Editor’s Note: This article was published by the blog “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on Feb. 22, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. In the first hours of his full-scale invasion, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his
Two years ago today, our website’s homepage blasted, in all caps, “PUTIN DECLARES WAR ON UKRAINE.” We all have come a long way since that morning of Feb. 24, 2022. From the initial shock of waking up to the sound of air strikes on our cities, through the sense
Working alongside investigators and prosecutors on sexual and gender-based crimes is a horrific experience. It involves listening to, reading, and hearing accounts of unimaginable suffering in sickening detail. To support the work of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office, Mobile Justice Teams (MJTs) comprised of Ukrainian and international experts were
Where were you that morning when the great war began? Here's my story: The war spoke to me with the distant rumble of explosions outside the window, but I didn't believe it, thinking I was living a dream. Then, on the second floor of my friends' house near Kyiv, the
KYIV – Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia marched hundreds of thousands of troops into Ukraine, marked the beginning of a major geopolitical earthquake. For two years, Europe has been living with the grim reality of the continent’s largest war of aggression since World War II, and with widespread, horrifying atrocities.
MUNICH – “Words, words, just words,” sighed one VIP attendee at the Munich Security Conference as representatives of three European Union member states discussed security cooperation. “China will get the message: ‘No need to worry about us here,’” said another about the signals being sent from Bavaria. A lugubrious mood hung
I am an American military veteran, callsign "Jackie," and I am writing from Donbas in Ukraine. I am originally from Orange County, California. I served in the U.S. military for eight years, stationed in Colorado, South Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait. I also worked as a contractor at the
Editor’s note: The following piece is a personal account of the Munich Security Conference from a Kyiv Independent reporter but does not purport to reflect the views of the publication. MUNICH – For three days every year, the space in front of the Bayerischer Hof Hotel in central Munich turns
LONDON – Donald Trump’s potential return to the White House in 2025 poses a grave threat to Europe’s security. With war in Ukraine still raging, European countries must shore up their defenses against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s revanchist aggressions before it is too late. The prospect of an
Editor’s note: This is issue 42 of Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak’s weekly “Ukrainian Economy in Brief” newsletter, covering events from Feb. 5-11, 2024. The digest highlights steps taken in the Ukrainian parliament related to business, economics, and international financial programs. This is the first time it is appearing
The following is a speech by National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Governor Andriy Pyshnyy at the conference “Central Bank Independence in a Changing World.” The conference was organized for the governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) constituency by the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) in Brussels, Belgium, on Feb.
In the wake of land reform and the relentless challenges posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine's agricultural sector faces a pivotal moment. Small farmers, the backbone of this vital industry, grapple with the dual challenges of securing financing and overcoming the aftermath of destruction and economic upheaval. The
Russia’s war against Ukraine and the political turmoil that has since enveloped Europe indicate a need for more than a cosmetic change to improving the European Union’s relations with its non-EU neighbors. Brussels’ earlier approaches have proven insufficient to lessen the tensions in Eastern Europe that led to
BERLIN – Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, changed everything for Ukraine, for Europe, and for global politics. The world entered a new era of great-power rivalry in which war could no longer be excluded. Apart from the immediate victims, Russia’s aggression most concerned Europe. A
As the U.S. Congress continues negotiations on approving the stalled border security deal and military aid package for key allies, U.S. President Joe Biden can act today – with or without Congress – to make Russia pay in some measure for its heinous crimes against Ukraine. The U.S. State
Former Fox News anchor and far-right commentator Tucker Carlson recently completed his speaking tour of Canada. Apparently, he wants to “liberate” us from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Carlson is now visiting Moscow to convene with the paragon of freedom and democracy himself: Russian President Vladimir Putin. The last few weeks
With each passing day, it becomes increasingly evident that Western support for Ukraine has become ensnared in various domestic and geopolitical developments that have nothing to do with Ukraine’s struggle to defend itself. As Russia’s war of aggression approaches its second anniversary, it is crucial to establish a
How many tanks does Russia really have left? This question has come up quite frequently in discussions, and it’s simply impossible to find a precise answer – Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and General Staff chief Valery Gerasimov probably don’t even know. But this doesn’t deter us
CAMBRIDGE – Observing Republican members of Congress oppose the extension of U.S. support to Ukraine, one cannot help but wonder what happened to one of the United States’ two major political parties. This includes those GOP politicians who, while ostensibly supportive of Ukraine, allow their colleagues to hold it hostage
Ukraine needs approximately $37 billion in aid this year. This fact, coupled with its goal to become more economically self-sufficient, makes it crucial to explore more effective options when it comes to donor assistance. Ukraine received a record amount of foreign aid in 2023: $42.6 billion. Part of this
When bilateral talks fail to resolve disputes between sovereign countries, aggrieved parties may turn to an international judicial body, such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. Alternatively, treaties or agreements often incorporate provisions for arbitration or mediation of disputes by a pre-designated entity. Similarly, the World
It has been a month since Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government took office, and the task now is to rebuild Polish democracy after eight years of corrupt misrule under Jaroslaw Kaczynski’s Law and Justice (PiS) party. No country in Europe has ever faced a political transition quite
WARSAW/ODESA – Western leaders are well aware of the dangers of a Russian victory in Ukraine. “When dictators and autocrats are allowed to run roughshod in Europe,” U.S. President Joe Biden recently observed, “the risk rises that the United States gets pulled in directly,” with the “consequences reverberat[ing]
As Ukraine endures the ravages of Russia's full-scale invasion, the impact extends far beyond the physical destruction of its cities and the displacement of its people. A silent but equally devastating crisis is unfolding: the severe deterioration of the mental health of the Ukrainian population in wartime. A recent survey
On a trip to Mykolaiv in November, I passed an electronics store covered in shrapnel damage. I had assumed it was closed down — another victim of Russia’s attempted siege the previous year. Missing steps led to a door boarded up with plywood while a battered Apple logo clung to
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban sought to blackball Ukraine’s bid to formally start EU accession talks last month, arguing that Ukraine was simply not ready. Ultimately, the other 26 EU member states decided to ignore Orban’s protestations and formally agreed to the start of accession talks with Ukraine.
As Russia’s war against Ukraine continues to wreak havoc both regionally and globally, the Ukrainian people and their allies demonstrate remarkable determination and courage. But nearly two years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion, it is increasingly clear that the international community can and must do much more to
Editor's note: Read our interview with Stanislav Haider here. The Defense Ministry is one of Ukraine’s oldest bureaucratic structures. As such, it has long-established customs and procedures, some of which no longer meet the challenges of today. My mission as the deputy minister for institutional development is to help
In 2023, several domestic developments in Russia, such as the summer mercenary mutiny by Yegveny Prigozhin or the autumn antisemitic riots in Makhachkala, indicated growing regime fragility. These and an accumulation of foreign policy challenges have renewed discussion of what happens to Putin’s system of rule after the current
We’ve got some bad news. In fact, we’ve got plenty of bad news. As well as some good news, and a handful of regular news. As with any media publication, we cover many topics and developments, both upsetting and inspiring. But lately, we have seen a worrying trend
The advantage historians have over journalists is that the passage of time offers them a perspective not available to those with immediate deadlines. But the year is about to end, which constitutes a firm deadline if the goal is to put 2023 into perspective. “Instant history” may well be an
STOCKHOLM – In his annual press conference, Russian leader Vladimir Putin made it clear that he will be ready for a peace settlement with Ukraine only after he has achieved his goals, which have not changed since he launched his full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. He wants Ukraine to be
(Updated: )
