WP: White House briefs TikTok influencers about Russia's war in Ukraine.

10:05 PM

War update

Ukraine war latest: Kyiv denies Trump's claims of Ukrainian encirclement in Kursk Oblast

9:23 PM  (Updated:  March 14, 2025 9:49 pm)

Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih injures at least 8.

Russian troops attacked a residential area in Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with ballistic missiles, Governor Serhii Lysak said. Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky, remains a frequent target of Russian missile attacks.

9:13 PM

Belarus weekly

Belarus Weekly: Belarus drops out of top 20 global arms exporters list

9:07 PM

Ukraine, US discuss fate of Russian-occupied territories, Zelensky says.

Previously, U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio said that Ukraine-U.S. talks included discussions about potential "territorial concessions" as part of a negotiated settlement with Russia.

8:34 PM

Trump & Russia

'Conditions for Ukraine's surrender' — Why Putin's demands for ceasefire make no sense

8:07 PM

Cybersecurity

Ukraine, EU look to deepen cybersecurity cooperation as Russian threat rises

7:59 PM

Ukraine troops in Kursk Oblast must surrender, Putin claims.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 14 that Ukrainian soldiers must surrender in Kursk Oblast after U.S. President Donald Trump's request to "spare" the troops he claimed are surrounded. Ukraine denied claims that the country's troops are surrounded at any part of the front.

7:52 PM

Sanctions against Russia

EU resists pressure from Hungary, extends Russia sanctions including those on Mikhail Fridman

7:46 PM

Video

What Germany under Merz means for Ukraine and Europe, according to expert.

Germany braces for major changes as incoming Chancellor Friedrich Merz seeks to reshape the country’s role on the continent. The Kyiv Independent sat down with Jörn Fleck, senior director with the Europe Center at the Atlantic Council, to discuss what the new German government means for Ukraine and beyond.

6:01 PM

Kyiv says Ukrainian troops 'regrouped' in Kursk Oblast, denies encirclement.

The General Staff said that Russia had been reporting an alleged encirclement of Ukrainian forces in Kursk Oblast "for political purposes and to put pressure on Ukraine and its partners."

5:20 PM

Man suspected of murdering prominent Odesa activist detained, authorities say.

Hours after prominent Ukrainian activist Demyan Hanul was assassinated in Odesa, law enforcement detained a potential suspect.

4:28 PM

Russia using cryptocurrency in oil trade with China, India to bypass sanctions, Reuters reports.

Sources suggest that Russia will likely continue using digital currencies in energy trade even if Western sanctions are lifted.

4:00 PM

Trump claims he asked Putin to 'spare thousands of surrounded Ukrainian troops' in Kursk Oblast.

"At this very moment, thousands of Ukrainian troops are completely surrounded by the Russian military, and in a very bad and vulnerable position," U.S. President Donald Trump wrote, without providing any evidence.

3:54 PM

Ukraine forming team to develop monitoring mechanisms for potential 30-day ceasefire, FM Sybiha says.

Kyiv agreed to the U.S.-proposed truce during talks in Jeddah on March 11, contingent on Russian adherence.

3:24 PM

Chinese state oil firms cut Russian crude purchases over sanctions fears, Reuters reports.

"They are taking a break for now while contemplating if there are ways to work around," a source told Reuters.

2:15 PM

Belarus will not merge with Russia in the near future, Lukashenko says.

"If we are going to burst through this open door, we will ruin everything we have done," Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko said.

2:12 PM

Opinion

Ukraine is the front line in the battle against oligarchic capitalism

2:07 PM

Opinion

How Ukraine’s defense tech is shaping the future of warfare

1:52 PM

JD Vance says he would be 'shocked' if Trump agreed to station US nukes in Poland.

Polish President Andrzej Duda has said such a move would be justified given Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus.

12:51 PM

Putin sent 'additional signals' to Trump on ceasefire proposal, Kremlin says.

Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin late in the evening on March 13, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

12:14 PM

Ukrainian activist Demyan Hanul shot dead in central Odesa.

"Operatives and police investigators are working to identify the shooter and arrest him," Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

12:03 PM

Ceasefire

With Putin demanding new concessions for a ceasefire, all eyes are on Trump’s next move

11:53 AM

Finland sentences Russian neo-Nazi mercenary Yan Petrovsky to life for war crimes in Ukraine.

Yan Petrovsky, co-leader of the Rusich paramilitary unit, was convicted of war crimes in Luhansk Oblast on Sept. 5, 2014, during Russia's invasion of Donbas.

10:48 AM

Ukrainian drones strike Russian gas facilities, air defense missile depot, source claims.

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) drones struck two gas compressor stations and a warehouse storing missiles for Russia's S-300/S-400 air defense systems, a security source told the Kyiv Independent.

10:01 AM

Putin still seeks control over Ukraine despite US peace efforts, WP reports.

Some officials believe that even if Russia agrees to a temporary truce, Moscow will use the pause to rearm, violate the agreement, and create provocations to blame on Ukraine.