Editor's note: This article was published as part of the Fighting Against Conspiracy and Trolls (FACT) project, an independent, non-partisan hub launched in mid-2025 under the umbrella of the EU Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). Click here to follow the latest stories from our hub on disinformation. Russia and its proxies have launched a disinformation campaign claiming that Moldova, together with Romania and Ukraine, plans a military operation against Transnistria, a Kremlin-occupied region in

For the first time since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the major electronic music festival ICKPA returns to Kyiv, taking place on July 25-27. Founded in 2021 through a collaboration between a local Ukrainian team and the renowned Georgian club Bassiani, ICKPA (pronounced “Iskra” which means “Spark” in Ukrainian was envisioned as an annual event, aimed at amplifying the voices of creative communities from Eastern European countries. It also serves as a platform for cultural exch

Ukraine's largest music event, the Atlas Festival, took place in Kyiv over the weekend. This is the second time the festival has been held during Russia's full-scale invasion. Once one of the biggest music festivals in Eastern and Central Europe, featuring many international acts, it was downscaled following the start of the all-out war. Most foreign artists avoided the festival amid Russia's ongoing bombardment of Ukraine. The Finnish rock band The Rasmus wasn't one of them. The group perfor

Vitaliy Shabunin, head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center's (AntAC) executive board and current member of the country's Armed Forces, was charged on July 11 with evading military service and fraud — an accusation he and his team reject.

Dutch protesters who regularly call for an end to military aid to Ukraine will descend on The Hague next week to protest the upcoming NATO summit, which is set to take place on June 24-25. The group will protest against NATO alongside several other organizations and has urged supporters on social media to sign a petition calling on NATO to stop military aid to war zones and to reject what it calls "economically devastating sanctions warfare." Operating under the name “Vredesdemonstratie” meani

In the video, Russian activist Anna Kiryakova reads from a book of poetry that glorifies her country’s war against Ukraine. The anthology’s title — “Poetry of the Russian Winter” — is written with the Latin Z in place of its Russian analog. The inclusion of that one letter aligns the book with the Kremlin’s pro-war narrative. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Z has become a pro-war symbol that many Ukrainians and opponents of the invasion equate with the

A large-scale drone attack carried out by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), which reportedly destroyed or damaged 41 Russian heavy bombers on June 1, brought a much-needed morale boost to Ukrainians. Codenamed "Spiderweb," the operation targeted the strategic aircraft that Russia uses for long-range missile attacks on Ukrainian cities. The damage dealt could potentially hinder Moscow’s ability to carry out such mass strikes in the future. In Ukraine, the operation quickly drew comparisons to s

The Security Service of Ukraine, SBU, conducted a major special operation targeting four Russian air bases across the country on June 1. We asked Ukrainians on the streets of Kyiv to share their reactions to the operation.

Multiple people were injured as multiple waves of explosions rocked Kyiv overnight on May 24 during a massive Russian drone and missile attack.

This year’s Eurovision Song Contest is taking place in neutral Switzerland, but politics are center stage. While debate continues over Israel’s participation amid the war in Gaza, Russia — banned from the contest since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine — continues to cast a shadow over the event. This year, entries from Estonia, Austria, Ireland, Armenia, and Georgia have come under scrutiny for their perceived ties to Russia or cultural influences linked to it. The grand final of Eurovision

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to include comments from a 2022 interview, given while Robert Prevost was Bishop of Chiclayo, Peru. With the announcement that Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost has been chosen as the new pope and leader of the Catholic Church, Ukrainians are wondering what the surprise appointment of the American-born pontiff will mean for their country. Past comments made by the new pope, who has taken the name Pope Leo XIV, quickly surfaced to form an idea of his vie

On a Sunday afternoon in mid-February, a small but politically charged event took place in the heart of Amsterdam. A group of eight people gathered for a photo-op protest on the city’s Dam Square holding placards that called for an end to Western arms deliveries to Ukraine and the removal of President Volodymyr Zelensky. The event was part of an international campaign that stages small protests in several countries to advocate for elections in Ukraine, its organizers wrote on Facebook. Martial