In Zaporizhzhia, a Russian missile struck a high-rise building. At least 38 people in the city have been injured, including three children. In Kyiv, four victims have been hospitalized.| The Kyiv Independent
News, analyses, investigations, opinions, podcasts and more. On-the-ground reporting from Ukraine| The Kyiv Independent
"We will be eager to hear his thoughts on state sovereignty and independence once he has broken free from his dependence on Russian energy, as U.S. President Donald Trump and European partners insisted multiple times," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.| The Kyiv Independent
Orban made the comments even as he downplayed concerns over Russian drones violating the airspace of several European countries and criticized the "posture of Western Europeans."| The Kyiv Independent
Editor's Note: This story uses a pseudonym to protect the individual’s identity because they could face repercussions for speaking to Ukrainian media. Like many in occupied Ukraine, ‘Dmytro’ stayed in his hometown for his family — his parents — and not because he wanted to live under Russian rule. Later mobilized into the Russian army, he was ordered to fight his own country. Now he works against Russia from within its own ranks. "I don't like it, and I felt guilty about being in th...| The Kyiv Independent
According to Bloomberg, the clash between the two leaders erupted on Oct. 1 during talks on the EU's strategy to defend itself against the Russian threat and support for Ukraine.| The Kyiv Independent
Speaking at the 130th anniversary of the Maria Valeria Bridge, which links Sturovo, Slovakia, and Esztergom, Hungary, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said: "No one should tell us where to buy oil and gas from."| The Kyiv Independent
All eyes in the EU, Ukraine, and Russia are on Chisinau today as Moldova began parliamentary elections that could leave the landlocked country U-turning from its path to join the bloc one day and build closer ties with Moscow.| The Kyiv Independent
Russian-controlled politicians, troll farms, cyberattacks, vote-buying, and coordinated violence… As Moldovans will head to the polls this Sunday, Russia has doubled down on its longstanding aim — to gain hold of the country of 2.6 million. The ruling pro-European PAS party, founded by President Maia Sandu, is likely to come first with around 30-40 percent, according to a number of polls. It may fall just short of a parliamentary majority. The main opposition, the Kremlin-aligned Patrioti...| The Kyiv Independent
Key developments on Sept. 23: * Trump says NATO should down Russian aircraft violating allied airspace * Zelensky, Trump meet in New York amid surging Russia-NATO tensions * Ukraine hits Russian oil facilities in Bryansk, Samara oblasts, military claims * Ukrainian drones attacked Moscow throughout the night, mayor says * Russia not close to encirclement of Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast despite claims, expert says U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sept. 23 that NATO countries should shoot| The Kyiv Independent
"Security guarantees, in essence, are a deterrent. That deterrent has to be plausible, and in order for it to be plausible, it has to be strong," Finnish President Alexander Stubb said.| The Kyiv Independent
Amid Russia's dwindling economic prospect, the number of registered businesses operating in in the country has fallen to lows not seen since 2010, Ukraine's foreign intelligence service (SZRU) announced. According a news release issued on Sept. 19 by the SZRU, Russia has shed approximately 486,000 business since 2022, leaving the country with 3.17 million business enterprises operating across the country, as of Sept. 1, 2025. The total marks a significant drop from post-invasion levels, when R| The Kyiv Independent
When faced with questions from German lawmakers on March 13, Chancellor Olaf Scholz once again said "no" to the delivery of the Taurus long-range missile to Ukraine. "Prudence is not something that one can qualify as a weakness. Prudence is something that the citizens of our country are entitled to," he said. The next day, the Bundestag, the German parliament's lower chamber, voted against a motion to send Taurus missiles to Kyiv for the third time in 2024. Ukraine officially asked Berlin to| The Kyiv Independent
While Washington and London are facing pressure to allow Ukraine to strike targets deep inside Russia using the Western-made missiles already in the country, Berlin declines to even provide such missiles. “Germany has made a clear decision about what we will do and what we will not do. This decision will not change,” Scholz said on Sept. 13, remaining adamant in his refusal to provide the country’s Taurus long-range missiles to Ukraine. His remarks came after U.S. President Joe Biden an...| The Kyiv Independent
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is exploring ways for Germany to potentially provide Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine while respecting chancellor's "red lines," according to Der Spiegel.| The Kyiv Independent
Of the 687 lawmakers who participated in the vote, 494 voted against the delivery, with 188 voting in favor and five abstaining.| The Kyiv Independent
After a brief respite, Ukraine is expecting a new wave of Russian mass attacks on its energy infrastructure that could throw the country back into blackouts this winter. Russian attacks last year wiped out nine gigawatts (GW) of Ukraine’s power generation — half of its capacity — by knocking out eight thermal plants and five hydropower plants, prompting rolling blackouts across the country. Following a partial March ceasefire, Russia concentrated its attacks on local energy facilities i...| The Kyiv Independent
Article 4 allows member states to call for discussions with allies if they believe their security is threatened. Russian MiG-31 fighter jets violated Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland on Sept. 19.| The Kyiv Independent
Russian forces are "looking for vulnerabilities in our defense, and conducting active combat operations in several directions simultaneously," Commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported.| The Kyiv Independent
Key developments on May 3-4: * Zelensky rejects Putin’s truce proposal as 'theatrical,' backs 30-day ceasefire plan from US * US sanctions depend on whether Russia is 'behaving' on peace deal, Trump says * US to send refurbished Patriot air defense system from Israel to Ukraine, NYT reports * Ukrainian sea drones down 2 Russian Su-30 jets near Novorossiysk, military intelligence chief says * Russian drone attack on Kyiv injures 11 people, including 2 children, damages shopping mall * Czec| The Kyiv Independent
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The Kyiv Independent’s coverage of news on Russia. Spanning eleven time zones across Eastern Europe and Asia, Russia has an estimated population of 146 million people. Russia’s capital city is Moscow, which is home to almost one in 10 Russians. Russia’s official currency is the Russian Ruble.| The Kyiv Independent
At first, there should be an appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop attacking civilian targets in Ukraine. If Moscow does not concede, Ukraine should be free to use already delivered weapons without restrictions, said the German opposition leader.| The Kyiv Independent
"Currently, more than 40 aircraft are known to have been hit, including the A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22 M3," a source told the Kyiv Independent.| The Kyiv Independent
Germany's conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz said on Dec. 4 that any speculations about deploying German troops to ensure a ceasefire are irresponsible at this time.| The Kyiv Independent
News, analyses, investigations, opinions, podcasts and more. On-the-ground reporting from Ukraine| The Kyiv Independent
Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov on Oct. 29 apparently boasted about using Ukrainian prisoners as human shields, claiming there were casualties among the captives after a drone strike on Chechnya.| The Kyiv Independent
"There are witnesses, there are people from whom they tried to commission, whom they asked how much they would take for the order," Ramzan Kadyrov said in Chechen to other officials from the North Caucasian republic.| The Kyiv Independent
Since the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States, the question on everyone's mind is whether Europe, including the U.K., can replace the military assistance the U.S. is giving Ukraine. The short answer is no. The reasons for this are a mix of politics and| The Kyiv Independent
News, analyses, investigations, opinions, podcasts and more. On-the-ground reporting from Ukraine| The Kyiv Independent
Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko said he later managed to speak to Ukrainian officials through special channels and the situation was resolved through diplomatic means.| The Kyiv Independent
Ukraine faces a tricky dilemma as winter approaches. How can it disrupt an expected mass Russian missile campaign targeting the country's infrastructure while simultaneously being barred from using Western-supplied weapons to strike deep inside Russia? Despite being limited to the use of long-range kamikaze drones, one method employed by Kyiv| The Kyiv Independent
Tankers bearing sanctioned Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) have clustered off Russia's eastern coast following suspension of operations at the Arctic LNG 2 plant, indicating that Moscow is unable to find buyers for its product amid sanctions.| The Kyiv Independent
The drones hit the building of the Russian Special Forces University named after Vladimir Putin in the city of Gudermes, the independent news outlet Agentstvo reported.| The Kyiv Independent
Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.| The Kyiv Independent
Belarus' Armed Forces are "concentrating a significant number of personnel" as well as weaponry along Ukraine's northern border with Belarus "under the guise of exercises," Ukraine's Foreign Ministry warned on Aug. 25, citing information gathered by the country's intelligence sources.| The Kyiv Independent
Russian sovereign territory is once again under attack after Ukrainian forces launched an ambitious operation across the state border in Kursk Oblast in large numbers on Aug. 6. This time, the attack is led not primarily by small units of pro-Ukraine Russian nationals and other assorted foreign formations, like in| The Kyiv Independent
Russian pro-war Telegram channels claimed that fighting was ongoing in the region's towns of Sudzha and Korenevo, writing that the Russian military has retreated from the Sudzha gas metering station, which transits gas to Europe through Ukraine.| The Kyiv Independent
Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine is in a "new phase," President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with the Associated Press published on Dec. 1. “We have a new phase of war, and that is a fact...winter as a whole is a new phase of war,” he said. When asked about the counteroffensive, he acknowledged it had not gone as Ukraine had hoped, admitting that it "did not achieve the desired results."| The Kyiv Independent
