A person recently reached out to me and said that I am too critical of U.S. President Donald Trump and the current administration. As a Christian, they suggested, I should be more uplifting — less negative, more encouraging. It is difficult to understand this argument. Of course, we live in a time when people are tired, overwhelmed, and often anxious, and it is natural to want words that comfort rather than confront. But it is precisely because I follow Jesus that I cannot remain silent in the

A new Russian-friendly leader may soon emerge in the EU and NATO — this time, in the Balkans. A week after Kremlin ally Viktor Orban lost his reelection campaign in Hungary, Bulgaria's former President Rumen Radev is poised to win the April 19 snap parliamentary election. Radev, Bulgaria's two-term head of state, resigned in January to lead his new Progressive Bulgaria coalition into the country's eighth parliamentary elections since 2021, quickly surging in the polls. As president, Radev has

Yermak and Timur Mindich, a close Zelensky associate and a major suspect in the Energoatom case, have received summonses to attend hearings at the High Anti-Corruption Court but did not show up, according to the source. Mindich was not available for comment.

The statement follows the arrival of the Russian bulk carrier Abinsk in Haifa carrying nearly 44,000 tons of wheat that Kyiv says originated from occupied areas.

Russian missiles destroyed homes, burned buildings, and killed civilians in Ukraine's major cities in a mass overnight strike on April 16, with residential neighborhoods in Kyiv, Dnipro, and Odesa bearing the brunt of the attack.

Ukrainian drones attacked a Liberian-flagged oil tanker off the Black Sea coast, injuring a Turkish captain, Russian officials reported on April 16.

Ukraine is riding high on a series of deals that promise to intertwine  its wartime defense-tech industry, now known for producing drones in high demand worldwide, with European arms makers. “The general idea is that we as an industry have to become part of a pan-European defense industry,” Ihor Fedirko, director of the Ukrainian Council of Defense Industry, a government-aligned trade association for Ukrainian weapons makers, told the Kyiv Independent. Fedirko, a former adviser to the now-shut

"There are many political commitments from our partners that have already been announced but not yet implemented," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

A mass Russian missile and drone attack early on April 16 struck major Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, Odesa, and Dnipro.

U.S. sanctions on Russian oil have resumed after the Trump administration allowed a temporary waiver on certain sales to expire on April 11, the Kyiv Independent has learned, ending a short-lived effort to stabilize markets during Washington's war against Iran. The waiver, introduced in March, came as the U.S. sought to increase available supply after the war rattled energy markets. The decision has drawn bipartisan criticism in Washington, particularly as Russia has supported Iran in the war

The number includes 1,100 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

The vessel was stopped by the French military on March 20 on suspicion of flying a false flag.

The Tuapse Oil Refinery, a Rosneft facility, is one of the 10 largest refineries in Russia.

Ukraine has introduced drone assault units that combine aerial and ground drones, the Defense Ministry announced on April 15.

Russia struck a residential building in Odesa, killing one and injuring six, while an attack on Kyiv Oblast sparked a fire, the State Emergency Service reported.

"We strengthened our air defense — with the cruise missile interception rate of almost 80% and drone interception rising to 90%," Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said.

In our frequent conversations with our friends and partners in Ukraine, we hear a recurring message: appreciation for the help provided by organizations like ours that have been supporting the needs of Ukrainian children and families since the full-scale invasion of 2022. It usually began with gratitude for the help, but it often ends with a troubling question: "Is America abandoning Ukraine?" Our answer is always definitively and demonstrably "No!" No matter what President Donald Trump does,

Key developments on April 15: * Ukrainian deep strikes hit over 70 Russian industrial targets, including oil and gas sites, in March, Syrskyi says * UK pledges to send record number of drones to Ukraine by end of 2026 * 'It couldn't be any worse' — Zelensky sounds alarm on Patriot air defense missile shortage * Russia warns Europe over drone support for Ukraine, calls it escalation Ukrainian forces struck 76 Russian industrial targets in March using long-range weapons, Ukraine's Commander

EU lawmakers provisionally agreed on new safeguards for EU steelmakers with key provisions in place to ensure the eventual phase-out of Russian steel imports and Ukraine's continued access to the EU market in a late-night meeting in Brussels held on April 13. As of July 2026, the EU is expected to limit steel imports to 18.3 million tonnes per year, a 47% reduction on what is currently allowed. This is intended to protect Europe's steel industry from a glut on the world market. Imports made abo

Russia has warned that European support for Ukraine's drone capabilities could lead to "unpredictable consequences," accusing several countries of becoming part of Kyiv's "strategic rear," the Russian Defense Ministry said on April 15.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said earlier this week she would reiterate her country's support for Ukraine amid Russian aggression.

Igor Bagnyuk, a lieutenant colonel in the Russian army, is not a household name. His work, at the vapidly named Main Computation Center of the General Staff, does not involve pulling triggers or torturing prisoners, only programming the flight paths of cruise missiles that, hours later, strike hospitals, schools, or apartment blocks in Ukraine. By all accounts, Bagnyuk is good at his job. Russia's president has awarded him a medal. As children across Europe and America spent Easter Monday hun

WASHINGTON — Ukraine collected $500 million more revenue than expected in the first three months of this year, the country’s Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko said, as Ukraine tries to better line its war coffers and reassure key partners. "Revenue mobilization is strong," Marchenko said at the U.S.-Ukraine Partnership Forum hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on April 15 in Washington D.C., where he spoke on a panel on financing Ukraine’s recovery. Big donors to Ukraine, including the Inte

Russia agreed to pay damages for the downing of the Azerbaijani airliner in 2024 that killed 38 people, according to a joint statement by the two countries on April 15.

Editor's note: The names of the people who recently left Russian-occupied Oleshky have been changed for security reasons. For nearly three months, Ukrainians in the Russian-occupied front-line city of Oleshky in Kherson Oblast have faced dire humanitarian conditions, with almost no safe route for evacuation or food deliveries, as Russian troops mined access roads and made it dangerous to enter or leave the city, according to residents, volunteers, and Ukrainian officials. "It's a humanitarian

"With the goal of lowering the enemy's advance capabilities, we are maintaining a high strike intensity on military, defense industry, and other facilities on Russian territory that sustain the occupier's activities," Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote.

The U.K. Defense Ministry publicized its commitment to its "biggest ever drone package for Ukraine" in an April 15 statement.

The Kyiv Independent’s Yuliia Taradiuk speaks with Artem Kariakin, a Ukrainian from Luhansk Oblast who spent eight years living under Russian occupation and covertly resisting it before escaping and joining the Ukrainian military.

Explosions were reported in Kazan, Tatarstan, around 7 p.m. local time on April 14, while a similar incident occurred near Samara the following day at around 1 p.m. local time.

The U.S. official indicated that the details and dates have not yet been confirmed.

The Russian bulk carrier Abinsk reportedly docked in Haifa carrying nearly 44,000 tons of wheat that Ukrainian investigators say was taken from occupied territories.

The news agency cited data provided by Ctrl-Alt-Intel, a group of British and U.S. cyber threat researchers.