Ukraine is celebrating its 34th Independence Day on Aug. 24, 2025. To mark the occasion, we’ve asked the staff of the Kyiv Independent to share their favourite fact about Ukrainian history, culture, their hometown, or a famous Ukrainian — some of whom, you might be surprised to learn are from Ukraine. Read the list and see how many facts you already knew. 1. The geographic center of Europe is in Ukraine A stone monument near the village of Dilove in Zakarpattia Oblast marks the spot officially

Sickening. Shameful. And in the end, useless. Those were the words that came to mind when we watched the Alaska Summit unfold. On our screens, a blood-soaked dictator and war criminal received a royal welcome in the land of the free — as his attack drones headed for our cities. In the lead-up to the meeting in Alaska, U.S. President Donald Trump declared he wanted a “ceasefire today” and that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin would face “severe consequences” if he didn't go for it. Yet

Editor's note: We asked members of the Kyiv Independent community to share the questions they have about the war. Here's what they asked and how we answered. Join our community to ask a question in the next round. Why doesn't Ukraine retaliate when Russia bombs a civilian target such as an apartment building? Answer: Ukraine does retaliate. Kyiv targets Russia's military targets such as airfields, oil refineries, and arms depots. Ukraine also now hinders Russia's air traffic by modeling drone

Today, Ukrainians have once again shown the world how to stand for democracy. The Ukrainian parliament voted on July 31 to restore the independence of anti-corruption investigative agencies — repairing the damage that same parliament had done one week ago. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the bill into law immediately after. This comes after a combined pushback from two directions: the streets of Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, and high offices in Brussels. Last week’s attack on anti-cor

Editor's note: We offered members of the Kyiv Independent community to share their questions about a controversial bill that undermined Ukraine’s anti-corruption institutions and the street protests that followed it this week. Our staff's answers to their questions are below. Join our community and get the chance to ask your questions directly to our team. What is NABU? And besides NABU, there is NAZK, SAPO, and VAKS — what are they and why were they created? Confused by all the acronyms in t

Editor’s note: This editorial has been updated to reflect the fact Zelensky signed the bill into law on the evening of July 22, as shown on the Parliament's website. Last week, we warned of a coming anti-democratic backslide. Now, we see it happening. A parliamentary vote, led by President Volodymyr Zelensky’s lawmakers, today took away the independence of Ukraine’s key anti-corruption bodies — the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). Z

While fighting a war of survival against Russia, Ukraine must not turn into its authoritarian neighbor.

Editor's Note: This article was updated to include The New York Times' response to the criticism, sent to The Kyiv Independent via email. The New York Times' recent feature detailing Ukraine's incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast presents a vivid, harrowing account of civilian suffering. It also twists the narrative, stays mute on the factors that led to Ukraine's incursion into Russia two and a half years after the start of Russia's all-out war, doesn't mention the civilian toll of the ongoin

The first edition sent on June 12 raised $16,500 in just four days for the Leleka Foundation, a U.S.-Ukrainian charity that procures medical supplies for those on the front lines.

The Kyiv Independent has officially reached 20,000 paying members, becoming the first Ukrainian media outlet in history to cross this milestone.

All profits from the sales of the 603,628 km² T-shirt for the next month will be donated to the Ukrainian charitable foundation East SOS.

Ukrainian intelligence has identified the captain of the oil embargo-breaking tanker FACCA, a part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” of oil tankers.

Editor's note: We asked members of the Kyiv Independent community to share the questions they have about the war. Here's what they asked and how we answered. Join our community to ask a question in the next round. Question: Is Ukraine formulating a plan to receive and house refugees from occupied territories? I would expect in that ceding territory many Ukrainians would want to leave Russian control. Answer: Handling internally displaced people (IDPs) has been a pressing issue for Ukraine eve

With the incredible support of our readers and community, we raised $24,500 for Veteran Hub through the sale of over 1,000 of our “I Stand With Ukraine” T-shirts.

The Kyiv Independent, in partnership with UNESCO and with the support of Japan, is launching a hands-on consultancy program for three regional independent media organizations in Ukraine that were severely affected by the U.S. aid freeze. This U.S. aid freeze affected organizations in Ukraine, including those providing humanitarian services, as well as independent media outlets covering Russia's war against Ukraine, leaving them without crucial funding. Smaller, local media outlets — often the