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Kyiv denies reports that Trump, Musk have restored Starlink speeds in Ukraine

22 October 2026 at 20:17
"Overall, nothing has changed anywhere," a Ukrainian official told the Kyiv Independent on Oct. 22. Starlink's speed cap of 161 kilometers per hour remains in effect, the official said.

In war between Russia and Ukraine, United States is first to surrender, but Americans still stand with Ukraine

Got an opinion on anything you've read in the Kyiv Independent? Send it to letters@kyivindependent.com — your letter may appear in our Letters section.

Mark Cary, United States member

I vividly remember when the Soviet Union collapsed. I was in my second year in college studying

Stephen Hubbard's son: 'It’s tragic when family members are torn apart' by Russian captivity

22 October 2026 at 18:56

For years, Father Joseph Coleman had little ability to influence what happened to his father, Stephen Hubbard, an American retiree imprisoned in Russia after being captured in Izium, a city in Ukraine’s Kharkiv Oblast occupied by Russian forces in 2022.

Hubbard, 74, was sentenced to nearly seven years

Ukraine strikes Russian electronic warfare station, General Staff says

22 October 2026 at 17:54
The electronic warfare station was hit near the village of Gulevka in Russia's Bryansk Oblast. According to the General Staff, targeting Russian electronic warfare systems improves Ukraine's ability to effectively deploy drones.

Russia sentences 77-year-old Crimean activist to 18 years over alleged plot against Moscow's proxy

22 October 2026 at 17:45
"Volodymyr Ananiev is the oldest Crimean political prisoner. He suffers from vision problems and issues with his spine, muscles, kidneys, and legs, and walks with a cane," the Crimean Tatar Resource Center said.

EU responds to Trump diesel deal with new Russia energy sanctions

22 October 2026 at 17:13
A key focus of the latest proposed sanctions listings is Russia's oil processing, refining, and exporting capacity, with 31 listings spanning the breadth of Russia, from St. Petersburg to Sakhalin.

What Russians are told — and not told — about Ukrainian strikes

22 October 2026 at 17:09

On the night of Sept. 12, Ukrainian drones attacked Taganrog. Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) reported hits on an FPV drone production facility, two drone storage sites, a Pantsir air defense system, and a radar.

Local authorities, as usual, listed something else: 16 commercial buildings, five cars, a football

Just hours after being bombed, we asked people in Kyiv about Witkoff's praise of Putin

22 October 2026 at 16:20

On Oct. 21, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff gushingly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for being a "humanitarian."

Just a few hours later, Kyiv once again came under a fresh barrage of devastating Russian missiles, killing at least one person and injuring over 20.

"We thought

On Borrowed Time: Ukraine's Economy in the War's Fifth Winter – KI Insights monthly briefing

22 October 2026 at 15:42

Ukraine is heading into 2027 with a rising fiscal gap. Growth forecasts have been cut, inflation is rising, and the need for external financing seems to just keep going up. The economy is being squeezed by a labor market drained by mobilization and emigration, energy infrastructure has been decimated, and

Germany arrests Ukrainian national suspected of spying for Russia

22 October 2026 at 14:26
The suspect allegedly collected relevant information in connection with Russia's war against Ukraine, including on the production of armored vehicles, ammunition, and explosives, as well as on military personnel and facilities on NATO's eastern flank.

Inside the institution where Ukraine races to counter Russia's evolving drones

22 October 2026 at 14:04

In a government office, researchers of drones and electronic warfare gather around a small metal device recovered from a Russian Geran drone. Its purpose —  to measure the Earth’s magnetic field for navigation.

"This is the most recent component we found, about a week or two

Ukraine's court eases restrictions on ex-minister charged in major corruption case

22 October 2026 at 12:30
Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court extended the other obligations of Herman Halushchenko, a former justice minister implicated in a major graft case, for two months.

Ukraine repatriates 252 bodies that Russia claims belong to Ukrainian soldiers

22 October 2026 at 11:52
During previous repatriations, Russia at times returned the bodies of its own soldiers to Kyiv, with Ukrainian officials alleging the practice may have been aimed at avoiding compensation payments to Russian families or reflected a "negligent attitude toward their own people."

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