Ukrainian forces captured two North Korean soldiers as prisoners of war (POWs) in Russia's Kursk Oblast on Jan. 9. The Kyiv Independent's Anna Belokur breaks down everything we learned from the POWs' interrogation video released by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
This Sunday, the Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur covers the trending news of the week from developments on the front lines to the Ramstein meeting with top officials. And what happened with the new brigade trained in France?
During the occupation of Kharkiv Oblast in 2022, Russian forces established nearly 30 torture chambers in various parts of the region. This story focuses on just one of them — the torture chamber at the Vovchansk Aggregate Plant.
The Kyiv Independent’s Kate Tsurkan discusses with Garry Kasparov, Russian chess grandmaster and political activist based in the U.S., the current state of Russia, its continued pursuit of empire and the failures of the Russian opposition to create meaningful change.
In this year-end wrap up of Ukraine This Week, host Anna Belokur covers the 2024 events in Ukraine and what they meant.
The Kyiv Independent’s Francis Farrell sat down with Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze to look back at 2024 and discuss the country’s support for Ukraine amid political uncertainty before the inauguration of Donald Trump in the U.S. and Russia’s gains on the frontline.
While the diamond industry markets itself as a beacon of luxury, the complex web of global trade hides dark, brutal reality. Despite sanctions and growing scrutiny, Russian diamonds continue to enter the global market, funding Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
The Kyiv Independent’s Francis Farrell spoke with Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson about Europe’s security and Ukraine’s future as Sweden builds ties with Ukraine’s defense industry to boost production.
In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, host Anna Belokur dives into Russia’s withdrawal from Syria after the dictator Bashar al-Assad’s downfall, as well as a front line update from Ukraine and the controversy surrounding mobilizing younger men.
The Kyiv Independent spent a day with one of Ukraine's top drone units, the Achilles Strike Drone Battalion of the 92nd Separate Assault Brigade, documenting their missions to hunt down Russian military equipment ― and soldiers ― near Kupiansk, Kharkiv Oblast, where Moscow is currently on the offensive.
The Kyiv Independent's journalists Francis Farrell and Olena Zashko followed a group of Ukrainian military medics as they journeyed from the heat of battle in war-torn Ukraine to the serene forests of Sweden for a short mental health retreat.
The Kyiv Independent’s Natalia Yermak sat down with Neil Quilliam, a Middle East expert at Chatham House, to talk about what it means for Russia’s war in Ukraine and how it might put Kyiv and the West in a more favorable position in the potential peace negotiations with Moscow.
For the 30th anniversary of the Budapest Memorandum, The Kyiv Independent’s Daria Shulzhenko visits a former Soviet-era nuclear missile silo in south Ukraine.
In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, host Anna Belokur explains the recent meeting between U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky, the escalating protests in Georgia, U.S. commentator Tucker Carlson's surprise interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and the Johnny Harris controversy.
In the sixth episode of Dare to Ukraine, we gain rare access to the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, known globally as the site of the catastrophic 1986 nuclear disaster and one of the most radioactive places on Earth.
The Kyiv Independent’s reporter Oleg Sukhov sat down with Robert Kelley to discuss whether the weapon Ukraine gave up would be of much use now and if the country still has the capacity to produce a nuclear device.
In an exclusive interview with the Kyiv Independent, Kaja Kallas, the newly appointed vice-president of the European Commission and top EU diplomat, discusses Ukraine support and recent EU sanctions against Russia. Kallas visited Kyiv on Dec. 1, the first day in her new role.
Ukraine This Week's host, Anna Belokur, discusses Russia's attacks on Ukraine and its record losses, the ruble plunging to its lowest level since 2022, Joe Rogan's recent comments about Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelensky, and why the West should do exactly what Rogan is preaching against: hit Russia where it
The Kyiv Independent's Dinara Khalilova sits down with the former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Steven Pifer, to discuss the political implications of Russia's attack on Dnipro with a nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile last week.
In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, the Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur reports on Russia’s recent missile strike using a new ballistic weapon. Meanwhile, Twitter owner and Donald Trump ally Elon Musk throws an online jab at President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ali Charinskiy is an activist and professional martial artist from the Republic of Dagestan who advocated for the rights of Muslims. The Kyiv Independent spent a day with Charinskiy in his new home, a southern Ukrainian city of Odesa.
The Kyiv Independent sat down with retired U.S. Lieutenant General Ben Hodges to discuss the reports that U.S. President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use long-range ATACMS missiles for strikes inside Russia.
The Kyiv Independent sat down with the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, to discuss the future of the U.S. policy towards Ukraine as it continues its defense against Russia’s aggression.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has already announced the first appointments for his cabinet, who will advise him on everything from foreign policy to national security. We break down how these individuals may influence Trump's policies on Ukraine and Russia.
In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, The Kyiv Independent’s Anna Belokur unpacks what Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election means for Ukraine.
In the fifth episode of “Dare to Ukraine,” we explore Kharkiv, a city that embodies resilience and creativity in the face of adversity. As Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv is renowned for its diverse architecture and vibrant arts scene.
With Donald Trump's U.S. presidential win set to shape the future of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the Kyiv Independent examines the current situation on the battlefield, where Russia is making its fastest gains since the early days of the full-scale invasion.
A few hours after Donald Trump was declared the winner of the U.S. presidential election, the Kyiv Independent sat down with Ambassador Kurt Volker, who served as the U.S. special representative for Ukraine negotiations in 2017-2019, and as U.S. ambassador to NATO in 2008-2009.
A few hours after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Donald Trump on winning the 2024 U.S. presidential election, we asked Ukrainians on the streets of Kyiv what they thought about Trump's victory and his most controversial quotes about Ukraine and Russia's war.
Ahead of the Nov. 5 U.S. election, the Kyiv Independent sat down with U.S. academic and former ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul to discuss what the future of U.S. politics for Ukraine looks like with both presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris
The Kyiv Independent joined one such unit that refers to themselves as the Witches of Bucha, after a suburb in Kyiv Oblast where they are based. Since all of them are volunteers, these women combine their combat duties with civilian lives.
Why do some young people in the West romanticize Communism? How did Russian President Vladimir Putin manage to sell the idea of retaining the imperialist regime to the Russian people?
