spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on June 18 in response to a bombing campaign that Israel launched against
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry told the Kyiv Independent that the five Ukrainian citizens, including three children, came under fire in an attack on a residential building in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv.
"Yeah, I would be open to it," U.S. President Donald Trump said. "He is ready. He called me about it. We had a long talk about it. We talked about this more than his situation. This is something I believe is going to get resolved."
Editor's Note: This article has been updated to reflect new details of BAE Systems' new chemical process that the company confirmed to the Kyiv Independent after initial publication. The West is failing to catch up to Russia's production of the most basic unit of war for the past half-millennium — gunpowder.
Russia will soon be able to deploy more than 500 long-range drones a night to attack Ukraine as it ramps up production and builds new launch sites for them, a source in Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) has told the Kyiv Independent. According to the source, Russia's production rate for one
Russia's production of ballistic missiles has increased by at least 66% over the past year, according to data from Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) shared with the Kyiv Independent. According to data obtained by HUR, Moscow is now producing 60 to 70 Iskander-M — the ballistic version of the missile — and 10
Reports of an imminent Russian summer offensive and troop build ups on Ukraine's border are raising alarms in Sumy Oblast and fears that a large-scale assault could be on the horizon. Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 22 said he had ordered his military to create a "security buffer zone"
Despite grand plans, the European Union’s hoped-for rearmament remains fully dependent on member nations stepping up their own defenses. In March, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced an 800-million-euro "Rearm Europe" plan to build out a defense architecture that has depended on the U.S. since the
The Kyiv Independent’s Kollen Post sits down with retired U.S. astronaut Col. Terry W. Virts to discuss his time aboard the International Space Station alongside Russian colleagues in 2014–2015, during Russia’s annexation of Crimea and invasion of Ukraine's eastern regions.
Latest: Germany pledges 5 billion euros in new aid to Ukraine, no Taurus missiles announced A statement from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on May 26 about long-range strikes inside Russia resurrected a long-held hope in Ukraine — that Berlin is finally about to send Kyiv its Taurus missiles. "There are no
Editor’s note: Due to the security protocols of the unit featured in this story, the Ukrainian soldiers are identified by first name only. Russia’s air strikes on Ukraine have become far more deadly in recent months. Part of the uptick is due to limited air defense to bring
A series of Russian ballistic missile attacks on Ukrainian cities have killed dozens of civilians in recent weeks, shaking an already uneasy sense of safety for Ukrainians living far from the front lines. The Russian strikes are growing more lethal as foreign air defense aid to Ukraine has dwindled, particularly
The Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur dives into the top stories of this week from the intensifying Russian spring offensive to the shocking torture and murder of Ukrainian journalist Viktoriia Roschyna. Also, the long-gestating minerals deal has finally been signed, what is in it and is it a good deal for Ukraine?
Chornobyl disaster occurred in the early hours of April 26, 1986, in Soviet Ukraine. Nearly 39 years after the worst nuclear disaster in history, Russia’s brazen attack on the $2 billion New Safe Confinement (the sarcophagus enclosing the destroyed reactor) in February 2025 poses a new potential radioactive danger as engineers race to repair the damage. The Kyiv Independent’s Kollen Post dives into why the restoration is not as simple as it may seem.
The aerial war between Russia and Ukraine is explosive in every sense. But beyond the physical dimension, it is also a battle of morale and information. Both sides are locked in a continuous back-and-forth of public statements and dramatic videos claiming hits and damage to the other side. There’s
Where the Donbas meets the Dnipro River, the USSR built out a dense range of massive factories, using the local coal and metal reserves to smelt, weld, and cast the heaviest of machinery — and weaponry — for the whole of the Soviet Union. One of these is Pivdenmash, formerly known by
The Ukrainian military recently captured two Chinese soldiers fighting for Russia. Kyiv subsequently released data on a total of 163 Chinese nationals identified by Ukrainian intelligence as fighting for Moscow. "We are collecting information, we believe that there are many more," President Volodymyr Zelensky told journalists on April 9. The
Shoddy cyber security at Ukrainian vehicle inspections has exposed hundreds of thousands of personal documents for the past four years, placing reams of personal data at risk of exploitation by bad actors, including Russian intelligence and hackers. Largely scans of passports, taxpayer identification numbers, driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations,
CIA Director John Ratcliffe on March 25 gave a rousing assessment of Kyiv's desire to achieve an acceptable and lasting peace in Ukraine, insisting its people and armed forces would fight Russia with "their bare hands" if they had to. "I want to say that with regard to the Ukrainian
Ukraine’s drone wizardry has drawn the attention of militaries around the world. In addition to an ever-growing drone industry, the rise of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has necessitated new education. Since 2022, a crop of drone schools has popped up around Ukraine to train drone pilots to fight back
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a post on Telegram that Ukraine has observed areas along its eastern border where the Russian army is amassing force. "This speaks to a desire to deliver a strike to our Sumy Oblast," Zelensky wrote.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced a new peace delegation including his foreign minister and defense minister in addition to the head of his office.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced today that an expanded coalition of nations is ramping up efforts to back Ukraine in peace negotiations with Russia, following a high-level virtual summit in London on March 15.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has kicked off an online summit on March 15 of the "coalition of the willing," who could go on to secure Ukraine in the event of a peace deal with Russia.
Formally a brigadier general, Oleksandr Potiy is today tasked with guarding Ukraine on the civilian side — far from the battlefield but right at the front line of Russia’s cyber war. Potiy is in camo fatigues when he addresses the crowd of IT workers and foreign investors for the keynote
As a U.S. delegation in Moscow worked to hammer out a ceasefire agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader responded by demanding extensive concessions in exchange for a ceasefire deal in Ukraine. So far, Trump has made harsh demands on Ukraine while avoiding putting similar pressure on
Fears of a Starlink shut-off at the front line have racked Ukraine. European satellite internet firms took the opportunity to step forward as replacements — but even collectively, they are unlikely to fill the void in coverage that Starlink's shut off would leave. Today, Starlink satellite internet service dominates both worldwide
With every day of the new White House administration that passes, the chances of Russia being brought in from the cold on the international stage after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine appear to be increasing. U.S. President Donald Trump's ongoing Kremlin charm campaign has seen Ukraine and Europe sidelined
The Russian-made Kalashnikov still prevails as the main small arm in Ukraine’s military. A Czech weapons giant is setting up shop in Ukraine’s factories to change that. The Prague-domiciled conglomerate, Colt CZ, has set up assembly of its Bren 2 assault rifles inside Ukraine under the name “Sich”
