We reported on why Trump's peace plan is faltering — and the front line reality: Here's what you helped us cover this week.

Dear Kyiv Independent community members,

Thank you for your continued support.

To start with some good news, this week, Kyiv Independent reached an amazing milestone — we now have 25,000 members in our community.

Your support will enable us to do even more in 2026 — including more front-line reports, more investigations, and more reporting from Ukraine to the world. It's thanks to you that we don't have to rely on a billionaire owner, advertisers, government funding, or anything that could jeopardize our editorial independence.

We want to extend a warm welcome to the 597 new members who joined us this week! It's truly incredible to see this level of support for our work — and especially at such a critical time.

We're proud to be a reader-funded newsroom. We wouldn't be here without you.

Here's what you helped us accomplish at the Kyiv Independent this week:

• We broke down why Trump's proposed peace plan is unlikely to end Russia's war in Ukraine. As President Trump ramps up pressure for a negotiated settlement on Russia’s war, there are few signals that this push can actually produce results.

• We published a profile of Dan Driscoll, the U.S. army secretary now leading Washington's negotiations with Ukraine. Martin Fornusek and Dmytro Basmat explain how Driscoll became Trump’s envoy, despite having no prior diplomatic experience.

• We reported on the contentious troop cap in Trump's peace plan. Asami Terajima's article examines the various arguments for a troop cap and whether such limits are even feasible.

• We сovered Russia’s slow capture of Pokrovsk and the looming threat to the nearby city of Myrnohrad. Francis Farrell’s article details how Ukrainian forces maintain a presence in parts of Pokrovsk, Russian forces have almost overrun the city, and Myrnohrad faces the risk of Russian encirclement.

• We reported on how drone warfare is reshaping the battlefield and complicating efforts to map Ukraine's front line. Kollen Post explains how Russia's Rubikon front-line drone system has eroded Ukraine's early UAV advantage, while Francis Farrell shows how drone warfare is making the front line more difficult to map. 

• One widely read story was our investigation into secret visits to Moscow by China's military. Alisa Yurchenko's investigation reveals how dozens of Chinese officers and defense industry employees quietly traveled to Russia to negotiate arms deals, purchase equipment, and inspect weaponry amid the war in Ukraine. We also explained how these covert contracts deepen Beijing-Moscow defense cooperation and risk violating international sanctions.

• We covered the Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever’s opposition to lending frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. Economics reporter Luca Léry Moffat wrote about Ukraine’s reaction, highlighting how officials see de Wever’s skepticism as a major challenge to funding Kyiv’s budget amid the ongoing war.

• We also covered Ukraine’s growing youth exodus. Business reporter Dominic Culverwell details how young Ukrainians are increasingly quitting their jobs and leaving the country after Kyiv lifted the ban on men aged 18–22 traveling abroad. We also explained how this shift is creating labor shortages at home while aiming to offer young men access to education and opportunities abroad.

• We reviewed Russian author Dmitry Bykov’s “VZ: Volodymyr Zelensky and the Making of a Nation.” Kate Tsurkan critiques the latest book tracing Zelensky’s journey, while explaining Bykov's own fraught position, having fled Russia in 2022 and now facing criminal cases and a “foreign agent” designation from the Kremlin.

• We interviewed U.S. Senator Peter Welch on Trump’s peace plan. Martin Fornusek spoke with Senator Welch, who opposes the peace plan and argues for tougher sanctions and stronger military aid. Watch the video here.

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