ANKARA, Turkey — Despite all expectations, Ukraine seems to be leaving the NATO summit in Ankara with a major win. The alliance itself, less so. Alongside an allied pledge of $80 billion in defense aid for 2026, President Volodymyr Zelensky has also secured an apparent green light from U.S. President Donald Trump to produce Patriot missiles, sorely needed amid increasingly deadly Russian attacks. As the two leaders met in the Turkish capital on July 8, Trump nonchalantly added several more co

"It is clear that the enemy is trying to damage the economy, but most importantly, it is trying to create a nervous situation in society," said Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Key developments on July 8: * 'Make them yourself': Trump gives Zelensky green light to produce Patriot missiles * Russian ballistic missiles, drones rock Kyiv, fires break out, 4 killed * Zaluzhnyi: Assuming Russia has lost the war is a 'dangerous misreading' * 'Another Russian air terrorist eliminated' — Ukraine downs Su-35 U.S. President Donald Trump said on July 8 that he would grant Ukraine its longstanding request to produce U.S.-made Patriot missiles, Ukraine's only Western-supplied

Dutch PM Rob Jetten told the Kyiv Independent his defense minister's remarks — that the Netherlands had reached its limit on military aid to Ukraine — were a call for other allies to step up support.

"We would buy their drones ... And you know, if we made that deal, we'd have great protection. I love the protection," Trump told reporters at the press conference in the Turkish capital of Ankara.

In the fifth year of resistance to Russia's full-scale aggression, labor shortage has become the main challenge for Ukrainian businesses. Mobilization on the one hand and emigration on the other have reduced the labor force by millions. It's not difficult to imagine the consequences: labor shortages increase salaries and, therefore, producers' costs. They also limit firms' production capacity and their ability to export. At the macroeconomic level, a shortage of workers leads to slower economic

Ukraine's ambassador to the UK and former Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi warned against assuming Russia has "effectively lost the war," arguing that neither side's deep-strike campaigns can deliver a decisive blow in what he calls a grinding war of attrition.

Tymur Tkachenko, the head of the city's military administration, reported that as a result of the attack on Kyiv, one woman was killed, while two people were injured.

An EU and a NATO diplomat told the Kyiv Independent ahead of the summit that allies would consider the 28.3 billion euros ($32.3 billion) scheduled to be given by Brussels to Kyiv for its defense needs this year as part of the NATO pledge, even though it was agreed in April.

The European Parliament "regrets the recent unnecessary and unprovoked escalation by President Volodymyr Zelensky," reads an amendment filed by Polish lawmaker Andrzej Halicki, who hails from the same party as Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

The Kyiv Independent's Kateryna Hodunova and Nick Allard attended Wild Drones, a unique event that brought together active-duty Ukrainian military drone pilots to test the skills they use in combat.

According to Robert Brovdi, over the past 72 hours Ukrainian forces hit 21 vessels , including 19 shadow fleet tankers, one cargo ship, and one ferry in Crimea's Kerch.

Editor's note: this is a developing story and is being updated. U.S. President Donald Trump said on July 8 that he will grant Ukraine its longstanding request to produce American Patriot missiles, the West's only tool capable of stopping Russian ballistic missile attacks. Patriot missiles have played a key role in Ukraine's defenses, when Kyiv has been able to procure them in sufficient quantities. But in a world where Ukraine needs the missiles to protect against Russia and the Middle East n

Ukrainian forces downed a Russian Su-35 multi-role fighter jet "in the eastern direction," Ukraine's Air Force said on July 8.

"We remain in dialogue and recognize the common threat posed by the Russian Federation," said Polish President Karol Nawrocki.

Russian forces struck the Nemyshlianskyi district of Kharkiv, the regional capital of northeastern Kharkiv Oblast, hitting a five-story residential building.

Russia's Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez refinery had just restarted operations when Ukrainian drones hit it again. The facility — the fourth-largest oil refinery and the second-largest producer of gasoline in the country — had been struck by Ukraine on June 24, forcing operations to shut down. On July 2, Ukrainian drones paid another visit, forcing the facility to shut down once again. Gazprom's Omsk Oil Refinery, in Omsk, approximately 2,445 kilometers (1,519 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled

Ukrainian drones struck Russia's Saratov Oil Refinery and a petrochemical plant in Tatarstan overnight on July 8, monitoring channels reported.

Russia has lost around 1,413,510 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on July 8. The number includes 1,260 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day. According to the report, Russia has also lost 12,100 tanks, 24,903 armored combat vehicles, 117,574 vehicles and fuel tanks, 45,569 artillery systems, 1,918 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,478 air defense systems, 436 aircraft

Leaked internal documents obtained by the Kyiv Independent suggest one of Ukraine's largest state-owned shipping companies is being run into the ground and may be under the influence of external interests — offering a rare look at the governance failures that continue to plague the country's state-owned enterprises. In early May, the chairman of the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company's (UDP) supervisory board sent a lengthy letter to Ukraine's parliament. In it, he sounds the alarm over a severe

"I had a very good talk with President Putin... We had a long talk yesterday. It lasted a long time. And I also spoke with President Zelensky right after that. I think they both want to make a deal. It's too bad it took so long. But I think there's something," Trump said.

Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv over 12 hours after the searches began, Oleksii Babenko, a young star in Ukraine's drone industry, said that Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigations had carried out 70 searches, including at Vyriy Industries facilities, contractors' premises, and the homes of his own family members.

Key developments on July 7: * 'Industrial scale results' — 8 Russian shadow fleet tankers hit in Azov Sea, Ukraine's 'Madyar' says * 2 defense industry enterprises hit in Russia's Bryansk Oblast, oil depot in Belgorod Oblast, General Staff says * Ukraine signs drone cooperation deals with 3 NATO countries * Canada pledges $900 million to Ukraine for vehicles and ammo, but no air defense Ukrainian long-range drone strikes hit eight Russian shadow fleet tankers in the Sea of Azov, Ukraine's

The Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has provisionally lifted the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), which had been in place since October 2023.

Canada announced more than $900 million in new military aid for Ukraine after President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Prime Minister Mark Carney, though the package does not specifically include air defense systems or interceptors.

Editor's note: this article was updated to take account of Marine Le Pen's announcement that she would run for president. BRUSSELS, Belgium — For months, opinion polls have indicated that France's far-right National Rally (RN) is well placed to win the 2027 presidential election, after President Emmanuel Macron reaches his constitutional term limit. But a court ruling on July 7 upended expectations over who will lead the party's presidential ticket — a decision that could also have implication

"The court's ruling is manifestly unlawful and violates the fundamental rights of journalists and the public to gather and disseminate information of public interest that is publicly available about the country's highest-ranking officials," Olena Shcherban, a deputy executive director at the Anti-Corruption Action Center, said.

The agreements are part of Ukraine's broader push to expand drone technology cooperation with partners in Europe and beyond, as it shares its war-tested experience in unmanned systems.

When President Volodymyr Zelensky slapped sanctions on ex-lawmaker Boryslav Bereza on July 7, many were left wondering what, if anything, linked him to Russia or posed a threat to Ukraine's national security. Bereza has never publicly expressed any sympathies for Russia and has been a pro-Western politician and blogger throughout his entire career. Sanctions, which were introduced by Ukraine when Russia started its war in 2014, were initially intended as a tool for fighting Moscow and its prox

"We expect a strong and productive NATO Summit. Decisions are needed now that will provide greater protection for our people, more capabilities for our defense, and even stronger security cooperation between Ukraine, Europe, and the United States," President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X.

"This will help keep Ukraine in the fight and support it in protecting human lives," the letter reads.

The Ukrainian president urged European allies that their need for affordable, mass-produced anti-ballistic systems "cannot wait until 2030 or beyond," and needs to be met "as soon as possible, in fact, today."