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Opinion: Poland's democratic rebirth pains
WARSAW – In October, Polish voters demonstrated that even extremely unequal elections against authoritarian incumbents can be won. The opposition’s victory, and the country’s subsequent re-democratization, may hold useful lessons for like-minded forces in Hungary, Turkey, and elsewhere. In Poland, the defeated populist leader, Jarosław Kaczyński of Law and
Francis Farrell: Ukraine could still lose the war. Let’s get some things straight
This November has been a particularly grim one here in Ukraine. Over the past month, two media sensations in big Western magazines served as a sober wake-up call about the state of the war. First, Simon Shuster’s profile in TIME magazine on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s “lonely fight”
Ukraine’s victory will send a message to all dictatorships – Umerov’s speech at Ramstein
Editor’s Note: This is the speech of Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, which he delivered on Nov. 22 at the 17th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ramstein format). Defense leaders from more than 50 partner countries participated in the meeting. The Kyiv Independent publishes the speech
Opinion: Putin wants to complete Stalin’s unfinished genocide in Ukraine
People across Ukraine and around the world will light candles tomorrow in memory of the millions of Ukrainians killed in the artificial famine engineered by Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s regime in the 1930s. Known to history as the Holodomor, this man-made famine remained hidden in the Soviet shadows for
Opinion: What to do about Ukraine's brain drain
MILAN – In 1916, amid the horror of World War I, the American economist John Bates Clark made an observation that remains all too relevant. “There are effects of war which are more tragic than the economic burden it will place on future generations,” Clark noted, “and there are some that
Opinion: Russia’s ‘most dangerous philosopher’ Dugin is overrated
One of the favorite protagonists in journalistic investigations of deeper sources of Moscow’s recent foreign policies is the flamboyant Russian idealogue Alexander Dugin. Equipped with a long beard, sonorous voice, and extroverted personality, Dugin is a telegenic speaker who easily checks the box of an archetypical Russian philosopher. He
Opinion: For Ukraine, elections can wait
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made headlines when he confirmed his belief that general elections should be postponed until after Ukraine wins the war. Despite some calls from Western allies to field elections sooner rather than later, polling shows that a majority of Ukrainians agree with Zelensky’s assessment that the
Opinion: On Ukraine's medical front, fortune favors the bold
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis didn’t pull his punches earlier in November when, pouring scorn on talk of a peace agreement with Russia, he noted that the West is flirting with catastrophe by missing the opportunity to “end centuries of the Kremlin’s imperial aggression.” If we fail, he
Opinion: Will the Kremlin’s war soon expand to a second front in Georgia?
Ukraine has been wreaking havoc on Russia’s navy in the Black Sea through the use of new homemade sea drones and foreign-supplied cruise missiles. As a result of these suffocating attacks, Russia has been forced to have the bulk of its navy retreat from Sevastopol — a port that was
Opinion: Preparing for a Russian nuclear meltdown
The Wagner Group’s aborted rebellion in June, coupled with the protracted war in Ukraine, has renewed fears about the security of Russia’s nuclear arsenal. The risk of “loose nukes” or a vengeful leader going down with his finger on the trigger may seem far-fetched, but America must begin
Editorial: Thank you for 2 years of Kyiv Independent
Today, on Nov. 11, we mark two years since the founding of the Kyiv Independent. It’s been two years of relentless work and tough decisions. It’s also been two years of support from our community of readers around the world. For those who haven’t been following us
Opinion: In remembrance of a great mind who survived Russian captivity
Ihor Kozlovskyi (1954-2023) was a renowned Ukrainian writer, scholar, and theologian from Donetsk Oblast. He was captured by Russian proxies in occupied Donetsk in 2016 for his pro-Ukrainian views and subsequently subjected to torture for nearly two years in Russian captivity. He was released in December 2017. One of Ukraine's
Opinion: Russian disinformation wields influence on the battlefield
Bratislava announced the end of military aid to Ukraine on Oct. 26 following the election of the new Slovakian prime minister, Robert Fico. Fico based his campaign on strong anti-U.S. sentiments, promises to halt weapons shipments to Ukraine, and a commitment to block Kyiv’s NATO aspirations. While Slovakia
Opinion: Why the Polish elections are good news for Ukraine
The story around the Polish parliamentary elections earlier this month is one of a country at a crossroads. It was said that these were the most important elections since 1989, as a further Law and Justice (PiS) government would have cemented an increasingly illiberal system. In Western media outlets, the
Opinion: Elections and war are incompatible
Had it not been for Russia’s full-scale war, Ukrainians would have engaged in a heated political season in the lead-up to the parliamentary elections on Oct. 29, as well as the presidential elections in March of the upcoming year. Despite some voices in the West pushing for Ukraine’s
Opinion: Russia’s move to de-ratify the nuclear test ban treaty signals Putin’s aggravation with the war
At the direction of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia is moving to undo its ratification of the 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) that prohibits all nuclear weapons tests. This represents another step in the Kremlin’s effort to try to punish the United States and the West for their
Opinion: What's next for Poland?
WARSAW – This wasn’t supposed to happen. With sweeping control over state financial resources and public and local media, Poland’s populist ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), had a massive structural advantage in this month’s parliamentary election. It should have won handily and continued consolidating its illiberal, anti-democratic
Opinion: Russia’s defeat must be democracies’ goal
Proposals for peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are pointless and dangerous. The Kremlin will not offer peace in exchange for Ukrainian territories, because its goal is not territorial but the elimination of Ukraine on the way to completing Russia’s “historical mission” of destroying the “decadent West.” BERKELEY/KYIV
Opinion: It’s time to ban Russian athletes from the 2024 Olympic Games
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Oct. 12 that it would suspend the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) after it incorporated the regional sports organizations from four territories illegally annexed from Ukraine. In its statement, the IOC said the ROC’s inclusion of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia’s sports
Opinion: The geopolitics of EU enlargement
The debate surrounding the European Union’s potential expansion is no longer really about Ukraine and the western Balkans. Enlargement is now an existential question with far-reaching implications for the EU and its ability to remain a prominent player in a rapidly changing global environment. BERLIN – Where will Europe’s
Opinion: Ratcheting up the pressure on Russia's oil revenues
By declining to include funding for Ukraine as part of the recent deal to avert a government shutdown, the U.S. Congress sent a signal of encouragement to Russian President Vladimir Putin. That makes tightening the price cap on Russian oil exports all the more important. WASHINGTON, DC/CAMBRIDGE – Wars
Opinion: Are Ukraine's anti-corruption efforts at a standstill?
“Ukraine is the second-most corrupt country in Europe." "The situation with bribery has been at a standstill.” “Corruption reform doesn’t work in Ukraine.” These statements have been repeated at various international forums, by foreign officials, and by the media. But how much truth is there to these statements? In
Opinion: Can national reconciliation defeat populism?
For the U.S., Slovakia's general election may produce another unreliable allied government. But instead of turning a blind eye to such allies, as U.S. President Joe Biden has been doing with Poland, or confronting them with an uncompromising stance, the U.S. should spearhead efforts to help mend
Opinion: Slovak election results threaten Europe’s united front
Slovakia’s early parliamentary elections on Sept. 30 resulted in a clear victory for pro-Kremlin politician Robert Fico and his party, SMER. While we don’t know which parties will form the government, scenarios in which Fico is not the strongest party leader of the ruling coalition are not really
Opinion: Weakness is lethal. Why Putin invaded Ukraine and how the war must end
Editor’s Note: This is an analysis by Nataliya Bugayova, Kateryna Stepanenko, and Frederick W. Kagan for the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). This analysis was originally published by the ISW on Oct. 1, 2023, and has been republished by the Kyiv Independent with permission. Russian President Vladimir
Peter Tkacenko: Slovakia after election – If not friend, certainly not enemy of Ukraine
Robert Fico’s Direction – Social Democracy (Smer) has secured victory in the latest Slovak elections with 23% of the vote. Ex-Prime Minister Fico, who expressed dissatisfaction with his country’s support of neighboring Ukraine, has an open road to a third stint as the country’s prime minister. Yet, despite
Richard Cashman: The diaspora holds the key to shaping Ukraine policy abroad
According to the Ukrainian government, more than 8 million Ukrainians have left the country since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, with around 6 million currently in EU member states and approximately 800,000 in the United States. Canada’s already large Ukrainian community has also expanded significantly. The
Svitlana Romanko: UN climate summit offers chance to confront Russian fossil fuels, climate crisis
As world leaders gather for meetings at the UN’s Climate Ambition Summit, the urgency of addressing the climate crisis cannot be overstated. At the same time, we must confront Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, where innocent lives are being lost daily. Over-dependence on Russian fossil fuels has already
Oleg Sukhov: The West lacks political will to ensure Ukraine’s victory
As President Volodymyr Zelensky makes a long-awaited trip to the U.S., the White House is set to announce a new $325 million military aid package. According to reports, it will again be missing the much-desired ATACMS long-range missiles, which Kyiv says may turn the tide of Russia’s ongoing
David Kirichenko: The continued menace of Russian disinformation
The rise in Russia's disinformation efforts continues to be an ever-growing concern for Western nations. This uptick is notably concentrated on Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine, aiming to weaken Western backing for the country. These strategic propaganda operations are far from isolated events. They represent a broader pattern of information
Yaroslav Zhelezniak: Ukraine’s economy weekly, Sept. 18
Editor’s Note: The following is the first issue of “Ukraine’s economy weekly,” a weekly digest by Yaroslav Zhelezniak, the first deputy head of the parliamentary committee for finance, tax, and custom policy. The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the authors and do not purport
Ana Palacio: Rule-making in a divided world
MADRID – If anyone had lingering doubts about the fractured state of global rule-making, they should now be dispelled. The just-concluded G20 summit in New Delhi attracted as much attention for who was not there – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping – as for the discussions among those who
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