Here's what you helped us achieve last week
Dear Kyiv Independent community members,
Thank you for your continued support. This week we announced the third documentary from our War Crimes Investigations Unit "Faces of Torture," which exposes the torture committed against Ukrainian prisoners of war, held captive in the Olenivka prison.
The documentary will premier on our YouTube channel on Nov. 28. You will be able to discuss it at our next community event – a Q&A with the head of the War Crimes Investigations Unit Yevheniia Motorevska (the author of the film), war crimes reporter Danylo Mokryk, and editor-in-chief Olga Rudenko. It will take place on Dec. 7 in order to give everyone adequate time to watch the film in advance. You can register and submit your questions here.
We'd also like to welcome the 139 new members who joined us this week, and we'd like to say thank you to our ambassadors who have been helping us spread the word about the Kyiv Independent. Having a community of over 10,000 members means we can be financially sustainable without having to rely on a wealthy owner – which means we can stay independent. Thank you for standing with us.
Here are some highlights from the Kyiv Independent over the last week:
We reported on the 10 year anniversary of the EuroMaidan Revolution. Kate Tsurkan's story looks at how Ukrainian identity has evolved since the Revolution of Dignity, including strengthening of civil society and breaking away from the Russian empire. Daria Shulzhenko's article follows six prominent EuroMaidan activists who went on to fight against the Russian invasion.
One of our most popular stories this week was how Bulgaria's Soviet stockpiles and large defense industry may be key to Ukraine's success. Asami Terajima's story explains why a growing number of Bulgarians support Ukraine, despite the influence of Russian propaganda in Bulgaria.
We interviewed European Council President Charles Michel, who said "I don't think this counteroffensive had failed," due to the progress Ukraine has made in the Black Sea and on the left side of the Dnipro River.
We also interviewed historian Serhii Plokhy, who said that "the better we prepare for the long war, the sooner it will end," as 2024 may become a decisive year in the war.
We wrote about the Dutch elections and how the far-right win might impact aid for Ukraine. The election of Geert Wilders and his Party of Freedom – one of the few Dutch political parties calling for ending military support to Ukraine – secured 37 of 150 seats in parliament. Elsa Court's article explains how this might shift the Netherlands' friendly stance toward Ukraine.
We covered the fight to de-Russify Ukrainian sign language. Alexander Khrebet's story explains how Ukraine's deaf community is actively decolonizing Ukrainian sign language – something that was almost entirely done away with during the Soviet era, as Ukrainian signs and finger spellings were replaced with Russian ones – and reclaiming their linguistic heritage.
Episode 35 of "This Week in Ukraine" is about the Defense Ministry's recent overhaul. Host Anastasiia Lapatina and reporter Igor Kossov sit down to discuss the wave of personnel replacements inside Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and the military, with your questions starting at 22:20.
This week Belarus Weekly looks at how the country is gearing up for elections in February 2024 – the first since the fraudulent elections three years ago which triggered mass protests and the brutal regime crackdown, though experts are under no illusion that these elections will be free or fair.
Thank you for standing by our side as we bring independent, locally-sourced news about Ukraine to the world.