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.
Law enforcement allege Moscow church deacon in spreading pro-Russian propaganda
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said on Dec. 10 that it had exposed a deacon, a lower-ranked church official, during a raid at one of Zaporizhzhia’s churches that belong to the controversial Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, controlled by the Russian Orthodox Church.
It added that the deacon had publicly supported Russia’s staged annexation referendums in September and allegedly sent “messages denying the existence of Ukrainian people, (and) their language and culture.”
“An independent examination of the published materials initiated by the SBU confirmed the subversive activities of the defendant,” the SBU alleged.
According to the SBU's findings, the accused has deacon been sharing pro-war content on the Russian-controlled social media Vkontakte, banned in Ukraine. The regional prosecutor’s office said in a Facebook post that the investigation is ongoing.
Since late November, Ukraine has conducted nationwide raids on religious sites that belong to the Russian-controlled church – during which authorities say they have so far found Russian passports, anti-Ukraine propaganda, and a stolen collection of icons.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, on Dec. 2, signed a decree to approve a proposal by the National Security and Defense Council to ban Russian-affiliated religious groups and impose sanctions on some pro-Moscow bishops.
Law enforcement began another large-scale raid in Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv and the region on Dec. 10.
The SBU would conduct “counter-intelligence (security) measures” at 14 churches and cathedrals in Kharkiv linked to Moscow Patriarchate, the regional Security Sercive branch said.
The results have not been published yet.
The Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian church said in May that it had broken ties with the Russian Orthodox Church in response to the Russian Orthodox Church officially supporting the war against Ukraine. The church made no official steps towards independence.
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