Hello, this is Tania Myronyshena reporting from Kyiv on day 1,388 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today's top story: Russian forces launched a missile strike on the civilian port of Chornomorsk in Ukraine’s Odesa Oblast, damaging a cargo ship, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Dec. 12. "Today’s Russian strike, like many others, had no military purpose. It proves once again that Russians are not taking diplomacy seriously and are continuing their war — a war aimed at destroying

Ukraine and its European partners have handed Washington their revisions to the U.S.-proposed peace framework aimed at ending Russia's war, the Kyiv Independent has learned. The move comes amid growing U.S. pressure to advance negotiations and fresh accusations from U.S. President Donald Trump that President Volodymyr Zelensky is the one refusing to agree to the American plan. The next round of discussions is expected on Dec. 13, though White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt signaled imp

The European Union has agreed to indefinitely freeze Russian central bank reserves, moving the bloc a step closer to securing a financial lifeline to Kyiv as the war heads into its fourth year. "I welcome the decision of the council on our proposal to continue the immobilization of Russian Sovereign Assets," President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter on Dec. 12. The move means that roughly 210 billion euros ($245 billion) in Russian assets will now remain blocke

Russia’s Slavneft-YANOS oil refinery in Yaroslavl, one of the country’s five largest, is reportedly on fire after being struck in an overnight drone attack on Dec. 12, officials and local Telegram channels said.

"You don't need to hide; I will come after each of you personally," said Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, responding to a wave of anonymous posts alleging he had submitted a letter of resignation.

The Russian Central Bank said in a press release that it had sued Euroclear, the Belgian financial institution holding the vast majority of Europe's frozen assets, in a Moscow court on Dec. 12.

Russia’s war in Ukraine was the world’s deadliest conflict in 2025, according to a new report that tracks conflicts globally, despite U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the nearly four-year invasion. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) new Conflict Index reports around 78,000 people killed — including soldiers on both sides and civilians — in Ukraine this year, the highest of any conflict. Because troop casualty figures are state secrets in both Ukraine and Rus

Ukraine’s Security Service said Friday that it detained three men suspected of planting two homemade bombs that killed a National Guard serviceman and wounded four other people in Kyiv a day earlier.

Ukraine's domestically produced cruise missiles could help deal a devastating blow to Russia's air defense production, enabling increasingly effective long-range drone strikes against other targets inside Russia, a new report published on Dec. 12 says. The report from the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and titled "Disrupting Russian Air Defence Production: Reclaiming the Sky," identifies "significant vulnerabilities" in the production process of several of Moscow's most important air de

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised troops in the Kupiansk direction and said battlefield gains strengthen Ukraine’s diplomatic position, as the National Guard’s 2nd Khartiia Corps reported a counterattack north of the city.

It was a regular workday when the air raid alarm sounded at Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital at 11 a.m. on a Monday in Kyiv. Dr. Olga Babicheva and her colleagues moved their young patients to a room with no windows to better protect them. Six children were still undergoing procedures, so they rushed back to finish them. "Then the explosion happened. I woke up the next day in the hospital. I spent three months recovering. I’m back at work, but the consequences stay with me," she recalled. That st

"We must be prepared for the scale of war our grandparents and great-grandparents endured," NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned.

U.S. President Donald Trump is "extremely frustrated" with both Russia and Ukraine amid ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the war, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a Dec. 11 press briefing, as the United States weighs whether to join Ukraine and European partners for talks this weekend.

A Russian airstrike on Odesa on Dec. 12 damaged infrastructure and left parts of the city without electricity and water, the head of the Odesa Military Administration, Serhiy Lysak, reported.

A drone explosion damaged the lower floors of a residential building in the Russian city of Tver on Dec. 12, injuring at least seven people, according to regional officials and local Telegram channels.

U.S. policy choices are forcing Europe into a strategic moment it long tried to avoid. As Washington sidelines allies, rewrites its National Security Strategy, and negotiates peace proposals for Ukraine, the foundations of the continent's security are shaking. For many in European capitals, the realization is sinking in: Europe may soon need to protect itself in ways it has never had to since World War II. Experts say the understanding is already there. What's missing is unity — and time. "T

Polish authorities have detained Alexander Butyagin, a Russian archaeologist accused of causing extensive damage to historical sites in occupied Crimea, at the request of Ukraine's prosecutor general, Polish media reported Dec. 11.

About the author: Edward C. Chow is a non-resident senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. Economic sanctions, by themselves, have never stopped wars once they started. Otherwise, the United States did not have to use military force in 1991 to evict Saddam Hussein from Kuwait after he invaded it in 1990, though Iraq was sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council. Nor do they prevent aggression. The U.S. applied economic sanctions, incl

Hello, this is Kateryna Hodunova reporting from Kyiv on day 1,387 of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today's top story: The Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office said it has classified two explosions that killed one person and injured four others in Kyiv on Dec. 11 as a terrorist attack, the office said in a statement. The blasts occurred in Kyiv's Darnytskyi district, killing a National Guard soldier. Another National Guard soldier and a security guard were injured. The first explosion wen

The Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office said it has classified two explosions that killed one person and injured four others in Kyiv on Dec. 11 as a terrorist attack, the office said in a statement.

The European Commission and Kyiv have agreed on a 10-point action plan to tackle corruption and strengthen democratic institutions in Ukraine as part of its path to membership, EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos announced.

As the U.S. ramps up pressure on Ukraine to accept a swift and potentially painful peace deal with Moscow, European allies seek to reassure Kyiv it is not alone. For the EU, Ukraine is not merely a strategic partner standing between the bloc and Russian armies — it is also a future member. Top European officials met in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv on Dec. 10-11 to advance Ukraine's EU accession and reaffirm their support. But beneath the EU's confident tone, major obstacles persist — mo

"The Russians want the whole of Donbas — we don't accept that," President Volodymyr Zelensky said. "I believe that the Ukrainian people will answer this question," he added.

About the author: Olena Havrylchyk is a Professor of Economics at the University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. The proposal to use immobilized Russian assets to finance a "reparation loan" for Ukraine will again be discussed at the next European Council meeting on Dec. 18 and 19. The purpose of this loan is to advance Russia’s future reparations in order to cover Ukraine’s reconstruction and recovery needs, which are estimated at 506 billion euros (nearly $589 billion). At the previous summit, B

Washington's representative said the U.S. voted against the resolution not because it opposed nuclear safety measures, but because it objected to references to the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

At least 31 drones have been shot down over the Russian capital, according to Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin. All four airports in the region have suspended operations.

The National Bank of Ukraine voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 15.5%, amid steep uncertainty over the country's financing next year.

At least four hits were recorded on the offshore platform, according to the SBU source.

Ukraine’s Security Service used Sea Baby naval drones to hit the sanctioned tanker Dashan in the Black Sea, the latest strike in a campaign targeting Russia’s “shadow fleet,” a source told the Kyiv Independent.

Just last year, the battlefield in Ukraine was most dangerous when the shooting started. Now it is often the moments before and after, when soldiers change positions under the eyes of prowling drones. For two Ukrainian soldiers — Oleksandr Tishaiev and Oleksandr Aliksieienko — this modern battlefield reality turned what should have been a relatively routine month-long deployment, into a gruelling 165-day battle against not only Russian forces but also starvation, dehydration, and insanity. "We

Novgorod Governor Alexander Dronov said 19 drones were shot down over the region — located between Moscow and St. Petersburg — amid what Russia described as a major Ukrainian drone attack.

Local energy facilities once again became the target of the Russian attack, Poltava Oblast Governor Volodymyr Kohut reported on the morning of Dec. 11.