The Oscar-winning U.S. actor and director Sean Penn plans to make a documentary to spotlight the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine, the country’s Joint Forces Operation said on Nov. 18. Penn will team up with Ukrainian producers for the film.
The director visited a city in eastern Ukraine to “witness the consequences of Russian aggression,” according to the Ukrainian military. Penn also met service members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The actor arrived in Kyiv on Nov. 17 for his first ever trip to Ukraine. He was spotted exploring the capital’s Independence Square and the nearby Heavenly Hundred Alley, the sites of the 2013-2014 EuroMaidan Revolution that ousted ex-President Viktor Yanukovych and saw over 100 protesters killed.
Daria Shulzhenko is a reporter at the Kyiv Independent. She has been a lifestyle reporter at the Kyiv Post until November 2021. She graduated from Kyiv International University with a bachelor’s in linguistics, specializing in translation from English and German languages. She has previously worked as a freelance writer and researcher.
Ukraine and Greece have agreed on a new route for gas supplies, among other deals on financing gas imports, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Nov. 16.
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Nov. 15 that Ukraine is beginning a full "reboot" of its key state-owned energy enterprises, involving management overhauls and comprehensive financial audits.
Nataliia Khodemchuk, the widow of Valerii Khodemchuk, the first victim of the 1986 Chornobyl disaster, died in Kyiv overnight on Nov. 14–15 after suffering severe injuries in a mass Russian attack on the city.
As a result of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, the two sides have agreed to move forward with the Istanbul agreements and carry out the release of 1,200 Ukrainian prisoners, National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov said on Telegram on Nov. 15.
Ukraine launched long-range drone strikes on Novorossiysk, targeting an oil depot, a container terminal, coastal infrastructure, and a ship, according to preliminary reports.
Ukrainian forces withdrew from the village of Novovasylivske in Zaporizhzhia Oblast to "more favorable defensive positions," the Southern Defense Forces said on Nov. 15.
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