The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Moscow and Washington discuss the potential resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe, among other issues related to the peaceful settlement of Russia's war in Ukraine, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed to the Russian state-run Interfax news agency.
"This is a historic decision, as weapons for Ukraine will be purchased at the expense of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets through the European Peace Fund," Denys Shmyhal said.
Kurt Volker said that now "there is more alignment" between Ukraine and the U.S. under the Trump Administration than at the beginning of 2025.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
Under Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin's rule, millions of Ukrainians died during the Holodomor, a man-made famine in 1932–1933. The dictator also oversaw mass deportations, purges of Ukrainian intellectuals and leaders, and the suppression of the Ukrainian language and culture.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
Delegations from 35 countries and the Council of Europe gathered in Lviv as EU officials prepare to approve both new defense aid and steps toward establishing a tribunal for Russian leadership.
The ruling marks a significant victory for RFE/RL amid growing concerns about U.S. funding cuts to independent media countering Russian disinformation.
Kremlin to reportedly use seized US food company to supply Russian military
The Kremlin plans to use the American-owned food company Glavproduct, which it seized in October 2024, to supply canned goods to Russia's military, Reuters reported on April 17, citing internal documents.
Glavproduct, a canned food producer originally founded by Los Angeles-based businessman Leonid Smirnov, is the only U.S. company to fall under Russian state control since the start of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.
The asset seizure was needed to ensure stable production for future supplies to Russia's Defense Ministry and the National Guard, according to a letter from Glavproduct's new management to the Russian Prosecutor General's Office.
The letter, seen by Reuters, also notes that Rosimushchestvo, Russia's federal property management agency, appointed a new CEO at the request of Druzhba Narodov, a food supplier with ties to Kremlin security forces.
Druzhba Narodov previously served as the sole supplier to the Russian National Guard in 2019-2020, according to investigative reporting by Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation.
The company is linked to former Russian Agriculture Minister Alexander Tkachov, who was sanctioned by the EU in 2014 over his support for Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Russian prosecutors accuse Smirnov of illegally transferring $17 million out of Russia between 2022 and 2024. The Moscow Arbitration Court froze Glavproduct's assets on March 12. A hearing is scheduled for April 18.
Smirnov, based in Los Angeles, denies wrongdoing and called the takeover a "Russian-style corporate raid." According to Reuters, Glavproduct had not previously supplied the Russian army.
The dispute is unfolding as Washington and Moscow continue backchannel negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Glavproduct's status would be part of broader talks to "reset relations" with Russia.
Since 2023, more than a dozen foreign companies, including Carlsberg and Fortum, have had their Russian subsidiaries taken over by decree.
In May 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law allowing the Kremlin to identify and seize U.S.-owned property and securities as "compensation" for Western sanctions.
As the war drags into its fourth year and Russia ramps up military spending, the Kremlin asserts greater control over strategic industries — including food production — to sustain its war effort.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
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