Vue normale

Reçu aujourd’hui — 20 août 2025Ukraine
  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • New Ukrainian stamps mark Operation Spiderweb raid
    Commemorating the 1 June raid that destroyed or damaged 41 Russian strategic bombers now signals Ukraine’s growing confidence in deep-strike capabilities that fundamentally shift the strategic balance. By turning military success into cultural artifacts, Ukraine demonstrates that Russia’s most threatening weapons — aircraft designed to deliver nuclear-capable missiles — are no longer untouchable. The operation showcased Ukraine’s ability to coordinate precision strikes across vast distance
     

New Ukrainian stamps mark Operation Spiderweb raid

20 août 2025 à 06:40

Commemorating the 1 June raid that destroyed or damaged 41 Russian strategic bombers now signals Ukraine’s growing confidence in deep-strike capabilities that fundamentally shift the strategic balance.

By turning military success into cultural artifacts, Ukraine demonstrates that Russia’s most threatening weapons — aircraft designed to deliver nuclear-capable missiles — are no longer untouchable.

The operation showcased Ukraine’s ability to coordinate precision strikes across vast distances using relatively cheap technology. Using 117 AI-trained FPV drones hidden in truck-mounted containers, Ukraine’s Security Service struck four airbases spanning three time zones: Olenya near the Arctic Circle, Ivanovo northeast of Moscow, Dyagilevo southeast of the capital, and Belaya in Siberia.

The mathematical reality is stark: drones costing thousands of dollars disabled aircraft worth billions.

The destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers, along with A-50 early warning planes, represented roughly one-third of Russia’s strategic bomber fleet — the very aircraft Moscow uses to threaten Ukrainian cities and NATO territory with cruise missiles. Russia invested decades and enormous resources building these strategic assets, only to watch them burn on their airbases.

Since 2022, Ukrainian postal issues have evolved from cultural resistance symbols to strategic communication tools. The famous “Russian warship” stamp and Kerch Bridge commemoratives told stories of defiance. The Spiderweb stamps tell a different story: Ukraine’s growing ability to strike deep into Russian territory.

The stamp set, priced at 150 UAH ($3.62) with first-day covers at 15 UAH ($0.36), will travel worldwide — carrying the message that Ukraine can reach targets Moscow thought safe. Each envelope becomes a reminder that Russia’s threat projection capabilities are shrinking.

The operation demonstrates that Ukraine has developed indigenous capabilities — truck-based mobile launch platforms, AI-guided swarm coordination, and continental-range strike abilities — that complement Western-supplied weapons. For Russia, the raid exposed that geography provides less protection than Moscow assumed.

The postal commemoration ensures this tactical victory becomes part of Ukraine’s strategic narrative — proof that innovation and determination can neutralize even the most expensive instruments of intimidation.

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  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • Ukrainian civilians pay price as Russian attacks continue despite Trump’s peace attempts
    How serious is Russia about peace? While Donald Trump works to arrange a summit between Putin and Zelenskyy to push for a peace agreement, Russian forces launched another wave of attacks against Ukrainian civilians early 20 August morning. This comes amid recent talks initiated by Trump first with Putin and then with Zelenskyy and European leaders as they are trying to negotiate a peace deal. However, Ukrainian officials describe the continued assaults as proof Russia has no intention of halt
     

Ukrainian civilians pay price as Russian attacks continue despite Trump’s peace attempts

20 août 2025 à 04:54

Russian attack on Okhtyrka in Sumy Oblast damaged private residences and an apartment building, injuring 14 people.

How serious is Russia about peace? While Donald Trump works to arrange a summit between Putin and Zelenskyy to push for a peace agreement, Russian forces launched another wave of attacks against Ukrainian civilians early 20 August morning.

This comes amid recent talks initiated by Trump first with Putin and then with Zelenskyy and European leaders as they are trying to negotiate a peace deal. However, Ukrainian officials describe the continued assaults as proof Russia has no intention of halting hostilities. On 18 August, Russian missile attack on a residential building in Kharkiv killed five civilians, including a toddler and a teenager, with several others injured. 

Russian forces fired two Iskander-M ballistic missiles and Iranian-designed 93 Shahed drones across Ukraine, according to Ukrainian Air Force. Ukrainian air defense intercepted one missile and 62 drones, but strikes still hit 20 locations nationwide.

Energy infrastructure targeted in Odesa Oblast

Izmayil, a port city in southern Odesa Oblast, took direct strikes that damaged fuel and energy infrastructure, according to the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office and State Emergency Service.

One person was injured and hospitalized, officials reported. The strikes sparked a massive fire that required 54 rescuers and 16 specialized vehicles to contain. Ukrainian Railways deployed a fire train, while National Guard fire units and local brigades joined the response.

The Izmayil District Prosecutor’s Office opened a war crimes investigation, while prosecutors and police are documenting damage at the scene.

Aftermath of the Russian attack on fuel facility in Izmayil, Odesa Oblast, on 20 August. Photo: State emergency service

14 civilians injured in Sumy border Oblast

The northern city of Okhtyrka in northeastern Sumy Oblast faced a massive attack that injured 14 people, including three children. Multiple locations were struck simultaneously across the city.

The youngest victim is not even a year old yet. The boy has an acute stress reaction, but there is no threat to his life.

Emergency workers pulled a woman from rubble and transferred her to ambulance crews, according to regional authorities. The strikes damaged an apartment building, 13 private homes, an outbuilding, and a garage. Several cars were destroyed, and fires broke out across impact sites.

Thirteen private residences, an apartment building, and a garage suffered damage in Okhtyrka, Sumy Oblast, 20 August, while 14 people were injured. Photos: National Police of Ukraine/State emergency service

Rescue teams extinguished all fires, the State Emergency Service reported. The scale of damage suggests coordinated targeting of residential areas rather than military infrastructure.

Photos: National Police of Ukraine/State emergency service
You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this. We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. Become a patron or see other ways to support
  • ✇UKR Inform
  • SETAM keeps about 4,000 property items
    About 4,000 property items transferred by enforcement agencies are kept in warehouses and sites across 22 branches of State-Owned Enterprise System of Electronic Trading in Seized Property (SETAM).
     
  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • Russo-Ukrainian war, day 1273: Ukraine’s drone blitz cripples 13.5% of Russian oil capacity
    Exclusive Russia’s cozy nuke-proof command vehicle is back in action. Russian industry only produced four or five Ladoga nuclear reconnaissance vehicles. Two wound up in Ukraine. From ambush to alliance: Zelenskyy-Trump summit hints at revival of “peace through strength. Something fundamental shifted when the man who promised to end Ukraine’s war in 24 hours discovered Putin won’t negotiate in good faith. Trump–Zelenskyy summit: smiles in Washington, no ceasefire, $ 100bn
     

Russo-Ukrainian war, day 1273: Ukraine’s drone blitz cripples 13.5% of Russian oil capacity

20 août 2025 à 03:09

Exclusive

Russia’s cozy nuke-proof command vehicle is back in action. Russian industry only produced four or five Ladoga nuclear reconnaissance vehicles. Two wound up in Ukraine.
From ambush to alliance: Zelenskyy-Trump summit hints at revival of “peace through strength. Something fundamental shifted when the man who promised to end Ukraine’s war in 24 hours discovered Putin won’t negotiate in good faith.
Trump–Zelenskyy summit: smiles in Washington, no ceasefire, $ 100bn bill. This Oval Office meeting went better than the last—but the war continues and enforcement remains unclear.
Ukrainian soldier first fought against Russia and then against Ukraine – his story reveals forced conscription in occupation. Ukrainian defenders captured their fellow Ukrainian fighting in Russian uniform who shared that the occupying authorities had threatened him with up to 12 years in prison for allegedly fabricated charges if he did not join killing of his own people on the front lines.
Ukraine builds an army where robots die so soldiers don’t have to. A New York tech CEO is finding the answer to Russia’s three-to-one manpower advantage.
NATO banned weapons to this Ukrainian unit. Now they study its tactics.. Azov went from pariah to the territorial defense case study.
Zelenskyy demands “everything” for security while Trump hints at vague Article 5-like protection. Ukraine wants weapons, troops, and intelligence support. Trump says he will discuss the guarantees with NATO allies later today.

Military

Putin’s circle bleeds in Donbas: Brother of Russian ruling party’s deputy killed in Luhansk Oblast. Oleksandr Milonov died far from home in Luhansk after fighting for over a year.
Three-week Ukrainian drone blitz cuts 13.5% of Russian oil capacity, triggers price crisis. Moscow’s energy infrastructure collapse forces Russian consumers to pay record fuel prices while the Kremlin struggles to maintain both domestic supply and military operations.
Oval Office map showed 20% of Ukraine taken—Zelenskyy says “just 1% in 1,000 days, actually”. The Ukrainian President said the misconception inflated Russia’s perceived military strength.
“Russia’s victorious mood has turned to despair” — Syrskyi on frontline situation. Russia poured over 100,000 soldiers into Donetsk’s Pokrovsk front, a force analysts say could attack a European country. Yet Ukrainian defenders, reinforced by the elite Azov Brigade, halted the advance, regained lost settlements, and pushed the invaders back.
Ukraine’s drones make Russia’s rear go up in flames. Bilokurakyne rail hub burns as precision strikes reach deeper into Russian logistics.
ISW: Russia’s advance near Dobropillia is fracturing under Ukrainian counterattacks. Ukrainian troops retook key villages at the base of Russia’s narrow penetration near Dobropillia in Donetsk Oblast.
Third fire in days: Lukoil’s Volgograd refinery burns again. In less than a week, the facility sustained one confirmed attack, followed by another fire two days after the strike.
Ukraine cuts off Putin’s pipeline profits—Europe’s Druzba oil deliveries halted after yesterday’s drone assault. A key pumping station burned after Kyiv’s forces hit deep inside Russia, ending oil flows to Russia’s ally, Hungary.

Intelligence and technology

It carries 1,150 kg, flies 3,000 km, and it’s called Flamingo—Ukraine’s new cruise missile enters combat (video). FirePoint reportedly conducted successful tests of the missile a few months ago, after which the missile entered serial production.
Ukraine’s security guarantees from US may inlcude $90 billion weapon aid package that could fund 4.5 years of fighting. The package, expected to be signed within days, envisions not only ammunition but also aircraft, air defense systems, and advanced weaponry.

International

Trump’s tariff strategy against India’s Russian oil purchases creates unexpected windfall for Chinese refineries. Beijing’s state-owned refineries are stockpiling discounted Urals crude at 75,000 barrels daily, nearly double their normal intake.
UN: Russia’s war kills four humanitarian aid workers in 100 attacks in Ukraine. Moscow employs dual strategy of targeting protected aid personnel while wielding institutional power to prevent consequences.
Zelenskyy rejects Putin’s Moscow meeting proposal while Russia plots peace talks and civilian deaths at same time. The proposal signals Putin’s successful strategy to escape diplomatic isolation.
Macron says Putin shows no intent to end war—the killing hasn’t stopped. He pointed to new Russian strikes even as world leaders gathered in Washington yesterday.
Trump claims breakthrough on Ukraine-Russia peace talks — Kremlin pretends not to hear. Moscow’s only official comment: maybe delegations could talk more, someday.

Humanitarian and social impact

Russian 1,000-ship network generates millions in military funds from stolen Ukrainian grain in Iran, Turkiye, Egypt. Moscow’s agricultural crime network generates millions in military funding while international buyers become unwitting accomplices in financing Ukraine’s destruction.
Russia targeted Ukraine with 270 drones and 10 missiles while Trump and Zelenskyy met in Washington. Russia hit homes, greenhouses, power facilities, and a school — the attacks left civilians wounded in multiple oblasts.

New developments

From $600 to $1,000: Ukraine pitches a market with growing buying power. Government forecasts salaries will almost double current levels, targeting international investor confidence.
Ukraine bets on nuclear to rebuild grid and supply Europe. Government plans massive reactor expansion while Russian missiles target the grid.

Read our earlier daily review here.

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We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society.

Become a patron or see other ways to support

Reçu hier — 19 août 2025Ukraine
  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • Russia’s cozy nuke-proof command vehicle is back in action
    In the late 1970s, Soviet officials tapped the Kirovsky Design Bureau in Saint Petersburg to develop a reconnaissance and command vehicle for nuclear warfare: a sealed, self-contained and thickly-armored turret-less tank with remote cameras and its own oxygen supply. The Ladoga recon and command vehicle wasn’t just nuke-proof. It was also weirdly cozy. Kirovsky produced just a handful of the tracked vehicles—maybe four or five. One spent some time in the irradiated zone around the nuclear
     

Russia’s cozy nuke-proof command vehicle is back in action

19 août 2025 à 18:22

oga in a Russian repair yard.

In the late 1970s, Soviet officials tapped the Kirovsky Design Bureau in Saint Petersburg to develop a reconnaissance and command vehicle for nuclear warfare: a sealed, self-contained and thickly-armored turret-less tank with remote cameras and its own oxygen supply.

The Ladoga recon and command vehicle wasn’t just nuke-proof. It was also weirdly cozy.

Kirovsky produced just a handful of the tracked vehicles—maybe four or five. One spent some time in the irradiated zone around the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, in northern Ukraine, following the plant’s catastrophic meltdown in 1986. Aside from another that ended up in a museum, the Ladogas then simply disappeared.

Until March 2024, that is—when a Ukrainian drone spotted, and struck, what appeared to be a Ladoga rolling toward Ukrainian lines near the Kreminna Forest in eastern Ukraine. Seventeen months later, another—or the same—Ladoga appeared at a repair yard somewhere in the Russian occupation zone.

It’s possible half the Ladogas Kirovsky produced—and the majority that aren’t on display or badly irradiated—have made their way to Ukraine.

It’s no secret why. The Kremlin is struggling to generate enough combat vehicles—either through new production or by fetching older vehicles from long-term storage—to make good the loss of new fewer than 22,500 vehicles and other heavy equipment along the 1,100-km front line of Russia’s 42-month wider war on Ukraine.

The “de-mechanization” of what was once arguably the world’s leading mechanized military helps to explain why some very strange vehicles have showed up along the front line. Armored vehicles are much less important in Russian doctrine as front-line regiments have shifted to harder-to-detect infantry and motorcycle assaults.

Rare vehicle of the day? Ladoga gets hit by fpv drone. Once a transport vehicle for VIPs, now a target of FPVs.https://t.co/ZAHs1kJ2M5 pic.twitter.com/MmmKwXlJPA

— Andrew Perpetua (@AndrewPerpetua) March 26, 2024

Vehicular oddities

The de-mechanization of the Russian military doesn’t mean Russia is losing wider war on Ukraine. It does mean the Russian military may struggle to exploit its battlefield victories against manpower-starved Ukrainian brigades. Russian infantry might find gaps in Ukrainian defenses. But there are precious few Russian armored vehicles on hand to rush through the gaps—and drive deep behind Ukrainian lines.

At the same time, unarmored Russian attacks are vulnerable to armored Ukrainian counterattacks. It’s telling that, after a brigade of Russian infantry marched through empty Ukrainian trenches northeast of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine a few weeks ago, the infiltrators clung to their 15-km salient only as long as it took a powerful Ukrainian force to mobilize its tanks and other heavy forces for a devastating counterattack.

To whatever extent Russian troops still ride under armor, they increasingly ride in vehicular oddities that, pre-war, resided in museums—or were totally unimaginable. The Ladoga may belong to both categories. It combines the armored hull of a T-80 tank with a 1,250-horespower gas-turbine engine and a voluminous crew compartment seating four or so people in padded armchairs.

The Ladoga has a mast-mounted television camera and a full suite of radios that would have allowed the vehicle to work in a doomsday command role. Imagine Soviet leaders speeding to safety inside a Ladoga, directing their own nuclear forces as NATO’s own nukes rain down.

Now imagine some Russian colonel commanding his battalion from a Ladoga’s cozy interior during an attack on Ukrainian forces around Kreminna or Pokrovsk. Or, equally likely, Russian infantry using the Ladoga as an improvised assault vehicle.

The tiny force of Ladogas got a workout around Chernobyl but never performed its primary role in an atomic apocalypse. Surely no one at Kirovsky imagined an aged Ladoga or two would eventually find a way to the front line of a non-nuclear war in 2024 and 2025.

But then, it’s hard to imagine the engineers in Saint Petersburg 50 years ago could anticipate Russia losing 22,500 armored vehicles in just three and a half years in a war with, of all countries, Ukraine.

A Leopard 1A5 firing.
Explore further

Russian infiltrators near Pokrovsk are about to get the tank treatment

You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this. We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. Become a patron or see other ways to support
  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • From ambush to alliance: Zelenskyy-Trump summit hints at revival of “peace through strength
    The change of atmosphere in the Oval Office could not have been starker. In February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy walked into what looked like an ambush, facing a hostile President Trump and Vice President Vance. On 18 August, the same office hosted a cordial and businesslike discussion between leaders coming to a common understanding of how to deal with Vladimir Putin’s aggression. After months of education about Putin’s methods and Trump’s negotiating style—including Trump’s Ala
     

From ambush to alliance: Zelenskyy-Trump summit hints at revival of “peace through strength

19 août 2025 à 17:56

Ukraine USA Trump Zelenskyy talks

The change of atmosphere in the Oval Office could not have been starker. In February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy walked into what looked like an ambush, facing a hostile President Trump and Vice President Vance. On 18 August, the same office hosted a cordial and businesslike discussion between leaders coming to a common understanding of how to deal with Vladimir Putin’s aggression.

After months of education about Putin’s methods and Trump’s negotiating style—including Trump’s Alaska meeting with Putin that failed to produce the easy peace he had promised—all parties are adopting a more realistic approach away from wishful thinking toward the kind of concerted pressure that may eventually lead to ending Europe’s deadliest war since World War II.

Ukraine’s strategic evolution

The Ukrainian side clearly learned its lessons from the previous hostile encounter. President Zelenskyy expressed gratitude, emphasized that US aid didn’t come as gifts, and avoided contradicting Trump or presenting graphic war imagery that derailed the last meeting.

Instead, he arrived with maps, battlefield assessments, and specific ideas.

His message was clear: although Russia controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, subtract areas seized in 2014-2015 during Ukraine’s weakness, and Russian gains over three and a half years of full-scale war have been remarkably limited.

This tells a story of Russian bluff rather than Russian strength.

Dropping NATO for Article 5-level guarantees

Ukraine made a crucial adjustment by dropping its insistence on NATO membership as the only acceptable security arrangement. This removes a major irritant for Trump and strips Russia of its stated pretext for aggression while opening space for alternative frameworks that could prove equally effective.

The proposed Article 5-level security guarantees from a coalition of 30 countries including NATO and non-NATO members such as Japan, New Zealand and Australia represent serious deterrence and deflate Russian narratives completely.

Ukraine also proved it can make deals. The recent minerals agreement with the United States demonstrated Ukrainian reliability and skill as a negotiating partner. This credibility played an important role in securing a respectful conversation in Washington rather than another steamroller attempt.

Ukraine USA Trump Zelenskyy talks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (left) and US President Donald Trump in Washington DC. 18 August 2025. Photo: president.gov.ua

Trump’s harder-edged realism

President Trump’s evolution has been equally significant.

His initial belief that he could charm Putin into peace through generous concessions has given way to a different approach entirely.

Trump expressed irritation with Putin’s duplicity, refused to discuss business opportunities before the war stops, and ordered two US nuclear submarines to “be positioned in the appropriate regions” in response to Russia’s nuclear saber-rattling.

Learning Putin interprets compromise as weakness

Trump appears to have learned what Ukraine discovered long ago: Putin interprets willingness to compromise as weakness. While Trump continues making public overtures toward Putin as part of his deal-making philosophy, his actions tell a different story:

  • Weapons deliveries to Ukraine continue, although they’re now being paid for;
  • Sanctions remain in place;
  • The US participates in the Coalition of the Willing;
  • There has been no condemnation of Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy and transport infrastructure that have caused fuel shortages and economic disruption.

This looks like a return to “peace through strength,” though there’s an obstacle to applying it fully. NATO countries have acknowledged they’re not ready for confrontation with Russia and are working to build up their strength in what resembles an exercise of saying “nice doggy” while looking for a stick.

Putin’s shrinking options

Ukraine USA Trump Zelenskyy talks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (left) and US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office. 18 August 2025. Photo: president.gov.ua

Putin finds himself in an increasingly difficult position. Having claimed NATO expansion was Russia’s primary concern, he now faces a situation where Trump has categorically ruled out Ukrainian NATO membership.

If Putin continues rejecting peace talks under these conditions, he loses his victim narrative and reveals himself clearly as the aggressor—exactly what Russia has tried to avoid.

Putin’s manipulation tactics, while still present, appear to be losing effectiveness. His transparent attempts to flatter Trump over the 2020 election and the humiliation of President Biden, plus the Trump portrait given as a gift, represent obvious flattery that seems to be increasingly losing grip.

More significantly, Putin’s refusal to accept Trump’s generous initial concessions demonstrated to the American president that the Russian leader may not really mean what he says.

Their meeting was a disaster, though

Alaska surrender: Putin scores total victory, Trump turns pressure on Ukraine

Economic pressure mounting

Russia’s economy is heading toward recession and stagflation. Russia faces slowing production, high inflation, and high interest rates. While Moscow has managed to escape the Afghanistan effect on its society by recruiting contract soldiers from poorer regions rather than sending young conscripts to the frontline, this strategy has limitations.

Ukrainian long-range strikes disrupting Russian economic activity, plus western sanctions limit Russia’s ability to sustain the strategy for long.

European unity and coalition building

Europe is showing signs of waking up to the new security environment. Despite divisions within the European Union, particularly from countries like Hungary, a core coalition remains committed to maintaining sanctions pressure on Moscow while supporting Ukrainian security, as demonstrated in the 18 August White House meeting.

The European Commission has developed strategic documents to enhance Europe’s defense readiness and devised financial instruments to help build and modernize the European defense industrial base. Ukraine is increasingly involved as Europe’s partner.

Ukraine USA Trump Zelenskyy talks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, US President Donald Trump stand with a group of European leaders during Zelenskyy’s visit to the White House on 18 August 2025. Photo: president.gov.ua

Coalition of the Willing structure

Like traditional NATO Article 5 protections, the Coalition of the Willing comprised mostly of Europeans will commit to defending Ukraine according to their capabilities, as President Zelenskyy explained.

Some will provide military contingents, some will give financial support, others could secure Ukraine’s coastline, and still others might handle air defense. This arrangement represents a big step forward from other security arrangements Ukraine has been offered—the 1994 Budapest memorandum or the Ukraine Compact adopted at the NATO Vilnius summit.

The territorial challenge

The territorial question remains the most difficult issue, particularly regarding Crimea and Donbas. Ukraine will never formally recognize Russian sovereignty over the peninsula, but there appears to be growing acceptance that military reconquest is currently impossible.

Russian control of Crimea creates ongoing security threats extending far beyond Ukraine’s borders. Crimea serves as a southern bridgehead that Russia already used to launch its 2022 attack against Ukraine. Continued Russian presence there ensures this threat remains active.

Occupied Ukraine map
Ukrainian regions occupied by Russia on a map

Ukrainian shipping lanes through the Black Sea will remain vulnerable to Russian interdiction from Crimean bases.

Most critically for Western interests, Russian military positions in Crimea place Moscow significantly closer to European NATO members, creating security challenges for the entire alliance.

Ukraine’s European partners have been explicit about their red lines regarding territorial concessions achieved through force. The principle at stake—that borders cannot be redrawn through military aggression—represents a cornerstone of the international order that extends far beyond Ukraine’s specific situation.

The path forward

Recent developments suggest that substantive negotiations between Russia and Ukraine could take place. Putin’s agreement to meet Zelenskyy personally before trilateral talks with the US president, Trump’s willingness to participate in security guarantee discussions, and the emergence of a credible international coalition all point toward more serious diplomacy than we’ve seen since the war began.

But this progress remains fragile. Putin’s track record on agreements is poor, and his refusal to agree to a ceasefire indicates he still favors continued conflict.

Trump Putin Alaska Meeting red carpet bucha collage4
As see in the Alaska summit with Trump

Editorial: The summit that peacewashed genocide

Requirements for sustainable progress

The path forward requires sustaining economic and military pressure on Russia while building the strength necessary to enforce any eventual agreement. Sanctions should remain until concrete progress occurs, weapons deliveries to Ukraine must continue, and the coalition of willing nations must finalize security arrangements that will credibly deter future Russian aggression.

After eleven years of war, the possibility of a negotiated settlement finally appears somewhat realistic. Nobody in Ukraine is rosy-eyed about Russian intentions and Putin’s ability to continue inflicting lots of pain.

The stakes extend beyond Ukraine to the future of European and possibly even global security. Failure will invite further challenges from Russia and other authoritarian powers watching closely. Ukraine and its allies and partners must not fail.

Julia Kazdobina
Julia Kazdobina is Head of the Ukrainian Foundation for Security Studies, Julia specialized in government policies to counter foreign influence operations online and sanctions policy. She has served as a pro-bono advisor to the Information Policy Minister of Ukraine and holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Rochester.
Ukraine USA Trump Zelenskyy talks
Explore further

Trump–Zelenskyy summit: smiles in Washington, no ceasefire, $ 100bn bill

You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this. We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. Become a patron or see other ways to support
  • ✇Euromaidan Press
  • “Tomahawks are outdated”: Ukraine’s Flamingo missile bets on mass, not stealth
    When images of Ukraine’s new Flamingo cruise missile appeared, experts quickly pointed out the resemblance to another system. The War Zone (TWZ) described Flamingo as “extremely similar, if not identical” to the FP-5 made by UAE-based Milanion. Its specifications — 3,000 km range, 950 km/h top speed, a one-ton warhead, and rail-trailer launchers — align almost exactly with Milanion’s brochure. Still, TWZ cautioned that “the exact relationship… is unknown,” leaving room for Ukrainian modificat
     

“Tomahawks are outdated”: Ukraine’s Flamingo missile bets on mass, not stealth

19 août 2025 à 17:21

When images of Ukraine’s new Flamingo cruise missile appeared, experts quickly pointed out the resemblance to another system.

The War Zone (TWZ) described Flamingo as “extremely similar, if not identical” to the FP-5 made by UAE-based Milanion. Its specifications — 3,000 km range, 950 km/h top speed, a one-ton warhead, and rail-trailer launchers — align almost exactly with Milanion’s brochure. Still, TWZ cautioned that “the exact relationship… is unknown,” leaving room for Ukrainian modifications.

Ukraine’s arsenal has long been defined by shortage. Western aid remains vital but insufficient, while domestic production struggles to match demand. Out of this gap came drones—not as a choice but as a necessity—allowing Kyiv to strike deep despite limited means. The Flamingo now represents a step beyond improvisation toward true strategic weapons.

FP-5.
FP-5. Milanion art.

A “behemoth” by design

Like the FP-5, Flamingo is no small weapon. Defense Express called it a “behemoth” with a six-meter wingspan and six-ton takeoff weight. Its simple, straight wings make it cheaper to produce but easier to detect.

“The larger the missile, the more noticeable it becomes,” they noted, though they stressed the lack of stealth is “not a critical one.” Ukraine has already used large, non-stealthy Tu-141 drones to strike deep into Russia, proving size is not an automatic disqualifier.

TWZ, however, added a sharper caveat: with “what looks like zero attempts at signature control, the Flamingo is far from immune to interception.” Yet this vulnerability is also part of its logic — a missile that blurs the line with drones, built for mass production and salvos rather than invisibility.

Tu-141 Strizh. Photo: Ukrainian Air Force

Fire Point’s bold comparison

Manufacturer Fire Point has gone further than analysts, telling Ukrinform and Kyiv Post that Flamingo is “better than the US Tomahawk.”

Tomahawks… are outdated. They have absolutely everything worse than today’s Flamingos,” a company representative claimed, adding that Tomahawks are also “five times more expensive.

On paper, Flamingo outranges most Tomahawk versions, carries more than double the payload, and flies slightly faster. Where Tomahawk still holds an edge is in its proven TERCOM guidance system, which allows it to resist GPS jamming — a crucial factor in Ukraine’s electronic warfare environment.

nyt limited western backing forces ukraine search plan b us' bgm-109 tomahawk missile flying november 2002 1118px-tomahawk_block_iv_cruise_missile_-crop
US’ BGM-109 Tomahawk missile flying in November 2002. Illustrative image: WIkimedia Commons

Brief historical parallels

The Flamingo is not the first missile of its kind. Its reliance on ground-rail launchers recalls Germany’s V-1 flying bomb of World War II, while its bulk and range echo the US MGM-13 Mace fielded in Europe during the 1950s. More recently, it sits in the same strategic category as Russia’s Kalibr, which has been used extensively against Ukrainian cities.

Each of these weapons marked a shift in reach and destructive power. Flamingo may be Ukraine’s turn at the same playbook.

Russia microchips sanctions missiles weapons
Russian Kalibr missiles are produced thanks to covert microchip imports from countries such as Armenia. Illustrative photo

Political shock potential

The Telegraph framed Flamingo as more than a technical feat. Vladimir Putin’s political stability, it argued, rests on shielding Moscow and St. Petersburg from devastation.

The Flamingo could potentially… visit the same sort of destruction on Putin’s core cities as Russian weapons have on those of Ukraine,wrote Lewis Page. But he cautioned that Flamingo is “essentially just a faster drone” and would need to be deployed in large salvos with decoys to get through Russia’s formidable defenses.

On the eve of Trump–Zelenskyy talks, Ukraine unveiled footage of its new Flamingo missile — 3,000 km range, 1,150 kg warhead, now in mass production and used against targets in Russia.

Defense Minister Shmyhal: “This is very powerful, long-range weaponry — and it’s here.”… pic.twitter.com/N0f8YMgzVB

— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) August 18, 2025

A symbol of independence

Whether Flamingo changes the battlefield will depend on production scale and its ability to survive modern air defenses. What is certain is that Ukraine now has a weapon that embodies strategic independence: a domestically produced missile, resembling Milanion’s FP-5, but aimed at taking the war much deeper into Russia than ever before.

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Germany working on security guarantees for Ukraine, contribution not yet determined — Pistorius

19 août 2025 à 15:57
Germany is actively working on developing reliable security guarantees for Ukraine, but its contribution has not yet been determined—it will depend on the progress of peace talks and the possible contribution of the US, and will be coordinated with its closest partners.

Vladimir Putin now has little choice but to agree to talks

19 août 2025 à 15:41

Editorial: Following Volodymyr Zelensky’s skilful performance in the White House, supported by an impressive posse of European leaders, the diplomatic focus is firmly – and, for the Russian president, uncomfortably – on Moscow’s next move

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