In March 2023, I noticed a disturbing silence about the messaging platform Telegram’s ties to the Kremlin, despite Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine. It was like a Trojan horse – right in the pockets of 70% of Ukrainians. I quickly compiled years of notes on its founder Pavel Durov, and his connections to Russian authorities. My findings were previously published in Ukrainska Pravda and the Kyiv Independent, sparking significant interest and leading to the creation of Kremlingram, a non-prof

For better or worse, memes and video games might now play a more significant role in shaping people’s worldviews than textbooks, movies, and literature. As Russia’s war against Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war capture global attention, it’s crucial to consider how people form their conscious and unconscious beliefs about the world. This question extends beyond the billions of global citizens to influential individuals like Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Tesla’s Elon Musk. Ukrainians have grievances

Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent. Telegram has since issued a response to this article, to which the Azhnyuk has also issued a response. Almost every day, there is more news about restrictions on TikTok in Europe and the United States. Against this background, the silence in the Ukrainian media regarding Telegram is deafening. No, I'm not calling for its immediate ban, as was once

Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in our op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent. Today, on Jan. 12, is the birthday of Serhiy Korolyov, a Ukrainian engineer who launched humanity into space. Three of the most significant achievements at the dawn of the space era were masterminded by him. Sputnik. Gagarin. And Leonov’s first-ever spacewalk. Korolyov was the genius behind the technology that made these and many other leaps possi