Editor’s Note: This op-ed was published by Atlantic Council. It is republished here with permission. During the first three months of the Russo-Ukrainian war, Ukraine’s ability to defeat Russia on the battlefield has astonished the watching world and led to mounting speculation that Vladimir Putin’s invasion will
When Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his decision to invade Ukraine, his stated goal was to free Ukraine from the “neo-Nazis” that had supposedly taken the country hostage and prevented the Ukrainian people from choosing a common future with Russia. He expected Ukrainians to welcome Russian troops, grateful for their
Since 2014, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has factored into its forecasts the risk of escalation of Russia’s military aggression. Therefore, the regulator has a clear framework for responding to various events that ensure the reliable and constant operation of Ukraine’s banking system, the preservation of public
On 8 May the international community commemorates Victory in Europe Day or V-E Day, marking the official signing in Berlin of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender to the Allies, and remembers all those who have fallen in defending liberty and democracy during World War II, including millions of Ukrainians. Russia
The visit by the United States’ Secretaries of State and Defense to Ukraine earlier this week was a meaningful show of support. They promised much needed new weapons — previously denied — and put forward a new American strategy in response to Russia’s unprovoked, brutal war. The U.S. means to
“Mom, you just have to get out,” I was saying into the phone, again and again. “I’ve bought you a ticket, take the night train and come to Kyiv. It’s for your safety, just leave the town for some time. Nobody knows if the worst is to happen
News on potential disruption in grain exports from the Black Sea region, primarily from Ukraine, due to the full-scale military aggression of Russia against Ukraine, caused a significant price spike and raised concerns about global food security. Reduced grain supply from Ukraine will generate inflationary pressures, elevating the global price
On 14 April 2022, the Ukrainian Parliament adopted a declaration on the genocide committed by Russia in Ukraine. Can the atrocities committed by Russia in Ukraine since 24 February 2022 be really called “genocide”? Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, also
I have written before that I am a man of conflicted faith. Yet even though I lecture as a professor of political geography, I cannot but bear witness to Ukraine's agony through the lens of my religion, the faith of my Ukrainian Catholic ancestors. To that I confess, wholeheartedly. And
When a drunk-with-rage husband takes a knife to his wife, when a child is abused by a parent, when a bully strikes innocents, most humans are moved to protect the victim and punish the offender especially if they have an advantage. To do less is cowardly. To do business with
On 6 April 2022, Euronews reported that the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission Josep Borrell Fontelles told the European Parliament: “We've given Ukraine nearly €1 billion. That might seem like a lot but €1 billion is what
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors. The withdrawal of the Russian forces from the northern part of the Kyiv Oblast was great news to hear. The Ukrainian capital of more than three million people at last felt relatively safe – with the
Images of dead civilians lying on the streets of Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv, with their hands tied behind their backs shocked the international community and shamed Putin’s apologists, including all those who had felt sympathy for the “young demoralized Russian soldiers” – as these atrocities were committed by Russian
Editor’s note: Editorials are articles that present the opinion of the editorial team of the Kyiv Independent. We write this editorial with difficulty. Journalists are the people of words, but right now it’s hard to find the ones to reflect what we feel. The uncovered atrocities of Russians
Editor's Note: Natalia Datskevych is a journalist with the Kyiv Independent. An endless feeling of fear that seems to never go away. Every loud sound, every sudden spark in the sky, causes panic. My life, together with the lives of millions of Ukrainians, turned into hell when Russia launched a
Editor’s Note: This editorial was originally published by the New Pathway - Ukrainian News on March 29. The Kyiv Independent is republishing it with permission. For a country that prides itself on its “special relationship” with Ukraine, Canada’s reaction to the worldwide crisis created by Russia’s invasion
Today, Russia's egregious armed aggression against Ukraine as an X-ray highlights a chronic disease of a united Europe that has long required radical "surgery". The acute energy crisis that EU is facing now comes as the culmination of decades of flawed energy policy and the result of a pernicious dependence
An Extraordinary Summit of NATO Heads of State and Government will take place on 24 March 2022 in Brussels. It needs to be a game-changer. The focal point of this Summit will be the all-out war launched by Russia against Ukraine one month earlier, namely on 24 February 2022, and
A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Ukraine on a scale Europe has not seen since World War II. Thousands are dead, millions are displaced, entire cities are being leveled to the ground by airstrikes and artillery fire. And the worse is yet to come. Unable to defeat the Ukrainian army,
On 14-16 September 2005, over 170 heads of state and government met at the United Nations Headquarters in New York during the 2005 World Summit, later described as the “largest gathering of world leaders in history,” and adopted the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document. The UN website states: “In paragraphs
To all our friends in the West: We know that you want to postpone a possible direct engagement, a direct war with the Russians… I’d like to be wrong, but I think it’s quite obvious that the direction we are heading in… is a direct war and direct
The Treaty on European Union, also known as the Maastricht Treaty, establishes how a country can become a member state of the European Union. The relevant provisions of this treaty regarding membership stipulate that: “Article 2 The Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy,
It’s infuriating that Russia’s serial killer, autocrat Vladimir Putin, is telling Western powers what they should be doing. What is worst, they are listening. The war-crime nominee has launched an incomprehensible war on global democracies by attacking Ukraine for no reason other than he thinks that he can
Many struggle to understand world powers’ refusal to enforce a no-fly zone (NFZ), at least on the western rest of Ukraine not (yet) occupied by Russia. It has been repeatedly requested by its legitimate democratically elected President Volodymyr Zelensky for the whole of this sovereign independent and democratic country, itself
Following a call with the Russian President on 3 March 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron indicated that “the worst is yet to come” and that Putin wanted to take all of Ukraine. It is difficult to imagine what could be worse than perpetrating war crimes by indiscriminate daily bombardment of
Ukrainian bankers, analysts and economists have joined forces to develop a list of sanctions that have not yet been introduced, but could substantially hit Russia and force Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to retreat. Of course, these measures could hurt not only Russians, but also the economies of the collective West.
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors. The Kyiv Independent is reposting it with permission. Against all the odds, Ukraine has won this war militarily. It has won because it has fought bravely and skillfully and now there is nothing Russia can
As NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs prepare for their extraordinary meeting on 4 March 2022 in Brussels, they will need to address the following existential question raised by former President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė in her 2 March 2022 letter to NATO: “If we do not stop Putin in Ukraine,
Russia’s treacherous attack on Ukraine shocked the entire civilized world. The planned Blitzkrieg that failed led to the collapse of Russian troops and their transition to terrorist methods of warfare, in violation of the laws and customs of war. On the first day of the occupation, it became known
Ukrainian people are dying, and civil infrastructure is destroyed from increasing Russian air-to-ground attacks. And there is no other help from the United Nations member states needed more than closure of airspace from any unapproved military aircraft flying into Ukrainian airspace. According to the article 42 of the UN Charter,
The heroic feats of Ukraine are a balm for our heart and soul. It’s been a long time since anything like its national resistance to Russia’s war has nurtured the spirit. Humanity loves heroes. The Ukrainian people, its military and president have shown it in spades. Respect, love
On 24 February 2022, in violation of Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, Russia unleashed a full-scale military assault on Ukraine by air, ground and sea, attacking airports, ports, urban areas, civilian infrastructure and the nuclear exclusion zone in Chernobyl. On the same day, the President of Ukraine called for the
(Updated: )
