Sirens fill the streets. Police cars flash passersby with blue lights. The capital city pauses. But no one’s phone buzzes with alerts. No one seeks shelter. No one scans the sky for missiles. The scene is Warsaw, not Kyiv. Every year on Aug. 1, at 5:00 p.m.
Ukraine has the second-highest number of HIV cases in Europe, a fact easily forgotten amid Russia’s ongoing war. As of 2022, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health’s Public Health Center reported that over 157,000 Ukrainians are virus carriers. The dangers associated with HIV/AIDS have only escalated amid
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on Aug. 20, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. Imagine getting married anywhere in the world – not in a registry office or
By providing Ukraine with early military, political, and financial support, U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration saved it from being overrun by Russia. Yet since November 2022, the conflict has been locked in a stalemate, which is not to Ukraine’s advantage. If elected, Kamala Harris should make it
On Aug. 14, two humanitarian workers died in a Kherson hospital after being injured by Russian shelling, a stark reminder of the ongoing attacks across Ukraine. As we observe World Humanitarian Day, it's crucial to acknowledge the immense physical and emotional challenges faced by Ukraine’s front-line humanitarian workers. Humanitarian
As becomes clearer with each passing day, the Ukrainian foray into Russia’s Kursk Oblast, which began on Aug. 6, is no minor incident. Kyiv’s unexpected operation on Russian territory could fundamentally change the character of Russia’s war against Ukraine. Ukraine’s attack represents a novel development in
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reportedly plans to visit Ukraine in late August, a little over a month after his controversial meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, which coincided with NATO’s summit in Washington. Images of Modi hugging Putin – on the same day that Russia bombed a
Recent reflections on the Russo-Ukrainian peace talks in Istanbul at the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022 offer new insights and perspectives. However, they often overlook a crucial factor: Moscow’s dismal history of honoring political and security agreements with former Soviet republics. Many analyses naively assume the Kremlin
Editor's Note: This article was originally published by Trench Art on July 30, 2024, and has been republished by the Kyiv Independent with permission. In his Oval Office address on July 24, U.S. President Joe Biden rightly claimed credit for being the “first president of this century to report
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, millions of Ukrainians found refuge in the European Union, with Germany and Poland alone taking in about one million refugees each. But this was always meant to be a temporary solution. The protracted war of attrition that is
In any and every corner of Ukraine, one would be very hard-pressed to find an ordinary person, civilian or military, who doesn’t want this cruel and brutal war to end. Ukrainians want nothing more than to be able to live without fear of night-time missile attacks, to see their
Russia’s arms industry and its export capabilities have long been, as Russian President Vladimir Putin put it, a point of national pride. Even after launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia claims to be able to meet growing domestic demand and continue arms exports. State-sponsored propaganda
‘With Ukraine, as long as it takes,’ we proclaimed. But in Moscow, they heard something else: the West is more terrified of Ukraine winning than losing. To dispel any doubts, the Kremlin unleashed death and destruction on Ukraine’s cities – on the eve of a NATO summit – killing dozens, including
Forensic experts identified Kh-101 missile fragments at the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital, one of the sites of Russia’s mass attack on July 8, which killed 33 people in Kyiv, including five children. The Kh-101, a strategic air-to-ground cruise missile, is among the most destructive in Russia’s arsenal. First
“Trump will end the Ukraine war.” This message greeted the audience just before U.S. Senator J.D. Vance emerged to accept his party’s nomination for the vice presidency. With Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump aiming to retake the presidency after the November elections, his stance on Ukraine and
To appreciate the booming Russian fossil fuels trade, one need only go to a rooftop cafe along the Bosporus. Back in March, while sipping tea on an Istanbul terrace, I watched as, over the course of two hours, at least four tankers – later identified through open-source marine traffic websites – carried
Over the past week, several developments suggest that momentum might be building for peace talks in Ukraine. Firstly, Ukraine appears to have made significant concessions in negotiations with bondholders, indicating the prospect of a debt restructuring by September. This urgency only makes sense if there is an expectation that the
In a commentary published by the New York Times this past April, J.D. Vance, now the U.S. Republican vice-presidential nominee, proposed a strategy of “defense” for Ukraine that was nothing but a recipe for defeat. There can be no doubt that his words were closely read, and well
I know the exact moment when Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to launch his full-scale invasion of Ukraine: Oct. 1, 2021. It was the day the opera "Vyshyvanyi: The King of Ukraine" premiered in Kharkiv. I was at the event and vividly recall all the details. The premiere proved to
Liza Dmitrieva, a four-year-old girl with Down’s syndrome, was walking with her mother to a speech therapy appointment in the central Ukrainian city of Vinnytsia on July 14, 2022. As her mother filmed her playfully pushing her stroller, she didn’t know that those were to be the last
Avril Haines, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, recently warned that “Russia’s need for support in the context of Ukraine has forced it to grant some long-sought concessions to China, North Korea, and Iran with the potential to undermine, among other things, long-held non-proliferation norms.” How much does
Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s nomination of J.D. Vance as his vice-presidential running mate has sent shockwaves across the Western alliance, particularly Ukraine, which is on the front lines of Western liberal democracy’s battle against authoritarianism. Vance has been strident in his
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on July 16, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. J.D. Vance’s selection as Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s running
Over two years have passed since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the volunteer IT Army of Ukraine is more effective than ever. On June 20, 2024, the hacker group launched what they claimed to be the "largest DDoS attack in history" against Russia's banking system, crippling numerous banks and
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on July 14, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. The assassination attempt on former U.S. President Donald Trump on July 14
Not content with disturbing the peace in Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin recently signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong Un. As troubling to China’s leaders as it is to Western officials, the deal is shaking up the geopolitics of Northeast Asia and
Attracting investments through industrial parks has driven GDP growth and tripled exports in Turkey, exceeding $350 billion annually. In South Korea, enterprises in industrial parks have accounted for up to 72% of exports and employed 48% of the population. China's industrial and technology parks contribute about 23% of its GDP.
Ukraine's victory is the victory of the entire free world over dictators and tyrants. The formula for victory is well known: the strength of the Ukrainian army, the unity of the free world, unwavering long-term military and financial support for Ukraine, and, first and foremost, Ukraine's membership in NATO. One
As foreign leaders and delegates gathered in Washington for the 2024 NATO Summit this week, Ukraine learned that it will not receive a formal membership invitation. This decision comes as a significant blow to Ukraine. During the three-day gathering, critics of Ukraine’s potential NATO accession reiterated familiar concerns. They
A quick Google search on procurement in Ukraine renders pages upon pages of corruption-related headlines. “National Anti-Corruption busts Defense Ministry food procurement scheme;” “Kyiv accuses military brass of procurement graft;” “Ukraine opens arms procurement corruption investigation.” Ukraine introduced Prozorro, an electronic procurement system implemented in 2016, as part of broader
The second round of Iran’s presidential election unfolded with little fanfare last weekend. But with reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian defeating his hardline anti-Western opponent, Saeed Jalili, the world should be paying attention. At a time of deep tensions and shifting alliances, these results will reverberate across the region and
As world leaders gathered in the U.S. capital for the NATO summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi traveled to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. It was Modi's first visit to Russia not just since Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 but also since 2019.
