Kiev Ukraine

Amid Russia's full scale invasion of Kiev, Ukraine needs about $14.1 billion this year to implement rapid recovery in war-affected areas

The program will be divided into two phases. In the first, lasting 12-18 months, Ukraine will take measures to strengthen fiscal, external, price and financial stability

Nine errors from Moscow, and one thing Kyiv got right

In the final hours before the Russian onslaught, a last grasp at peace. Russian troops would soon pour across Ukraine's borders and Russian missiles would fill Ukrainian skies, taking Ukrainian lives in the biggest air, sea and ground assault in Europe since World War II. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy still appealed, on war's brink, for reason to prevail. Staring intently into the camera in a last-ditch, dead-of-night, video-recorded plea against the invasion, Zelenskyy warned Russia that the consequences would be an abundance of pain, filth, blood and death. War is a huge calamity," Zelenskyy said, in what proved to be one of his last outings in a suit before his switch to military-style casual wear. This calamity carries a huge cost in every meaning of this word. The date was February 24, 2022 cataclysmic for Ukraine, course-changing for Russia, history-shaping for the wider world. Every hour of every day since has proven those words to be right. As milestones go,

Russia is mustering its military might in the Luhansk region of Ukraine, officials said Wednesday, in what Kyiv suspects is preparation for an offensive as the first anniversary of Moscow's invasion approaches. Also Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government continued its crackdown on alleged corruption with the dismissal of several high-ranking officials, prominent lawmaker David Arakhamia said. Zelenskyy was elected in 2019 on an anti-establishment and anti-corruption platform in a country long gripped by graft. The latest allegations come as Western allies are channeling billions of dollars to help Kyiv fight Moscow and as the Ukrainian government is introducing reforms so it can potentially join the European Union one day. Ukraine's Security Service said on the Telegram messaging app that an operation on Wednesday targeted corrupt officials who undermine the country's economy and the stable functioning of the defense-industrial complex. It identified one as a former .

Ukraine won support Tuesday from Baltic nations and Poland in its quest to obtain Western fighter jets, but there were no signs that larger nations like the U.S. and Britain have changed their stance of refusing to provide warplanes to Kyiv after almost a year of battling Russia's invading forces. "Ukraine needs fighter jets ... missiles, tanks. We need to act," Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said in the Latvian capital of Riga at a news conference with his Baltic and Polish colleagues. Those countries, which lie on NATO's eastern flank, feel especially threatened by Russia and have been the leading advocates for providing military aid. Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov held talks with his French counterpart, saying they did not discuss specific fighter jets, but they did talk about aviation "platforms" to help Ukraine's ground-to-air defense. "I don't know how quick it will be, this response from Western allies" to Kyiv's requests for fighter jets, Reznikov said

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Saturday the U.K. will provide Challenger 2 tanks and other artillery systems to support Ukraine. Sunak's Downing Street office said in a statement that he made the pledge after speaking to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Saturday. It did not say when the tanks were to be delivered or how many. British media has reported that four British Army Challenger 2 main battle tanks will be sent to eastern Europe immediately, with eight more to follow shortly after. They did not cite sources.

Russia deployed multiple drones overnight to attack parts of Ukraine and dozens were shot down, Ukrainian officials said Monday. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Monday morning that 40 exploding drones headed for Kyiv overnight, according to air defence forces, and all of them were destroyed. Klitschko said 22 drones were destroyed over Kyiv, three in the outlying Kyiv region and 15 over neighbouring provinces. An infrastructure facility in the capital was damaged and an explosion occurred in one city district, the mayor said. It wasn't immediately clear whether that was caused by drones or other munitions. In the outlying Kyiv region, which was also attacked with drones, a critical infrastructure object and residential buildings were hit, Gov. Oleksiy Kuleba said. Seven drones were shot down over the southern Mykolaiv region, according to Gov. Vitali Kim, and three more were shot down in the southeastern Dnipropetrovsk region, Gov. Valentyn Reznichenko said.

According to the Kyiv region's Governor Oleksiy Kuleba, the attack began shortly before midnight and the Iranian-made Shahed drones were "targeting critical infrastructure facilities"

Ukraine's Air Force command said it had destroyed 45 Iranian-made Shahed drones overnight

Zelenskyy, recalling some of the most dramatic moments and victories of the war, filled his emotional 17-minute video message with footage of Russia's attacks on the country

The attack reportedly has damaged homes, as well as playgrounds, according to the Kyiv city military administration

Russia's foreign minister on Tuesday warned anew Ukraine that it must demilitarize, threatening further military action and falsely accusing Kyiv and the West of fuelling the war that started with Moscow's invasion. Sergey Lavrov said Ukraine must remove any military threat to Russia otherwise the Russian army (will) solve the issue." His comments also reflected persistent unfounded claims by the Kremlin that Ukraine and its Western allies were responsible for the 10-month war, which has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions. Russia launched the war on Feb. 24, alleging a threat to its security and a plot to bring NATO to its doorstep. Lavrov reiterated on Tuesday that the West was feeding the war in Ukraine to weaken Russia, and said that it depends on Kyiv and Washington how long the conflict will last. As for the duration of the conflict, the ball is on the side of the (Kyiv) regime and Washington that stands behind its back, Lavrov told the state Tass news

Russian shells pummelled the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson on Saturday, killing at least 10 people and injuring 55 in the city that Moscow's troops were forced to abandon last month. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, just back from his quick trip to Washington, posted photos of the wreckage on his social media accounts. He noted the destruction came as Ukrainians were beginning Christmas celebrations that for many Orthodox Christians will culminate in the traditional celebration on January 7. This is not sensitive content it's the real life of Kherson, Zelenskyy tweeted. The images showed cars on fire, bodies on the street and building windows blown out. Yaroslav Yanushevych, the governor of the Kherson region, said in televised remarks that the number of people killed in the latest shelling of the city has risen from seven to 10. He added that 55 people were wounded, 18 of them in grave condition, including a 6-year-old child. Saturday marks 10 months since the star

Ukrainians welcomed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy back from a wartime visit to the United States, hailing his trip as successful while Russian officials said on Thursday that the visit only fuelled the conflict. The US has announced a new USD 1.8 billion military aid package, including supplies of the Patriot air defense systems, the most powerful such weapons to be delivered to Ukraine yet. They say they may send Patriot there, fine, we will crack the Patriot too, Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters, adding that the deliveries will only extend the fighting. Those who do it do so in vain, it only drags out the conflict. Ukranians saw their president's trip as a rousing success. It's an historical visit, the first one since the war began, said Illia Shvachko, a 32-year-old computer specialist in Kyiv. Getting weapons helps. Putin reaffirmed that Russia is ready for talks with Ukraine on ending the conflict. One way or another, all armed conflicts end with talks, Putin

President since 2019, Zelenskiy has made it a point of his leadership to stay in his battered country, close to the people and soldiers fighting in a war

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met Tuesday with troops in the eastern city of Bakhmut, the scene of some of the most intense combat since Russia invaded the country, praising their courage, resilience and strength" as artillery boomed in the background. For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed the courage and self-denial of his forces in Ukraine but he did so at a ceremony in an opulent and glittering hall at the Kremlin in Moscow, not on the battlefield. Both leaders sought to build morale as the stalemated conflict grinds through its 10th month and winter sets in. Zelenskky met with military personnel in a dimly lit building possibly a disused factory in Bakhmut, which he has called the hottest spot on the entire front line, his office said. The city, about 600 kilometers (380 miles) east of Kyiv, has remained in Ukrainian hands, thwarting Moscow's goal of capturing the rest of Donetsk province and the entire Donbas industrial region. The Ukrainian leader

On the streets of Kyiv, Fyodor Dostoevsky is on the way out. Andy Warhol is on the way in. Ukraine is accelerating efforts to erase the vestiges of Soviet and Russian influence from its public spaces by pulling down monuments and renaming hundreds of streets to honour its own artists, poets, soldiers, independence leaders and others including heroes of this year's war. Following Moscow's invasion on Feb. 24 that has killed or injured untold numbers of civilians and soldiers and pummeled buildings and infrastructure, Ukraine's leaders have shifted a campaign that once focused on dismantling its Communist past into one of de-Russification. Streets that honoured revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin or the Bolshevik Revolution were largely already gone; now Russia, not Soviet legacy, is the enemy. It's part punishment for crimes meted out by Russia, and part affirmation of a national identity by honouring Ukrainian notables who have been mostly overlooked. Russia, through the Soviet .

Ukrainian authorities reported explosions in at least three cities on Friday, saying Russia has launched a major missile attack on energy facilities and infrastructure. Local authorities on social media reported explosions in the capital, Kyiv, southern Kryvyi Rih and northeastern Kharkiv as authorities sounded air raid alarms across the country warning of a new devastating barrage of the Russian strikes that have occurred intermittently since mid-October. Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram that the city is without electricity. The strikes targeting energy infrastructure have been part of a new Russian strategy to try to freeze Ukrainians into submission after several key battlefield losses by Russian forces in recent months.

The mayor of Kyiv is reporting multiple explosions in the Ukrainian capital on Wednesday, the first such time in weeks during Russia's ongoing war against the country. Vitali Klitschko wrote in a post on Telegram that there were explosions in a central district of the capital that is home to many government agencies and buildings. He said municipal teams were in place and more details were expected.