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The kremlin is playing a "Minsk-3" game: Serhiy Harmash on the Istanbul negotiations, memorandums, and putin’s tactics
The kremlin is playing a "Minsk-3" game: Serhiy Harmash on the Istanbul negotiations, memorandums, and putin’s tactics
It can be said that the negotiations are not being conducted for results, but rather for the sake of one spectator sitting in the Oval Office. Both sides are interested in his favor, and each is trying to gain certain tactical preferences — whether it be prisoner exchanges or informational and political bonuses.
Diary of an 18-year-old volunteer’s mother: Baibak is “200”. I can’t sleep
Diary of an 18-year-old volunteer’s mother: Baibak is “200”. I can’t sleep
The instructors told us before deployment not to get too attached to each other, ‘cause many of us will be ‘200’, maybe all...
“No grounds for peace exist. And even putin is showing that”: military expert Serhii Hrabskyi on the situation at the front, negotiations, and mobilization
“No grounds for peace exist. And even putin is showing that”: military expert Serhii Hrabskyi on the situation at the front, negotiations, and mobilization
So all this talk about an imminent ceasefire is meaningless. Both putin through his actions and Ukraine through its resistance show that the situation is not yet ripe for any negotiations. Moreover for us, peace negotiations, as practice shows, can be deadly dangerous, because putin uses any pause in the war to his advantage...
Putin is trying to seize the initiative and calls for negotiations in Istanbul: what’s behind it
Putin is trying to seize the initiative and calls for negotiations in Istanbul: what’s behind it
What’s behind putin’s “Istanbul initiative”, why the russian dictator chose Turkey specifically, and whether there are real grounds for a peace process now...
Economic reservation from mobilization: case closed?
Economic reservation from mobilization: case closed?
In recent months, the topic of economic reservation from mobilization has practically faded away. While last year members of parliament, government officials, and even the president discussed possible parameters and details, today this topic is barely mentioned...
Trump’s plan to end the war: chances of implementation and next steps
Trump’s plan to end the war: chances of implementation and next steps
Trump needs a success in this area, and he will work on it. He understands that pressuring Ukraine is useless since neither the government nor society responds to or acknowledges his pressure. So maybe he’ll start putting pressure on russia...
Everything is “ownerless” and everything is mine: A review of media from occupied Donbas
Everything is “ownerless” and everything is mine: A review of media from occupied Donbas
Last week, media in the occupied Donbas explained how to carve up property stolen from Ukrainians and kept assuring locals that, once the choicest assets are turned into “federal” property, life will finally get better… It suddenly turned out that the non‑government‑controlled parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts contain huge amounts of “ownerless” real estate: industrial plants, farmland, shopping malls…
The russian myth of the "revival of Donbas". Construction boom or construction noise
The russian myth of the "revival of Donbas". Construction boom or construction noise
The “liberation” of Donbas, which russian propaganda has tirelessly repeated since February 2022, turned into total destruction of everything the occupier set foot on. No surprise that amid the bombed-out Ukrainian towns and villages, a myth had to be quickly implanted in the public consciousness: “russians don’t abandon their own and everything will be rebuilt better than before”...
The most important thing is not to compare! Luhansk journal
The most important thing is not to compare! Luhansk journal
The locals are completely bewildered. How were they allowed to return? It's not even about them, it's about us. How are we supposed to work with them and pretend everything is normal?
Defender of Mariupol Vladyslav Ivakhov: among the jailers were frenzied sadists
Defender of Mariupol Vladyslav Ivakhov: among the jailers were frenzied sadists
I would kill them. Or first, I’d do to them exactly what they did to us, put them on trial, and then… I’d kill them anyway. One of my comrades is still in captivity. I know exactly what he’s going through every second in those prison dungeons...
Putin’s response on the truce: was it a “yes” or a “no”?
Putin’s response on the truce: was it a “yes” or a “no”?

That was a “yes” to Trump but a “no” to Trump’s proposal for a quick truce. Yes, 25 years in power have made putin a skilled diplomat, teaching him how to say “no” while pronouncing “yes”. And in doing so, leaving hope for a “yes” without giving a reason to react to his “no”...

Serhiy Harmash: The question is not whether putin will agree to a truce, but why he would agree to it
Serhiy Harmash: The question is not whether putin will agree to a truce, but why he would agree to it
Why would putin publicly humiliate Trump by refusing when he could simply agree, present himself as a peacemaker, and then break the ceasefire anyway, while blaming Ukraine for it?
Serhiy Hrabsky: The cessation of hostilities today means catastrophe for Ukraine and Europe
Serhiy Hrabsky: The cessation of hostilities today means catastrophe for Ukraine and Europe
The situation is further complicated by the fact that we are moving out of the densely built-up urban areas of Donbas. In these open fields, maneuvering is difficult. It is one thing to fight the enemy in an area where we have been fortifying our defenses for years and know the terrain well, but if the russians break out into operational freedom with air support—where they have superiority—and employ large numbers of tanks, which they can deploy, they may be able to advance much farther...
The agreement of disagreement. How long can Kyiv keep Trump on the "hook" of vanity?
The agreement of disagreement. How long can Kyiv keep Trump on the "hook" of vanity?
Therefore, no illusions are needed: this Agreement does not guarantee us any benefits from the U.S., nor "colonial plundering", nor, even more so, a quick end to the war...
If America abandons us. A frontline perspective
If America abandons us. A frontline perspective
There’s a reason this war is called the "first drone war"—it means that the majority of strikes are carried out by drones of various types. And most of these drones are not from the U.S...
Political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko: The resonant Munich-2025, China's role, and peace negotiations
Political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko: The resonant Munich-2025, China's role, and peace negotiations
There is a risk—one that many are already discussing—that the West, as a unified geopolitical entity, may become a thing of the past. Europe and the U.S. could, so to speak, become separate geopolitical actors...
"Unfavorable conditions". The running water supply situation in Donetsk has sharply worsened
"Unfavorable conditions". The running water supply situation in Donetsk has sharply worsened
The miracle didn't happen. The water promised by the "DNR" leader Pushilin did not flow into Donetsk homes this morning...
Hryvnia: a test of strength
Hryvnia: a test of strength
It is clear that under such conditions—where the national currency is held up solely by foreign financial injections—it is difficult to speak of its stability or predict any "bright future"...
"Other facets of life...". Luhansk journal
"Other facets of life...". Luhansk journal
A friend of mine, after ten years of waiting for Ukraine to return to Luhansk, has revived his business in the "capital". Not directly—he's not allowed to enter the "republic"—but through former subordinates. His retail chain once had a foreign name, but now it's been rebranded with a traditional russian one, currently in vogue...
Elections in the de-occupied territories: a paradigm shift
Elections in the de-occupied territories: a paradigm shift
As we can see, the conditions for holding elections in de-occupied territories before and after 2022 are fundamentally different. This means the election paradigm for these territories must also change...
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