Europe is in the midst of the largest war on the continent since NATO was founded in 1949. Russian President Vladimir Putin is attacking Ukraine with conventional forces and engaging in hybrid attacks against NATO itself. The allies know that if Russia is not defeated in Ukraine, it is highly
The United Kingdom has been a leader in rallying world support for Ukraine, and we expect that to remain the same under a Labour government. Although Keir Starmer was elected as Labour Party leader under a non-interventionist platform, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine has shifted U.K. politics. There is
Udmurt scholar Albert Razin ended his life in front of the Udmurt Republic’s State Council Building in Izhevsk, Russia, on Sept. 10, 2019, setting himself ablaze. His desperate act serves as a haunting emblem of Russia’s national policy under Russian President Vladimir Putin’s reign. Today, Russification has
If you speak English on the street in Ukraine, it’s not uncommon for strangers to stop and ask where you’re from. Many times when I’ve said I’m American, people (ranging from teenagers to the elderly) have thanked me for my country’s help. I’m forever
NATO’s July summit in Washington marks the 75th anniversary of the alliance’s establishment, and it comes at a critical juncture. As threats to global stability evolve beyond conventional military domains, NATO must confront the barrage of disinformation undermining its unity and values. Specifically, member countries must prevent hostile
The 2024 European Parliament elections nearly slipped off Ukraine's radar. At the time, Ukraine's primary focus was on preparing for the Ukraine Recovery Conference and the peace summit in Switzerland. However, the resultant compositions of the European Parliament and the European Commission will play crucial roles in the organization’s
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on June 27, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. When the explosions hit the thermal power plant, senior machinist Ihor* was at
Now that voters across the European Union’s 27 member states have elected the 720 members of the next European Parliament, the focus shifts to manning the institutions that will guide the bloc’s work and set its strategic priorities over the next five years. This process will take some
June has been a busy month for Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a speech at Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he outlined his terms for peace negotiations with Ukraine and proposed establishing an alternative international security system in collaboration with China. A week later, during a two-day visit to
The European Union’s foreign policy will soon be under new management. While Ursula von der Leyen seems well positioned to carry on as European Commission president, there will be a new president of the European Council and a new foreign policy chief. They will inherit an unenviable agenda that
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on June 23, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. *Sofia’s name has been changed due to security concerns. They call it
My child was just a few days old when they heard the air raid siren for the first time. We were still in the maternity hospital, and I was enjoying a moment of much-needed rest. I glanced over nervously into their crib to see if the sound would wake them
It is safe to say that Ukraine’s reconstruction will be the most significant and expensive undertaking in Europe since the post-World War II Marshall Plan. The World Bank estimates that rebuilding the country will require nearly $500 billion over the next decade, dwarfing the costs of the most destructive
If Ukraine is going to defeat Russia and rebuild itself after the war, it will need huge sums of money, probably exceeding what Western electorates and politicians are willing or able to provide. The good news is that there is a massive pot of non-Western money already available: the $300
Just a month after the U.S. Congress approved the much-awaited aid package for Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kyiv with a clear message: Washington supports the embattled country despite political bickering and the ongoing election campaign. Blinken also announced a special military-industrial complex development and
Far-right populist parties performed exceptionally well in the European Parliament elections, finishing first in France, Italy, and three other countries. They won nearly a quarter of the seats in the Parliament, just behind the center right. With Europe already reeling from Russia's war in Ukraine, the threat of a second
Two years ago, I outlined eight lessons from Russia's war against Ukraine. And though I warned that it was too early to be confident about any predictions, they have held up reasonably well. When Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he envisaged a
June 6 marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day, when the World War II Allies stormed the beaches of Normandy. As Western leaders commemorate the event that led to Europe’s liberation from fascism, they ought to keep in mind that just five years earlier, the French socialist and future fascist
For better or worse, memes and video games might now play a more significant role in shaping people’s worldviews than textbooks, movies, and literature. As Russia’s war against Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war capture global attention, it’s crucial to consider how people form their conscious and unconscious
There is a saying in Poland that, “No one will die for Gdansk.” No matter what kind of security guarantees Poland gets from Western countries, most Poles believe that we will still have to fend for ourselves. After all, when the Nazis invaded in 1939, Poland had security guarantees from
Estonia’s parliament enacted a law on May 15 enabling the use of frozen Russian assets to compensate Ukraine for the damages caused by Russia’s war. Kyiv and its Western allies have discussed using around $300 billion in Russian assets held in Western accounts to support Ukraine. As of
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, the Kremlin has sought to play the nuclear card – both to frighten Ukraine and to deter the West from assisting. Kyiv and its partners cannot ignore Moscow’s nuclear threats, but they should understand that the Russian leadership does not
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on May 30, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. Nataliia Kalinichenko treasures her newspaper archives, with clippings dating back to the 1940s,
South Africans will flock to the polls on May 29 for the country’s most important general election since the advent of its non-racial democracy in April 1994. According to most opinion polls, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party, Africa’s oldest liberation movement, is expected to fall below
As the West’s political leaders become increasingly preoccupied with the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza, they risk losing their geopolitical influence in a small but strategically significant Black Sea country: Georgia. On April 29, in one of his rare public appearances, Bidzina Ivanishvili – the founder and de facto
Earlier this month, the European Union celebrated the 20th anniversary of its biggest-ever enlargement, which brought 10 new members into the bloc. That event remains a potent reminder of the EU’s potential to advance peace and unity across the European continent. But, at a time of deep internal divisions
Iran’s recent missile attacks against Israel serve as a stark reminder of the growing audacity of petro-dictatorships in flouting international norms and undermining global peace. Iran, emboldened by Russia’s relentless and indiscriminate assaults on Ukraine – targeting everything from hospitals and kindergartens to power stations with Iranian-made missiles and
Volodymyr Zelensky’s five-year term as Ukraine’s president expired on May 20. For most Ukrainian citizens, including the country’s constitutionalists, the path forward is clear: Zelensky should continue as president until martial law in Ukraine ends and new elections can take place. But critics argue that Zelensky and
Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to revive the Soviet Union, but two can play this game. To complete the Kremlin’s grotesque historical reenactment, the West should launch a new economic Cold War in response. In addition to the war of aggression waged against the civilians and cities of
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a clear signal to the West last week: China stands firmly behind Russia. Putin made his first foreign trip since his inauguration to Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping on May 16. The visit came after a cabinet reshuffle in Russia the week prior,
Editor’s Note: This article was published by the twice-weekly newsletter “The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak” on May 20, 2024, and has been re-published by the Kyiv Independent with permission. To subscribe to "The Counteroffensive," click here. When Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine began, Anastasia Boyko considered fleeing Ukraine to
Russian forces have encountered a new enemy in the Black Sea: Ukraine’s arsenal of naval kamikaze drones. These deceptively small unmanned vehicles have targeted Russia’s Black Sea Fleet since September 2022, picking off Russian battleships one by one. The latest of Ukraine’s maritime conquests was the Russian
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