KOZHYCHI, Lviv Oblast — When approaching the quaint yard of Viktor Shelvinsky's house, one can scarcely believe it serves as a haven for hundreds of birds of all kinds. But quickly, the entry gate gives way to a spacious garden filled with aviaries of different shapes and sizes, housing storks, buzzards, pheasants, owls, and parrots. Shelvinsky, a 48-year-old veterinarian, has built the Free Wings (Vilni Kryla) rehabilitation center around his house on the outskirts of Lviv. He takes care of a

Elections have been floated as part of a peace or ceasefire deal that Ukraine has been discussing with the U.S., but voting in the occupied territories complicates the process.

Several waves of explosions were heard across the capital, according to Kyiv Independent reporters on the ground, as well as in Kyiv Oblast, where power outages were reported in the town of Brovary and surrounding areas following the strikes.

Without security guarantees, Ukraine cannot take any steps towards peace or hold presidential elections, which Trump's administration has pressured Zelensky to implement.

Russia launched nearly 500 drones and 40 missiles overnight on Dec. 26-27, largely targeting Kyiv’s energy and civilian infrastructure.

Denis Kapustin, also known by his nom de guerre "White Rex," led the right-wing Russian Volunteer Corps until he was killed by an FPV drone on the southern front, according to preliminary reports. More details are expected later.

The number includes 1,240 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

"I think they want to do it now, and I think that Russia wants to do it. But every time one wants to do it, the other doesn’t," Trump told the New York Post in a Dec. 26 phone call.

Timur Mindich, a close associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky and suspect in a major corruption investigation, gave his first media interview since leaving Ukraine in November, speaking with Ukrainska Pravda in an interview published Dec. 26.

Editor's note: The names of some of those from Russian-occupied Ukraine have been changed for security reasons. With one decree, Russian President Vladimir Putin this month effectively legalized property theft in Ukraine's occupied territories. The new law allows the occupational authorities to seize residential premises that "show signs of being ownerless." In reality, the owners have usually fled, or been killed by, Russia's full-scale invasion. "I'm in utter despair that the Russians are t

Russia is continuing to systematically recruit foreign nationals for its war against Ukraine, said Oleh Ivashchenko, head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, on Dec. 26.

From the grand halls of Kyiv's cultural institutions to small regional initiatives shaping public dialogue, Ukraine's cultural life has faced unprecedented pressures. Amid daily attacks, occupation, and displacement, many of the country's most remarkable cultural projects continue — thanks to steadfast support from ERSTE Foundation, one of the most consistent international partners in Central and Eastern Europe. For more than two decades, the Vienna-based institution has been deeply engaged in

Kharkiv Oblast was struck with with three KAB guided bombs, one of which targeted the city of Kharkiv, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.

President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Dec. 28 as part of the latest peace efforts to end Russia's nearly four-year full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a source in Ukraine's Presidential Office said.

Russia overnight on Dec. 26 launched drone attacks at Ukraine's sea port and energy infrastructure in Odesa and Mykolaiv oblasts, as well as railway infrastructure in Volyn Oblast, authorities reported.

The year 2025 arrived with talk of peace. It ended to the rattle of air-defense systems across Ukraine. It was a year shaped by negotiations and expectations, driven by U.S. President Donald Trump's push for a settlement — even as Russia continued to strike Ukrainian cities. The war did not end. Russian strikes did not stop. Early in 2025, hopes ran high in Kyiv that Washington would finally pressure Moscow into ending its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Those hopes evaporated when Trump redi

Russia launched 99 drones and one Iskander ballistic missiles at Ukraine overnight, the Air Force said.

The number includes 840 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

President Volodymyr Zelensky held a phone call with U.S. President Trump’s Special Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Christmas Day to discuss "several substantive details" of ongoing peace talks, the president said.

Ukrainian forces struck multiple targets inside Russia overnight Dec. 24-25, hitting oil refining facility, a port, and a military airfield, the Ukrainian General Staff and a source from the the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said.

Ukraine is marking its fourth Christmas under a full-scale Russian invasion.

The missiles struck the refinery, triggering multiple explosions, the General Staff said, adding that the extent of the damage was still being clarified.

In the winter of 2023, just after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Natalia Kovalenko, the director of one of the largest kindergartens in Kyiv Oblast, was grappling with challenges that went far beyond lesson plans and playtime. As Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure intensified, her daily concerns narrowed to the most basic things: how to keep the building warm, and how to keep the lights on. “Children need light and warmth,” Kovalenko told the Kyiv Independent. On

Ukrainian intelligence sources said the officers had previously taken part in Russia's war against Ukraine and were implicated in the abuse of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs).

Russia launched 131 drones at Ukraine overnight, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 106 drones. At least 22 drones made it through, striking 15 locations.

The number includes 860 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

Russia's Defense Ministry reported that between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Moscow time on Dec. 24, its air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 132 Ukrainian drones.

"'May he perish,' each of us may think to ourselves," Zelensky said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "But when we turn to God, of course, we ask for something greater. We ask for peace for Ukraine."

As Ukraine’s future is debated in distant conference rooms and Ukrainians prepare to mark another wartime Christmas, dozens of residents of a small border village in Sumy Oblast have vanished across the Russian border — taken by force from their homes, with no idea about what awaits them next. On Dec. 20, at least 52 civilians were deported from the village of Hrabovske, located just 200 meters from Russia’s border, after Russian troops detained them two days earlier. "These were civilians, Uk

As President Volodymyr Zelensky unveiled details of a U.S.-Ukraine draft peace plan on Dec. 24, aimed at ending Russia's full-scale war, two key provisions remain unresolved. The disagreements center on provisions 12 and 14 of the 20-point proposal. Both deal with issues Kyiv calls existential: territories and the future of critical infrastructure. The Kyiv Independent breaks down where negotiations are stalling and what Ukraine is offering instead. Zelensky reveals full 20-point peace plan d

In a hypothetical runoff between the two, Zaluzhnyi would secure a decisive victory, winning 64% of the vote compared to Zelensky's 36%, according to the poll.

The Kyiv Independent’s Myroslava Chauin speaks with Kateryna Rashevska, a legal expert at the Regional Center for Human Rights and a children’s rights activist, about evidence that Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied territories were transferred to a children’s camp in North Korea.