Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered to send troops into the Kremlin-occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk, in eastern Ukraine, after officially recognizing them as independent states. According to the decree signed by Putin on Feb. 21, the Kremlin has recognized the independence of the Russian-occupied Donbas and has ordered the
Ukraine saw yet another tense day on the front line with ongoing shelling and fears of a Russian false flag operation to legitimize the Kremlin’s further invasion of Ukraine. Artillery attacks by Russian-led militants continued all along the front line. As many as 54 shelling incidents have been reported
Citing unsubstantiated reports about Ukraine's aggression, Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized Russian-occupied territories in Ukrainian Donbas as independent states. Putin made the final call on Feb. 21, in a televised address hours after holding a Security Council meeting that discussed the matter. The council members unanimously spoke in favor of
Cold sleety rain washes against the derelicts of what used to be a big asphalt refinery on the outskirts of Kyiv. Small groups of people in mixed tactical gear and sports jumpsuits bend down in the dirty snow. The motley squad is armed with airsoft guns and fake Kalashnikov models,
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s current saber-rattling over Ukraine has its roots both in his worldview and his regime’s authoritarian evolution. First, Putin is obsessed with the megalomaniac idea of having a grand historic mission, including the resurrection of the Russian Empire or the Soviet Union and projecting its
Washington believes Russia’s continued invasion is all but certain and all Russia needs now is an excuse. The past few days have seen a massive military escalation by Russian-controlled forces in Donbas, who have been shelling Ukrainian positions. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on Feb.
In the last 72 hours, Russia’s eight-year-long war against Ukraine has rapidly escalated. On Feb. 18, OSCE reported 870 ceasefire violations in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, which is nearly a fourfold increase compared to the 2021 daily average of violations. Russian-led militants have been actively shelling Ukrainian territory all
President Volodymyr Zelensky called upon the West to stand by Ukraine as Russia threatens to further invade it, in an emotional address to the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 19. He criticized the ambivalent attitude of countries who stay silent, saying those who don’t stand by Ukraine should “think
Denis Pushilin, leader of the Kremlin’s proxies in Donetsk Oblast, and Leonid Pasechnik, leader of the proxies in Luhansk Oblast ordered the mobilization of men 18-55 years old in Russian-occupied territories on Feb. 19, amid escalation in the region. Men of that age are banned from leaving the occupied
U.S. President Joe Biden said that he was confident that Russian President Vladimir Putin had made the decision to further invade Ukraine. “We have reasons to believe that Russian forces are planning to attack Ukraine in the coming week, in the coming days,” Biden said during a press briefing
“Kyiv-Mohyla (Academy) has always been an independent university. It has always defended its position.” Andrii Latsyba, a second-year law student at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, says these words with a calm, unwavering determination. He is one of the leaders of a several hundred-strong student strike movement at Ukraine’s oldest university,
Dublin-born Paul Niland, 49, still remembers the very moment he fell in love with Kyiv 19 years ago, shortly after his arrival in the unfamiliar city. Hours after being dropped off at his new apartment in Kyiv late at night, Niland spontaneously decided to take a walk up the hill.
The U.K. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss came to Kyiv on Feb. 17 in a visit that was scheduled for early February but got delayed when Truss tested positive for Covid-19. While in Ukraine, Truss condemned the ongoing Russian military escalation, announced the cancelation of “golden visas” for the rich
The streets of Kyiv offer a staggering contrast with alarming headlines from the West. Traffic jams keep clogging the Ukrainian capital, people keep flocking shops, and “coming soon” business signs keep appearing at every corner. For many of Ukraine’s foreign investors and local companies, it’s business as usual,
Russia has gathered over 100 battalion tactical groups that can strike Ukraine at any moment, according to the U.S. But part of the attack is already under way and has been going on for many years now. The true Russian vanguard is disinformation: propaganda, lies, exaggerations and half-truths, artfully
The websites of Ukraine’s defense ministry and armed forces witnessed a cyberattack on Feb. 15, which also hit Ukraine's two largest banks - PrivatBank and Oschadbank. Starting at 3 p.m. the affected websites could not be accessed and clients of the banks reported issues with their payments and
The leaders of France and Germany tried to push Ukraine to comply with the Russian spin of the Minsk Agreements during their recent visits to Kyiv, sources in the Ukrainian government and foreign emissaries told the Kyiv Independent. The diplomatic efforts to resolve the ongoing security crisis came as Russia
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors. It’s important not to lose the battle before it even begins. Right now, the Russia-instigated security crisis in Ukraine is threatening to become an all-out war of occupation. Against all the voices of reason,
Russia’s parliament voted on Feb. 15 to ask President Vladimir Putin to recognize Russian-occupied territories in Donbas as independent states. Altogether, 351 of 450 lawmakers voted for the bill, which was tabled by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. Since the start of Russia's war against Ukraine in
President Volodymyr Zelensky warned German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that Russia was wielding its Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline as “a geopolitical weapon” to threaten energy security in Europe. He added that German relations with the controversial gas pipeline bypassing Ukraine have been a growing irritant for both Washington and Kyiv.
Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.K., said on Feb. 13 that Ukraine might contemplate the possibility of not joining NATO if this averts a further Russian invasion. The statement triggered a controversy in Ukraine. The statement comes amid the U.S. warnings that Russia might attack Ukraine
Ukraine’s infrastructure ministry announced a $590 million fund to insure aircraft flying through the country’s airspace, amid reports that global insurers were suspending coverage due to the threat of a large–scale Russian attack. The money will be taken from the state budget and placed on an escrow
Editor’s Note: This is an analysis by experts from the Center for Defense Strategies: Andriy Zagorodnyuk, Alina Frolova, Oleksiy Pavliuchyk, and Viktor Kevlyuk. It was originally published in Ukrainian by Ukrainska Pravda on Feb. 12. The Kyiv Independent has translated it and is republishing it with permission. On Feb.
Aircraft traveling through Ukrainian airspace will no longer be insured by international insurance companies from Feb. 14, forcing flights to be grounded or canceled, according to Ukrainian publication Ukrainska Pravda. The outlet quoted information from unnamed sources in the aviation industry. Anatoliy Ivantsiv, head of Ukrainian insurance firm Expo, told
Canadian embassy will relocate to Lviv, a city 530 kilometers west of Kyiv, amid the growing threat of a further Russian invasion, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said on Feb. 12. “Given the continued deterioration of the security situation, we will be moving our operations to a temporary office in
U.S. President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron held separate telephone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Feb. 12. Both Western leaders tried to dissuade Putin from a deeper military invasion of Ukraine. Biden, who spoke with Putin for about an hour, had a direct message to
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov seem to have come to no agreement during their Feb. 12 telephone call concerning the threat of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Blinken reiterated that more aggression against Ukraine by Russia will result in "a resolute, massive,
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The U.S. President Joe Biden's administration issued new warnings on Feb. 11 that Russia was poised to launch a further invasion of Ukraine at any moment, saying that it could happen within days. The White House said it still wasn’t clear if Russian President Vladimir Putin had made
As Russia continues to build up military personnel along Ukraine’s borders many of us are wondering what’s next. We turn to our defense reporter Illia Ponomarenko for answers. The Kyiv Independent’s patrons who have access to a closed chat with the editorial team were able to send
According to experts, the resignation will allow tainted members of the High Council of Justice to evade responsibility for wrongdoings.
The military will try to switch to 10-year contracts to combat high personnel turnover.
