Norway to allocate $257 million to bolster Ukraine's air defenses

Ukrainian forces struck four Russian military targets on the occupied Crimean Peninsula and in the occupied parts of Donetsk and Mykolaiv oblasts, the General Staff said on Feb. 23.

Drones operated by Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) struck a "critical" Russian oil transportation hub, the Kaleykino oil pumping station, in the Republic of Tatarstan overnight on Feb. 23, an undisclosed source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent.

"We are in the process of preparing," the President's Office head Kyrylo Budanov said.

"The same thing (Vladimir) Putin is doing: he pays each person money for a contract. We want this as well, but we do not have enough funds," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

A woman has been arrested in connection to a suspected terrorist attack that killed a police officer and injured 25 others in the Western city of Lviv in the early hours of Sunday morning, Ukrainian authorities said.

Russia launched 126 drones and an Iskander-M ballistic missile at Ukraine overnight, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 105 drones.

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.

The documentary has received wide acclaim for the fact that it shows how the war against Ukraine is not just "(Russian President Vladimir) Putin's war" but a war sustained by both a climate of fear and open support among the populace within Russia.

The number includes 720 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Feb. 23 in an interview with the BBC that Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively already triggered World War Three, warning that only sustained military and economic pressure can prevent further escalation.

Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces hit an oil depot in occupied Luhansk and destroyed two Russian Tor air defense systems, valued at over $50 million, in occupied Donetsk Oblast, the military said.

The arms deal was signed in Moscow in December, and requires Russia to send Iran 500 "Verba" Man-Portable Air-Defense System (MANPADS) launch units and 2,500 9M336 surface-to-air missiles over three years, the Financial Times reported.

Several rounds of explosions were reported in Kyiv overnight on Feb. 22, leaving a mother and her child injured as Russia launched ballistic missiles at Ukraine.