Key developments on Aug. 14: * Russia's Ust-Luga port struck, 2 processing plants damaged, Ukraine's General Staff says * Russia strikes Ukraine's largest private port operator as Moscow rejects grain truce * Russia to abolish border zones with occupied Ukrainian territories * Ukrainians rally again for Fedorov reinstatement as organizers 'disappointed' in Zelensky's silence Ukraine struck the Ust-Luga port in Russia's Leningrad Oblast overnight on Aug. 14, damaging two processing plants a

"The president has maximally disappointed me with his silence, especially considering that the lack of communication has effectively become the trigger for these protests," Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a war veteran and one of the protest organizers, said on social media.

Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 provoked some very real geopolitical soul-searching throughout Central Asian capitals. Up until then, the economies of five of these states remained oriented towards the largest economy in the region – Russia. The C6 (i.e., Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) are taking unprecedented steps to diversify their trade, investment, and labor portfolios, having been shaken by Moscow's brutal rejection o

Ukraine's diplomacy is finding unexpected success beyond its traditional allies. Within a span of a few months, President Volodymyr Zelensky has paid first wartime visits to Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Serbia — countries traditionally counted among Moscow's partners. Economically and geopolitically weakened by its ongoing war against Ukraine, Russia is running short on political capital it can use to cement its sphere of influence. This, mixed with recent hurdles in bilateral ties and pragmatic

The Ukrainian arms company Fire Point, whose missiles and drones have played a significant role in Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil refineries and logistics infrastructure, also got in on the social media action.

Albert Vasiliev, also known as Kyivstoner, is a blogger, actor, rapper, and a former member of the Griby band. Russia previously accused him of orchestrating a drone attack in Moscow Oblast in cooperation with Ukrainian security services, an allegation he denied.

Kyiv privately told the Trump administration that Russia may be unable to capture the remaining Ukrainian-controlled parts of Donetsk Oblast even in 2027, according to a document seen by the Kyiv Independent. The assessment comes as Moscow continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw from Donetsk Oblast as part of the U.S.-led peace process. Kyiv is instead arguing that Russia's battlefield gains have slowed so sharply that Moscow may struggle to achieve its territorial goals through force. Ukra

The attack damaged at least one warehouse at the TIS terminal in Ukraine's Pivdennyi (Southern) Port complex, an agriculture-sector executive with knowledge of the matter told the Kyiv Independent under the condition of anonymity.

Ust-Luga is one of Russia's largest ports on the Baltic Sea and home to an oil terminal that serves as a major hub for the export of crude oil and petroleum products.

Since Russia first occupied Ukrainian territory in 2014, Russian-occupied areas have gained a reputation for gangsterism and lawlessness.

Russian forces attacked Ukraine overnight on Aug. 14 with 133 Shahed-type drones and loitering munitions, the Air Force said.

The drone was intercepted by NATO fighter jets over the Balvi region in east Latvia.

The figure includes 1,470 casualties Russian forces suffered over the past day.

A Russian oil refinery in the city of Orsk has "completely" halted processing following a recent Ukrainian drone strike on the facility, with repairs expected to keep the facility out of operation for months, the local governor reported on Aug. 13.

The refinery is located around 1,300 kilometers (810 miles) from the Ukrainian border and was last hit overnight on July 14.

Key developments on Aug. 13: * Ukraine could 'destroy all the Russians’ ballistic missiles' if US sells 10% of Patriot missile supply to Kyiv, Zelensky says * Ukraine repatriates 261 bodies that Russia claims belong to Ukrainian soldiers * Ukraine's Air Force faces backlash over decision to stop publishing Russian ballistic missile figures * Scandal-hit Skelia assault regiment to fight under Azov command as Drapatyi's reforms gain momentum * Head of Mykolaiv draft office arrested on corrup

Trump's latest round of tariffs comes a few weeks after President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he and Trump had reached an agreement on the sale of Ukrainian drones to the U.S.

The factory is operated by KNDS Ammo Italy, a subsidiary of the French-German defense firm KNDS. The facility produces artillery shells supplied to Ukraine via European partners.

"The declaration I received is clear: Poland will be included in the intra-European Starlink Roam travel area," Poland's Digital Minister said on Aug. 13.

The suspect had been documented accepting $15,000 in bribes for assisting in draft evasion, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said.

"This marks the first instance where someone, acting on Russian orders, has attempted to assassinate an American citizen on the territory of another NATO country," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.

Ukrainian supermarkets have rarely hinted at the ongoing war, with grocery stores remaining well stocked with local and imported goods despite Russia's full-scale invasion. It all changed late last week. A deadly Russian ballistic missile attack on Aug. 5 targeted warehouses belonging to various supermarket chains and other civilian enterprises, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media. Since then, supplies of everyday products such as vegetables, dairy, and meat have been noticeably

For more than a year, Ukrainian drones have struck Russian oil refineries and military-industrial facilities with remarkable consistency. Yet nothing seems to have rattled ordinary Russians quite like drones hitting "Russian Amazon" — Wildberries, shattering the sanctuaries that housed their eagerly awaited online orders. Beginning on July 18, Ukrainian forces launched a sustained campaign against the company's logistics network. The first strikes hit distribution hubs in Elektrostal and Kotov

Washington has not yet received President Volodymyr Zelensky's new plan to pressure Russia into ending its war, a U.S. official familiar with the matter told the Kyiv Independent. Zelensky said on Aug. 12 that Kyiv and its international partners have developed a joint plan based on pressure against Russian President Vladimir Putin. The plan comes as U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner prepare to visit Ukraine and Russia in another attempt to revive stalled peace talks. "Putin does not

The large and controversial assault unit will also likely be brought together to fight in one sector, spokesperson Oleksii Bratushchak said on Aug. 13.

"Russian losses amounted to at least 9,550 people killed and more than 6,600 people wounded," Zelensky said.

As the founder of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), Konovalets devoted his life to the cause of Ukraine's independence. He was assassinated by an undercover Soviet agent in 1938.

"Ukraine can be, and yes, it is wrong about Kosovo, but its right to be free remains unquestionable, and fighting for that right means fighting for Europe and for ourselves too," Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote on X.

The move has been criticized for reducing overall transparency between the military, the media, and Ukrainian people as a whole about an issue that directly affects them.

During previous repatriations, Russia at times returned the bodies of its own soldiers to Kyiv, with Ukrainian officials alleging the practice may have been aimed at avoiding compensation payments to Russian families or reflected a "negligent attitude toward their own people."

A bomb hidden inside a trash can has killed a Russian serviceman in the occupied city of Sevastopol, Crimea, Russian media reported on Aug. 13. Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) confirmed the deceased was a member of the military without providing further details. The pro-Kremlin Mash Telegram channel reported the device had been placed in a trash can and killed the man instantly. Unconfirmed reports suggest the man was Robert Shageev, a former Ukrainian Navy officer who defected to Rus

The agreement with Moldova would cover just over 1% of Ukraine's total expected grain and oilseed exports.