In the heart of Kharkiv, Kharkiv Theater for Children and Youth performs in bomb shelters under constant threats of Russian attacks. The Kyiv Independent visited one of the theater's performances in late June to meet the dedicated actors and their no less dedicated audience.
Olena Makarenko is a Kyiv-based journalist and documentary filmmaker. Since November 2015, Olena has been covering the events in Ukraine for foreign audiences. She has authored two short documentaries: “The Court” (2018) about establishing the Anti-Corruption Court in Ukraine and “Life-Long City” about an activist in Kryvyi Rih.Read more
The shift in U.S. rhetoric follows statements from President Donald Trump, who has blamed Ukraine for the war, accused Zelensky of acting like a "dictator," and suggested that Russia should be invited back into the G7.
"This is a negotiation. And in a negotiation, you negotiate. Ukraine wants to negotiate minerals, so we're talking about it," a White House official was quoted as saying.
The U.S. delegation reportedly rejected the demand, but concerns remain over what concessions President Donald Trump might consider to secure a deal on ending war with Russia.
The meeting in Kyiv was expected to be followed by a press briefing, but Washington requested that no joint statements be made, Zelensky's spokesperson, Serhii Nykyforov, told reporters.
The intelligence agency accused Yevgeny Bogdanov, deputy head of Berdiasnk's occupation administration, of committing multiple war crimes against Ukrainian citizens.
Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation and Justice Ministry are preparing to nationalize Poltava Mining, a subsidiary of London-listed Ferrexpo, which is majority owned by oligarch Konstantin Zhevago, the SBI announced on Feb. 20.
After the Trump administration accused European allies of not pulling their weight in the support for Ukraine, the Kyiv Independent sat down with the EU's first-ever defense commissioner, Andrius Kubilius, to discuss whether Europe is ready to step up.
"How long it will be, how effective it will be, is another question. But I think it will happen," Ukrainian military intelligence head Kyrylo Budanov said.
Keith Kellogg, U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, met with top Ukrainian military and government officials as part of his visit to the country that began on Feb. 19.
According to Sergei Rudsky, a senior Russian General Staff official, Ukrainian soldiers are in control of about 500 square kilometers (193 square miles) out of 1,268 square kilometers (490 square miles) initially seized by Kyiv.
The visit aims to reaffirm the EU's "support to the heroic Ukrainian people and to the democratically elected President Volodymyr Zelensky," European Council President Antonio Costa said.
"We are, of course, following all these reports most closely... This is a cause for concern because the discussion is about sending NATO military contingents to Ukraine," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said at a press briefing.
This would mark the first time that the Russian munitions carrier Maia-1, sanctioned by the U.S. and the EU, entered European waters, the Financial Times noted.
"The purpose of these criminal attacks is to stop the production of gas needed to meet the household needs of citizens and centralized heating," Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said.
The sources told Reuters that Trump wants to make a deal before potentially authorizing more U.S. military aid for Kyiv or moving forward with an attempt to broker formal Ukraine-Russia peace talks.
