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.
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.
A man digs a grave near tombs of Russian soldiers at a cemetery in the town of Yefremov in the Tula region on March 23, 2023. (Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images)
Russia's Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova suggested writing off the debts of Russians who have fought in Ukraine, Russian state-run media TASS reported on Nov. 15, citing her comments at the Council of Human Rights Ombudsman.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin previously signed a law in December 2022 that fully or partially froze debt repayments for Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine. However, payments would resume 30 days after a soldier stopped fighting.
Moskalkova said, "When they return, they will have to pay. And we must understand that, firstly, this is unfair, and secondly, this, of course, can give rise to social tension.”
According to Russia's Federal Bailiff Service (FSSP), more than 300,000 payments were suspended over the whole of 2022 and 125,000 in the first half of 2023.
The suspension did not apply to alimony claims.
There have been suggestions of a looming crisis that will affect Russia when soldiers fighting in Ukraine return home.
A report by RFE/RL in June 2023 found that Russian healthcare specialists were concerned about a spike in drug and alcohol addiction as Russian veterans of the war against Ukraine came home and sought to cope with their experience.
The healthcare experts also said there could be associated social consequences.
The Guardian reported in August 2023 that convicts returning to Russia as free men after fighting for the Wagner mercenary group in Ukraine have led Russian women to fear increased threats of murder, rape, and domestic violence in the country.
An op-ed published by the Rand Corporation in June 2023 warned, "Just as the terms 'Afghan Syndrome' and 'Chechen Syndrome' emerged to describe the plight of Russian veterans who lacked support and struggled to adapt to civilian life after those conflicts, it is only a matter of time before “Ukraine Syndrome” grips Russia, as thousands of veterans suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other conditions return home."
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Martin Fornusek
