Amy B. Zegart
Since the outset of the war, the battlefield has undergone several notable transformations. Among the most widely cited examples is the deployment of drones, which have not only played critical role in this war but are likely to shape warfare in its …
Editor’s note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Russia continues to refuse to agree to a full ceasefire in Ukraine, with President Vladimir Putin instead prepared to negotiate a “memorandum regarding a potential future …
Editor’s note: In accordance with newsroom policy on reporting on children and the policies of organizations interviewed, the Kyiv Independent is not using the names of children under 18 or the last names of their parents who appear in this story. …
U.S. President Donald Trump is holding a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, marking their first known conversation in two months, Russia’s state-owned publication Ria-Novosti reported on May 19.
The call comes days after largely …
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with top officials on May 19 to evaluate the outcome of Ukraine-Russia negotiations held in Istanbul last week, the president announced on Telegram.
The Istanbul talks marked the first direct encounter between …
The German government supports newly proposed European Union sanctions, which are being coordinated with the U.S. government, spokesperson Stefan Cornelius said on May 19, Tagesshau reported.
The proposed sanctions would involve measures targeting the …
In October of last year, just days before the U.S. presidential election, Head of the McCain Institute Evelyn Farkas told the Kyiv Independent that a Donald Trump victory would be the “worst-case scenario” for Ukraine.
In the months since, …
President Volodymyr Zelensky on May 19 called with Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan to congratulate him on his victory in the Romanian presidential election.
Dan, running on a centrist, pro-EU platform, won 53.6% of the vote in a presidential runoff on May …
Editor’s note: The article was updated with a confirmation from an EU official.
EU countries have agreed in principle to launch a common defense fund of 150 billion euros ($170 billion), an EU official told the Kyiv Independent on May 19.
The …
Russia’s war against Ukraine is waged not only with missiles and tanks, but with distorted myths — powerful narratives that romanticize empire, rewrite history, and embolden Russian soldiers to reduce once prosperous cities to rubble.
Those very …
A Ukrainian woman was detained in the northeastern village of Losinka near the Belarusian border on May 19 after she was found transporting five Afghan migrants who had illegally crossed into Poland, the Polish police said.
Poland has frequently …
Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has designated Amnesty International as an “undesirable organization,” effectively banning the global human rights group from operating in the country, according to a statement released on …
Lieutenant Colonel Bohdan Shevchuk was dismissed as the commander of the 59th Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces and replaced by Colonel Oleksandr Sak, Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 18, citing its sources in the brigade.
The 59th Brigade, …
Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on May 19, the Kremlin said, confirming the plan announced by Trump over the weekend.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the conversation between the two …
The 59th Separate Assault Brigade of Unmanned Systems, currently fighting on one of the most difficult sections of the Pokrovsk front, has undergone a change in command — Colonel Oleksandr…
Finland will supply heavy ammunition to Ukraine using proceeds from frozen Russian assets, the country’s Ministry of Defence said on May 19.
The move is part of a broader European Union initiative to channel profits from immobilized Russian assets …
Russian authorities have detained nine residents of Stavropol Krai, accusing them of plotting an attack on police officers during May 9 celebrations on behalf of a “terrorist group,” the Federal Security Service (FSB) said on May 19.
Eight …
The French Foreign Ministry on May 18 refuted insinuations by Telegram CEO Pavel Durov that Paris sought to restrict “conservative voices” in Romania ahead of a key presidential vote.
Durov, the Russian-born founder of the Telegram …
Russian forces launched attacks across Ukraine over the past 24 hours, killing at least two civilians and injuring at least 13 others in multiple regions, local officials said on May 19.
Ukrainian air defenses shot down 41 of the 112 Russian attack …
Editor’s note: This is a developing story.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has destroyed a Russian radar system and warehouse facilities located on gas production platforms in the Black Sea using a coordinated drone strike, the agency said …
Around 10,000 people rallied in Hungary’s capital on May 18 to protest a controversial bill that critics say would limit free expression and mimic Russia’s restrictive “foreign agent” law, the Associated Press reported.
The demonstration …
Australian authorities have begun loading the first of the 49 decommissioned Ukraine-bound Abrams tanks onto a cargo ship despite continued private objections from U.S. officials, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported on May 19. …
Russia has lost 974,770 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on May 19.
The number includes 1,040 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the …
President Volodymyr Zelensky and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met in Rome on May 18 to discuss defense support for Ukraine, cooperation within the Coalition of the Willing, and increased pressure on Russia.
The two leaders discussed …
