Today's top story so far: Russian troops have stepped up aerial bomb attacks in the Pokrovsk sector of Donetsk Oblast, which could signal preparations for an offensive, Yuliia Stepaniuk, head of communications for the 117th Separate Mechanized Brigade, told Suspilne on Jan. 29. While there were two to three such attacks in the area earlier this week, Russian forces carried out 30 strikes over the past day alone, Stepaniuk said. "The enemy is likely preparing an offensive. It's preparing for s

The funds will support protection assistance, shelter, food, cash aid, psychosocial services, and access to water and healthcare for Ukrainians affected by the attacks.

"We have close to 1 million combatants in Russia. They're mainly criminals; they are very dangerous people," Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said. "We have information that most of them will come to Europe after the war."

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Moscow is prepared to ensure President Volodymyr Zelensky's security.

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) voted on Jan. 29 to cut its benchmark interest rate to 15%, the first change since March last year, as inflation cools and a new aid package from Europe eased pressure on the country's finances.

Russia confirmed that it had handed over 1,000 bodies to Ukraine under the Istanbul agreement in exchange for 38 bodies of fallen Russian soldiers, Kremlin-controlled news agency TASS reported on Jan. 29.

The Carlyle deal does not include Lukoil's assets in Kazakhstan and is still subject to approval by the U.S. Treasury Department, the Russian energy giant said.

The comments come after President Volodymyr Zelensky set 2027 as the target date for Ukraine's entry into the bloc.

As Kyiv's repair crews scramble to keep the lights and heat on after repeated Russian strikes, the work has become punishing — and, in recent weeks, deadly. Oleksandr Pitaichuk, a 31-year-old high-angle rescuer, died during emergency repair work at one of Kyiv's power facilities on Jan. 25, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. Pitaichuk fell from a height of 20 meters, and his injuries proved fatal, according to Klymenko. "He stood between chaos and normal life — so homes could have light and

Russian forces launched missile and drone attacks on several Ukrainian regions, including Kyiv and surrounding areas, overnight on Jan. 28, local authorities reported.

A senior U.S. envoy involved in efforts to end Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine has displayed a lack of basic understanding of Ukraine's political system and the war itself while speaking in a closed conversation with a small group of reporters, the Kyiv Independent has learned. The official is engaged in high-level negotiations with both Moscow and Kyiv as Ukraine, Russia, and the United States reenter an active diplomatic phase under President Donald Trump's renewed push to end the war

This is Chris York reporting from Kyiv on day 1,435 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today's top story: Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) on Jan. 28 released a video compilation of what it claimed was the destruction of more than $1 billion worth of Russian military aircraft in long-range drone strikes conducted by its "A" Special Operations Center, also known as "Alpha." "The enemy is used to feeling safe in the deep rear. But for the special forces of 'Alpha,' distance has long ce

Just over 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Kyiv, the Gostomel animal shelter in Hostomel, Kyiv Oblast is trying to keep more than 700 cats and dogs alive and warm as Russia's attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure leave the country facing rolling outages, scarce heat, and long stretches without power. The shelter's small team of volunteers and full-time staff is stretched thin.  The lack of electricity and heat, both essential to caring for the animals, have become this winter's biggest challe

Colombians, many shaped by decades of armed conflict at home, have become one of the largest groups of foreign volunteers fighting for Ukraine since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. The Kyiv Independent's Jared Goyette speaks with a Colombian volunteer who spent two years fighting in Ukraine.

Kyiv is pushing to delay a new tax on self-employed entrepreneurs until after the war has ended, as well as raise the threshold at which entrepreneurs would start paying the levy, a person in the Ukrainian government familiar with the talks told the Kyiv Independent.

Russia has tightened control over information about its battlefield losses in Ukraine, cutting off data and closing one public loophole after another. The effort has not stopped the evidence of the dead from surfacing. As 2025 came to an end, Western governments and independent groups alike tallied staggering figures for Russia's battlefield losses in Ukraine, reaching no fewer than 400,000 killed, wounded, and missing that year. According to some estimates, Russia could have lost more soldiers

Three Russian Geran-2 drones struck the train on Jan. 27 at around 4:30 p.m. local time in the Barvinkove community.

The Kremlin has sought to strengthen ties with the new leadership in Damascus after the toppling of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, a Russian ally, in 2024.

The attack on the oil depot caused a fire at the facility and ignited stored petroleum products. Thick smoke is rising above the site, the General Staff said.

The Chariot Tide, formerly known as Marabella Sun, was flying a Mozambique flag when its engine broke down on Jan. 22 in international waters within Spain's search-and-rescue zone.

In Eastern Europe, shifting global orders have been a lived experience for decades. Just over thirty years ago, the end of communism and the retreat of Russian dominance paved the way for market economies and pluralistic societies, sometimes overnight. Since that rupture, civil society — the organizations that exist in the space between the ordinary citizen and the state — has been integral to the political, social and cultural transformations across much of the region. But that fast-paced chan

Russian forces have sustained nearly 1.2 million casualties since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, paying a steep price for limited gains, a new CSIS report finds.

The Atesh partisan group sabotaged an electrical substation in Russia's Udmurt Republic, disrupting power supply to the nearby "BUMMASH" military‑industrial plant, the group claimed in a Telegram post on Jan. 28.

This is Yuliia Taradiuk and Polina Moroziuk reporting from Kyiv on day 1,434 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today's top story: Russian drones struck a passenger train in Kharkiv Oblast on Jan. 27, hitting a locomotive and passenger car and causing a fire, Ukrainian officials said. At least five people were killed, and two others were injured in the attack, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office reported later in the evening. According to Ukrzaliznitsia and regional officials, th

Ukraine's ambassador to Hungary was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Budapest on Jan. 27, as Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto accused Kyiv of interfering in Hungary's upcoming parliamentary elections.

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Belarus is complicit in Russia's invasion of Ukraine and that Kyiv is preparing sanctions against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to hold him accountable for supporting the war.

"These are different people... the conversations were very focused," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.

U.S. President Donald Trump's unveiling of his new "Board of Peace" drew a divided response from the international community. Most of Europe — including Ukraine — was absent from the signing ceremony in Davos, which featured mainly Middle Eastern leaders and Trump's ideological allies, such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban or Argentinian President Javier Milei. Despite seeking Trump's favor in peace talks with Russia, Kyiv remains reluctant to join as long as the war lasts. The reason

As an additional incentive, the U.S. has reportedly offered Ukraine more weapons to equip its army in the post-war period.

A Russian attack on Kyiv overnight on Jan. 24 damaged buildings at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a centuries-old monastery complex that holds some of Ukraine's most revered shrines and relics. Site officials said it was the first time since World War II that military action had damaged the Lavra. "What happened this time was a direct threat," said Maksym Ostapenko, the site's director general. "The explosion occurred very close to the Lavra. The shockwave affected the structure itself, not just wind

Odesa was the hardest hit among Ukrainian cities overnight.

Fourteen European countries warned on Jan. 26 that ships sailing in the Baltic Sea and North Sea under multiple flags may be treated as stateless vessels.