We reported on press freedom in Ukraine: Here's what you helped us achieve this week

Dear Kyiv Independent community members,

We hope your weeks have been going well. We are currently working on some field reports – pictured above are videographer Olena Zashko and reporter Francis Farrell today near Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine.

We'd also like to give a warm welcome to our 66 new members this week! Thank you for your continued support!

Here are some highlights from the Kyiv Independent this week:

• We reported on press freedom in Ukraine. Dinara Khalilova's article takes an in-depth look at reports of continued pressure on Ukrainian journalists, as well as censorship attempts as previous cases remain unsolved.

• Our most popular story last week was about Russia's increasing tank losses, which now reportedly top 8,000 since the start of the full-scale invasion. Chris York's article explains the accuracy of Ukraine's estimates, how many tanks Russia has left, and if they can manufacture more.

• We reported on Ukraine's partial withdrawal from Chasiv Yar, after months-long grinding and slow attacks. Chris York and Martin Fornusek explain what the move actually means – as withdrawing from the Kanal neighborhood has no strategic consequences – and what happens next.

• Another popular article was Igor Kossov's article which explains how despite making gains on land, Russia has lost control over the Black Sea, as Ukraine uses combined drone attacks to decimate Russia's Black Sea Feet, a strategy that's essentially the "David to Russia's Goliath."

• We debunked a Tucker Carlson lie that Ukraine was persecuting Russian churches in Ukraine. Nate Ostiller breaks down the original piece of disinformation that was spread – a video showing burning churches – and explains how the Moscow Patriarchate remains linked to Russia and its role in spreading propaganda.

• We published an op-ed on the Fourth of July about the importance of not giving into war fatigue. Our social media manager Anna Belokur writes that while she's proud to be an American, "One of the hardest things I’ve ever had to learn is how well our politicians are able to weaponize our fatigue and turn it into apathy at best, and conspiracy at worst," and explains the importance of keeping Ukraine armed.

• This week Belarus Weekly looks at increased nuclear threats from Belarus, as its State Border Committee made an unsubstantiated claim that Ukraine was moving additional military forces to its borders with Belarus, intensifying cross-border tensions.

• Join us next week on Discord for a Q&A with our editor-in-chief Olga Rudenko. On Thursday, July 11 at 7 p.m. Kyiv time, Olga will be answering your questions about our work at the Kyiv Independent and how editorial decisions are made. We'd love for you to join us! If you're not yet on community Discord server, you can follow these steps linking your Patreon and Discord accounts and gain immediate access.

Thank you for standing by our side as we bring independent, locally sourced news about Ukraine to the world.