Culture

'Some are forged into poets during hostilities' — Medic, former POW, and poet on how war is shaping Ukraine's writers

by Andrea JanutaJuly 8, 2025

Before her harrowing footage of life in Mariupol under siege from Russian invaders was viewed around the world in 2022, Yuliia Paievska — call sign "Taira" — was already well known to Ukrainians for leading a volunteer medical unit in Donbas. Now, the volunteer, soldier, athlete, global activist, and former POW is being lauded once again – as a poet whose debut collection, Nazhyvo (Live), has captured audiences in Ukraine with its fervent writing, inspired by some of the war's most brutal episo

Attendees of the Meridian Czernowitz literary festival in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on June 28–29, 2025.

‘Not many events like this left’ — A Ukrainian literary festival in a city falsely claimed by Russia

by Andrea JanutaJuly 3, 2025

Ukrainian author killed by Russia awarded UK’s prestigious Orwell Prize in political writing

by Kate TsurkanJune 25, 2025

As Ukraine bleeds, Western opera welcomes back pro-Putin Russian singer Anna Netrebko

by Kate TsurkanJune 25, 2025

Ukrainians grapple with how to memorialize a war still being fought

by Natalia YermakJuly 10, 2025

A woman holds a Ukrainian passport at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in Tijuana, Mexico, on April 5, 2022

Foreigners move closer to Ukrainian citizenship with new draft law, but red tape obscures their path

by Kate TsurkanJune 24, 2025

Love, sex, survival — Ukrainian author on how war shapes intimacy in Ukraine

by Kate TsurkanJune 21, 2025

Two people walk down the street in Vynohradiv, Zakarpattia Oblast, Ukraine on May 22, 2025.

Hungary’s soft power meets Ukraine’s hard reality in Zakarpattia

by Martin FornusekJune 16, 2025

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July 13, 2025 07:21 AM

Pro-Ukrainian partisans destroy car used by Chechen unit in occupied Mariupol, Atesh claims

"We send greetings to the kadyrovtsy," the group wrote, referring to the notoriously ruthless troops named for Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov.

July 13, 2025 06:29 AM

Kim Jong Un pledges to 'unconditionally' support Russia's war against Ukraine

Kim told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that his country stands "ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership as regards the tackling of the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis."

July 13, 2025 04:05 AM

Trump considering sending new funds to Ukraine for first time since taking office, CBS News reports

The funds could come from the $3.85 billion remaining in Presidential Drawdown Authority from the Biden administration or from frozen Russian assets, current and former U.S. officials said.

July 13, 2025 02:48 AM

Russia blames Western sanctions for collapse of UN food deal

A day earlier, the U.N. announced that the three-year agreement would end on July 22. The deal "will not be renewed" because of disagreements, a source close to the discussions told the AFP.

July 13, 2025 01:16 AM

'Impeccable results' — New Skynex video shows Ukrainian forces destroying Russian drones with German gun

Filmed in an undisclosed location at an unspecified time, the video published on July 12 shows Ukrainian soldiers shooting down multiple Russian targets with a German-made Skynex air defense system.

July 13, 2025 12:00 AM

French army chief says Russia sees France as 'main enemy in Europe' due to Ukraine support

The head of the French army, General Thierry Burkhard, attributed Russia's view of Paris as a primary adversary largely to France's unwavering support for Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion.

About Culture

Our reporting on literature, films, art, and traditions from Ukraine and the latest news on culture in Eastern Europe.

Ukrainian culture

Ukrainian culture has survived centuries of Russian attempts to appropriate Ukrainian art, silence Ukrainian artists, and erase the Ukrainian language. Modern Ukrainian writers, filmmakers, and musicians — some of whom are serving on the front lines — continue to develop Ukrainian culture and fight for Ukraine’s future.

June 12, 2025‘I feel like I lost 3 years’ — Ukrainian author turned soldier Artem Chapeye on culture during war

June 11, 2025'Ukrainians have been stripped of illusion of control' — Filmmaker Kateryna Gornostai on Russia's war, cinema and reclaiming the narrative

March 26, 2025Explainer: Some Ukrainians speak Russian language — it doesn’t make them Russian

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China unveils its new 'graphite bomb' — here's how they work

China's state TV broadcaster has revealed details of a new "graphite bomb" that can cause a "complete loss of electricity" across an area of 10,000 square meters, or knock out entire power stations, the South China Morning Post reported on June 29. An animated video released by China's CCTV showed a missile being launched from a ground-based launcher and then flying to a target where it releases 90 small submunitions. They then bounce on the ground before exploding amid a mock-up of an electri

War update

Culture

'Some are forged into poets during hostilities' — Medic, former POW, and poet on how war is shaping Ukraine's writers

‘Not many events like this left’ — A Ukrainian literary festival in a city falsely claimed by Russia

Ukrainian author killed by Russia awarded UK’s prestigious Orwell Prize in political writing

As Ukraine bleeds, Western opera welcomes back pro-Putin Russian singer Anna Netrebko

Ukrainians grapple with how to memorialize a war still being fought

Foreigners move closer to Ukrainian citizenship with new draft law, but red tape obscures their path

Love, sex, survival — Ukrainian author on how war shapes intimacy in Ukraine

Hungary’s soft power meets Ukraine’s hard reality in Zakarpattia

More from Culture

‘I feel like I lost 3 years’ — Ukrainian author turned soldier Artem Chapeye on culture during war

Putin’s suspected daughter found working in anti-war galleries in Paris

'Ukrainians have been stripped of illusion of control' — Filmmaker Kateryna Gornostai on Russia's war, cinema and reclaiming the narrative

Author Yuri Andrukhovych on Ukrainian dissident art in Soviet times

Exiled Russian scholar on why Dugin is no philosopher, and Russia no defender of ‘traditional values’

Wondering where to start with Dostoevsky? Try his Ukrainian contemporaries instead

Controversial Russian literature prize sparks debate on separating culture from war crimes

‘Tattoos of war’ — haunting portraits of Ukrainians’ most painful wartime memories (Photos)

NewsLetters

News Feed

Pro-Ukrainian partisans destroy car used by Chechen unit in occupied Mariupol, Atesh claims

Kim Jong Un pledges to 'unconditionally' support Russia's war against Ukraine

Trump considering sending new funds to Ukraine for first time since taking office, CBS News reports

Russia blames Western sanctions for collapse of UN food deal

'Impeccable results' — New Skynex video shows Ukrainian forces destroying Russian drones with German gun

French army chief says Russia sees France as 'main enemy in Europe' due to Ukraine support

About Culture

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China unveils its new 'graphite bomb' — here's how they work

Ukraine war latest: Drones attack Russia's Black Sea Fleet; Russian pipelines explode in country's Far East, HUR says

Iran summons Ukraine's envoy, warns of 'consequences' over comments on Israeli, US strikes

Pipelines supplying Russian military explode in Russia's Far East, HUR source says

Ukraine’s new interceptor UAVs are starting to knock Russia’s long-range Shahed drones out of the sky

Editors' Picks

Ukrainians grapple with how to memorialize a war still being fought

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'We need to learn how to live without America' — Ukraine’s survival amid faltering US aid

‘Neither side wasted time' — Ukraine's economy minister on minerals deal negotiations with Trump’s ‘business-oriented’ administration