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'Just a show for Putin' — Inside the 2026 St. Petersburg Economic Forum
Once billed as a rival to Davos, the forum now draws far-right influencers and conspiracy theorists.
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Thursday, June 11
Explainer: Why is EU planning to ban visas only for Russian soldiers, and not for all Russians?
The European Commission announced on June 9 that a visa ban targeting current and former Russian soldiers should be part of the EU's next sanctions package, sparking a debate on social media about why the measure targets only military personnel. The Kyiv Independent explains why the proposal is limited to Russian combatants and whether more sweeping restrictions could follow. Nordic and Baltic countries proposed already in February and March that the EU should ban entry for ex-Russian soldiers
Russia's oil output falls to one-year low amid Ukrainian strikes
Ukrainian forces carried out at least 31 strikes against Russian refineries, oil export terminals, and pipeline infrastructure in May, the highest monthly total since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.
Ukraine aims to isolate Crimea from Russia, drone commander 'Madyar' says
The comments come as Ukraine has intensified its campaign against Russian logistics routes and military infrastructure connecting occupied Crimea to Russian-controlled territory.
'We're modern people' — Zelensky backs open discussion of LGBTQ+ rights in Ukraine
"We are all here together, we are defending the state, we are the same and we have absolutely the same rights, regardless of any prejudices held by people from the 15th century," President Volodymyr Zelensky said, in a rare public reference to the topic.
Russia's war on Ukraine: the new, the old, and the immutable
At the Trump-Xi summit in May 2026 in Beijing, China's President allegedly told his American counterpart that Vladimir Putin "might end up regretting" his invasion of Ukraine. This revelation is both encouraging and disheartening. China's backing of Russia has been a major factor in sustaining the war, and a change of tune in Beijing, if it actually materializes, will have wide-ranging implications. The daunting part is that this is not the stated policy of Europe, where "might" should've been
Ukraine's drone advantage over Russia grows as nearly 180,000 military targets struck in May, Syrskyi says
Ukraine currently maintains a 1.5-to-1 advantage over Russian forces in the use of FPV drones, with the gap continuing to widen in recent months, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said.
About Russia
The Kyiv Independent’s coverage of news on Russia. Spanning eleven time zones across Eastern Europe and Asia, Russia has an estimated population of 146 million people. Russia’s capital city is Moscow, which is home to almost one in 10 Russians. Russia’s official currency is the Russian Ruble.
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Ukrainian Flamingo missiles strike military plant in large-scale attack on Russia, Zelensky confirms
The attack on Cheboksary was part of a broader Ukrainian assault that also struck the Kuibyshev oil refinery in Russia's Samara Oblast, as well as two oil infrastructure facilities in Russia's Vladimir Oblast.
