Ukraine argued in a letter to the International Maritime Organization that Russia's shadow fleet may no longer qualify as ordinary civilian shipping, citing its role in financing Moscow's war effort.

BRUSSELS, Belgium — The Council of Europe's Human Rights Commissioner is pushing back against the continent-wide rollback of protections for over 4 million Ukrainians. Michael O'Flaherty spoke with the Kyiv Independent about just what is at stake, and why it is in Europe's own interests to keep strong support measures in place. "We gave an awesome and fantastic welcome in 2022, but there's been a weakening in the welcome, which is unfortunate, as the protection needs are as great as ever," O'Fl

The Kyiv Independent’s Kate Tsurkan speaks with Ukrainian author and soldier Kateryna Zarembo about her decision to join Ukraine’s military, the realities of serving as a combat medic, and how Russia’s full-scale invasion has reshaped her relationship with writing.

"And we hope that during Ireland's presidency of the Council of the European Union, we will be able to achieve tangible progress on the path to membership and open all negotiating clusters," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Kyiv's recent initiatives to commemorate 20th century Ukrainian nationalists, including the Ukrainian National Pantheon, have contributed to the ongoing escalation in its tensions with Poland.

"The operator of the enemy drone clearly saw that it was civilian transport carrying people on their way to work. But this terrorist deliberately chose to strike," Prokudin said.

"Crimea has essentially turned into a military base for the Russians, allowing them to continue occupying the south of our country and transfer forces to the east. Therefore, from both a military and logistical perspective, it is an important target for us," Fedorov said.

While Ukrainian forces are carrying out daily strikes on logistical and military targets in Crimea to further isolate the occupied peninsula, Ukrainian residents there say the campaign has given them hope of a possible deoccupation for the first time since the 2023 counteroffensive. "I understand that we are far away from this (deoccupation), but we haven't had such hopes since 2023. And there has been no such 'carnival' in Crimea ever before, and we know that more is to come," a Crimean reside

"Nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes" is an idiom often attributed to American statesman Benjamin Franklin. In Ukraine, another certainty has emerged over the years: society's persistent demand for judicial reform — and the judiciary's equally persistent resistance to it. Following the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution, Ukraine's highest court was expected to become a flagship of the country's Western-backed reform agenda. Instead, the Supreme Court has become mired in controve

Ukrainian drones struck a state-owned bearing plant in the Russian city of Penza overnight on July 1 as strikes were recorded in occupied Donetsk, social media channels reported.

Ukraine and Romania have opened a direct line of communication in an effort to prevent future drone incursions into the country, Romanian President Nicusor Dan told outlet News Ro on June 30.

Euroclear, a Belgium-based financial market infrastructure provider, has filed a lawsuit against the Bank of Russia in a Brussels commercial court, challenging a Moscow ruling that ordered it to pay 200 billion euros (approximately $230 billion) in damages, Belgian media reported.

Ukrainian businessman Vadym Iermolaiev, who faced an assassination attempt in Monaco on June 29, is little-known nationwide but wielded immense influence in the city of Dnipro. Iermolaiev is controversial. He has renounced his Ukrainian citizenship and has been sanctioned by Ukraine due to alleged collaboration with Russia. He denies the accusations. Meanwhile, Iermolaiev’s son is being investigated in connection with illegal call centers in Ukraine. The Kyiv Independent explains who Iermola

The Russian government is set to suspend traffic through several railway checkpoints on its borders with Finland, Estonia, and Latvia starting July 1, according to a government order.

President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on June 30 that Ukraine and Sweden had signed an agreement for the purchase of 16 Swedish Gripen E fighter jets.

When a russian strike hit the building in Sumy where our teenagers met each week, I was sure we had lost them. They were frightened; some could not stop shaking. They had felt the blast. We brought in psychologists without asking for anything in return. Less than two weeks later, the same teenagers found a new venue and finished the program. I have returned to that moment many times since. The courage of those youngsters astonished me. They had found a place where their voice counted, and they

About 1.3 billion Danish kroner ($200 million) have been allocated to the so-called "Danish model," a mechanism under which a partner country provides direct funding to Ukrainian arms manufacturers.

Geolocated footage analyzed by OSINT analysts from the independent Russian outlet Astra showed the house had been partially destroyed. Local residents also reported hearing explosions and air defense activity over Yegoryevsk.

In 2022, American commentator Tucker Carlson condemned the U.S. giving up Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in a prisoner swap, calling him "an indisputably serious criminal" who "sold weapons to terror groups that killed Americans." Just four years later, Carlson welcomed Bout on his podcast to promote Russian talking points to his millions of viewers. "I can understand why (former U.S. President) Barack Obama wanted to put you in prison," Carlson laughingly told Bout, praising the arms dealer

The EU's new steel allocation, set to enter into force on July 1, was introduced in response to global steel overcapacity, which has been hurting EU producers. The measure aims to restrict tariff-free steel imports to 18.3 million metric tons per year, a 47% reduction.

Nilsson also said Sweden saw no signs that Russia's political system or Vladimir Putin's grip on power were under immediate threat, despite economic strains caused by the war and Western sanctions.

Even if the decision is adopted at the EU level, it will not prevent Budapest from accepting ethnic Hungarians fleeing Ukraine because of the war or mobilization, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said.

The plan, backed by 300 billion pounds ($400 billion) in funding over four years, is part of a drive toward a more "European NATO" and will help the British forces deter the Russian threat, outgoing U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said.

The suspect helped Russia take control of Crimea's energy infrastructure in 2014, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said.

Ukraine's Air Force shot down 138 targets, while drone strikes were recorded at 10 locations and falling debris at two others.

According to the French news outlet BFM TV, the blast injured Ukrainian businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, his partner, and 13-year-old daughter. Authorities are investigating the incident as a possible terrorist attack.

The Norwegian defense company Kongsberg and Ukraine's DevDroid announced on June 30 a collaboration to produce ground drones equipped with state-of-the-art weapons systems, aiming to supply Ukraine and other European countries.

The payment is part of the initial 6-billion-euro ($7-billion) tranche dedicated to drone procurement under the 90-billion-euro ($103 billion) Ukraine Support Loan.

The relay equipment that helps guide Russian drones over Belarus went dark on June 22, days after President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a public ultimatum, threatening to disable the equipment with Ukraine's own forces if the demand is not met. Zelensky's ultimatum to Alexander Lukashenko left the Belarusian dictator between a rock and a hard place: refuse, and Belarus risks joining Ukraine's list of drone targets. Comply, and he risks publicly defying Russian President Vladimir Putin — his count

The child was killed after a private house caught fire following what local authorities said was a drone crash in Yegoryevsk.

"I proposed what I believe was a very fair, partnership-based approach: MiGs in exchange for drones," Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said. "The Ukrainians initially accepted it but did not follow through, so there are no MiGs for Ukraine because there are no drones, or drone capabilities, for Poland."

The number includes 1,350 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.