A drone operator of Brigade 28th of Ukrainian Army watches a drone landing as he scouts for enemy positions in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, Oct. 3, 2023. (Narciso Contreras/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Russian forces intercepted and shot down 28 Ukrainian drones overnight over the Belgorod and Kursk oblasts, and Black Sea region, Russia's Defense Ministry claimed on Oct. 18.
Kursk and Belgorod oblasts border Ukraine’s Sumy, Kharkiv, and Luhansk oblasts.
Kursk Governor Roman Starovoyt said that 10 drones were downed over the region at around 5 a.m. local time.
In Belgorod Oblast, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said that six drones were shot down at around 4 a.m. local time.
On Oct. 15, Ukrainian drone attacks on an energy facility in Russia’s Belgorod region caused blackouts in the area.
"There are six victims in the capital as a result of the enemy's attack. Three of them, including a 13-year-old child, were hospitalized. The others were treated on the spot," Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported.
Orban reiterated his readiness to hold the peace talks on Ukraine in Hungary, even as plans for a summit in Budapest between Putin and Trump have been scrapped.
Vasyl Verameichyk, a Belarusian soldier who previously served as a volunteer fighter for Ukraine, was sentenced to 13 years in prison in Belarus, independent outlet Belsat reported on Nov. 28.
Andriy Yermak, head of the President's Office, submitted his resignation following searches by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) at his premises earlier on Nov. 28, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced.
As Russia bombards Ukraine with Shahed drones almost every night, the 12th Army Aviation Brigade takes to the skies in decades-old helicopters to intercept them. The Kyiv Independent’s Kollen Post joined the pilots to understand how they fly, maneuver, and shoot down drones in darkness — and what keeps them going.
As law enforcement raids the house of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s closest aide, European officials are voicing support for Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies — with one even expressing relief that a figure seen a toxic among some in Europe is being investigated.
In a letter, sent on Nov. 27 and seen by the Kyiv Independent, Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever labelled the EU's "reparations loan" scheme as "fundamentally wrong," and argued that moving forward on the initiative could complicate an eventual peace deal.
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Independent, under fire — and unstoppable with you on board
Independent journalism is never easy, and it’s even harder in wartime. Yet we can do it without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise — because of our community. Help us reach 25,000 members by the end of 2025.
Daria Shulzhenko
