A view of the Crimean Bridge, built following Russia's illegal occupation and annexation of Crimea. (Photo by Stringer/AFP via Getty Images)
There have been reports of explosions near Chornomorske in Russian-occupied Crimea, the Telegram channel Crimean Wind reported late on Oct. 28.
Near the city of Yevpatoria in western Crimea, eyewitnesses have reported sightings of drones.
Reports of explosions in occupied Crimea continue to surface regularly, with the Russian Defense Ministry attributing them to Ukrainian attacks. Starting in the summer of 2023, there has been a notable escalation in assaults targeting Russian military installations throughout occupied Crimea.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
The Kyiv Independent has launched a new collection, “The Ukrainian Trident — Through History and Modernity,” designed to visualize the symbol of Ukrainian sovereignty in its diversity.
The International Monetary Fund (IFM) has reached a staff-level agreement with Ukraine to provided the embattled country with $8.2 billion over 4 years through a renewed agreement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
Russian forces captured the villages of Promin in Donetsk Oblast and Vysoke in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukrainian mapping group DeepState reported Nov. 26.
Rapidly expanding drone maker Fire Point is under scrutiny over its opaque funding, ownership, and links to figures named in a major anti-corruption and money-laundering investigation.
"Such incidents are unacceptable. The Republic of Moldova has rejected and will firmly reject every attack against its security and territorial integrity," Moldovan Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi said during a press conference on Nov. 26.
"The next step is that the Commission is ready to present the legal text," said Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, in a speech to European lawmakers in Strasbourg on Nov. 26.
In mid-November, the RRC and the Movement of the First co-organized a first aid competition for children from across Russia and the occupied Ukrainian territories.
The Kyiv Independent’s separate analytical unit, KI Insights, is excited to announce the launch of its podcast, Ukraine Insights — a show dedicated to unpacking Ukraine’s politics, security, economy, and international relations through in-depth, expert-driven conversations.
According to the NABU, Timur Mindich, a close Zelensky associate, committed his crimes by influencing Rustem Umerov, former defense minister and current secretary of the National Security and Defense Council.
While leaked reports of a U.S.-proposed peace plan have sparked international debates about the future of Ukraine`s occupied territories and the people who live there, Russia is forging ahead, entrenching its control on the ground by expanding illegal mobilization.
Ukraine is facing its biggest wartime corruption scandal. The Kyiv Independent’s Dominic Culverwell explains how Energoatom — Ukraine's nuclear energy operator — became a breeding ground for corruption during the war, how a $100 million kickback scheme in the nuclear energy sector reached the highest levels of power, and what this crisis means for President Volodymyr Zelensky and the country.
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Independent, under fire — and unstoppable with you on board
Independent journalism is never easy, and it’s even harder in wartime. Yet we can do it without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise — because of our community. Help us reach 25,000 members by the end of 2025.
Dominic Culverwell
