Explaining Ukraine

Russia continues to bomb Ukrainian ports, hitting Romanian territory in the process. In the meantime, Erdogan ends up unable to convince Putin to revive the Grain Deal. This is our weekly roundup of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasymchuk, analysts and journalists at UkraineWorld,...

The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue their gradual movement towards Tokmak in the country’s south. In the meantime, Ukraine expands the range of domestically produced weapons, both by own efforts and together with foreign defense companies who open factories in Ukraine. This is our weekly roundup of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld...

The Armed Forces of Ukraine have reportedly broken through the first line of Russia’s defense in the south. Meanwhile, Ukraine further strengthened the F-16 coalition and organized the third Crimean platform summit to discuss the peninsula’s reintegration. This is our weekly roundup of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by...

Ukraine’s armed forces continue its counteroffensive, advancing deeper into enemy lines in the south. In the meantime, Denmark and the Netherlands committed to delivering 61 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. This is our weekly roundup of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasymchuk, analyst...

Russia continues targeting Ukraine’s peaceful cities as well as industrial and military infrastructure. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s counteroffensive is ongoing, with Kyiv attempting to conceptualize its partners’ support into bilateral security agreements. This is our weekly roundup of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym...

How can we think about imperialism and colonialism today? What can Ukrainians and Indians tell each other in this respect? How can we try to look for horizontal connections between formerly colonized nations? In this episode, Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, and chief editor of UkraineWorld, speaks to Aman Sethi, an Indian journalist and writer, former editor-in-chief of...

David Rieff is a famous intellectual and war correspondent. He is the author of many books, including Slaughterhouse: Bosnia and the Failure of the West; A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis; At the Point of a Gun: Democratic Dreams and Armed Intervention; The Reproach of Hunger: Food, Justice, and Money in the Twenty-First Century; In Praise of Forgetting: The Ironies of Historical Memo...

Yaryna Chornohuz is a Ukrainian poet who became a soldier to defend her homeland. She is a paramedic and a reconnaissance scout who went to the frontline before Russia’s full-scale invasion. Before her military experience, she was an activist organizing protests in support of the Ukrainian language and culture, and against capitulation to Russia. While on the frontline, she wrote two books of poet...

What does it mean to live in Ukraine for over a decade, report on Ukraine’s revolution, the annexation of Crimea, and both episodes of Russia’s war against Ukraine? What does it mean to be a foreign reporter in Ukraine, and yet have a deep personal connection with the country? This episode is a conversation with Christopher Miller, the lead correspondent in Ukraine for the Financial Times. Miller...

Ukraine’s counteroffensive remains underway, with Ukraine’s armed forces liberating several villages in the East and in the South. Ukraine is also blowing up more arms depots located in Crimea and in the Russian rear. Meanwhile, Russia has continued bombing peaceful Ukrainian cities, with a particular emphasis on Odesa this week. Among other things, Russia hit the UNESCO-protected parts of the cit...

What role can science play in Ukraine’s victory and recovery? What problems has Ukrainian science faced over the past decades, and how can they be overcome? What are the central science and technology needs on the frontline? Could these needs serve as a boost to Ukraine’s future technological development? Guest: Yury Gogotsi, a Ukrainian scientist in the field of material chemistry and professor a...

Russia withdraws from the grain deal and puts global food security at risk. At the same time, it started regular shelling of the Ukrainian port cities, including Ukrainian grain depositories. This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko, analyst and journalist at UkraineWorld, to di...

The NATO Summit in Vilnius: was it a complete disappointment for Ukraine, or was there a bright side? While experts are analyzing the results, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are gradually moving forward using changed tactics. Russia continues violating international law by terrorizing Ukrainian civilians and putting the world under the threat of hunger by refusing to extend the grain deal. This is ou...

Russian propaganda is one of the foundations of this war. Are Russian narratives still widespread in the world today? What are the most toxic ones? Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, speaks to Nina Kuryata, a Ukrainian journalist and former chief editor of the Ukrainian service of the BBC. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the l...

What is fascism? Why does the fascist danger exist today, even within democratic states? Is Russia fascist? – Jason Stanely, American philosopher and author of books including How Fascism Works, How Propaganda Works”, is the guest of this episode of Thinking in Dark Times, a podcast series by UkraineWorld.org. Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, and chief editor of...

This episode is about Victoria Amelina, a Ukrainian writer, and our friend, killed by a Russian missile. Victoria Amelina, a Ukrainian writer and human rights activist, passed away on July 1st, 2023 after she was severely injured by a Russian missile strike on Kramatorsk, Eastern part of Ukraine, Donetsk region, on June 27th. In this episode we will try to tell you her story. And to explain why sh...

As the world marks the 500th day of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the Kremlin continues shelling Ukraine’s peaceful cities, while Ukraine awaits strategic decisions from the upcoming NATO summit This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko, analyst and journalist at UkraineWorld, to...

The failed mutiny by the PMC “Wagner” and its leader Prigozhin exposed flaws in Russian leadership. Despite internal problems, Russia continues to jeopardize the safety of Zaporizhzhia NPP. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Army continues to liberate its land, and its international allies stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine. Russia committed another cruel war crime in Kramatorsk. This is our weekly ove...

What are the consequences of the Wagner “revolt” against the Kremlin? Will it weaken Putin’s power? What is the future of Russian criminal paramilitary groups like Wagner? Listen to our Twitter space with Petro Burkovskyi and Maria Zolkina, analysts at the Ilko Kocheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation, a Ukrainian think tank. Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, ch...

Mykola, the acting head of Nechvolodivka, a village near Kupyansk in Kharkiv Oblast, was twice kidnapped and tortured by the Russian occupiers. We went to his village and spoke to him and his family. In this episode, we tell you the story of him and his family’s story - and try to look at the patterns of Russian cruelty during the occupation. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and...

While Ukraine is gradually moving forward in its counteroffensive, Russia keeps attacking Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles almost every night, and is blackmailing the whole world with the threat of a nuclear disaster. Even though the war rages on, Ukraine is already planning reconstruction, and discussed its plans with international partners at this week’s Ukraine Recovery Conference in L...

Another Rammstein meeting delivers on further support to Ukraine while the latter achieves its first successes in the counteroffensive. In the meantime, a delegation of African leaders embarks on a peacemaking tour to Ukraine and Russia. This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko...

Every war is different, yet they share a lot of similarities. Bosnia, Syria, Iraq, Chechnya, Ukraine - how can these wars be compared? What are the patterns of Russian actions in Chechnya and Syria which are being repeated in Ukraine? Why should we talk about evil? - Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, invites Janine di Giovanni, a prominent American...

On June 6th, Russia blew up the Kakhovka dam, causing a massive environmental catastrophe in southern Ukraine. The impact of this ecocide will last for decades. In this episode, we discuss the causes of this crime, and its consequences for Ukraine’s people, ecosystems, economy, and war effort. - Volodymyr Yermolenko, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, talks to Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasy...

In 1994, Ukraine gave up the nuclear weapons it had inherited from the Soviet Union. It was invited to sign the Budapest Memorandum with Russia, the UK, and the US, which was supposed to give Ukraine security assurances. Russia broke these assurances first in 2014, and then in 2022, by invading and occupying Ukraine. Since 1994, Ukraine has found itself in a security vacuum, which, directly or ind...