Russia is turning the consequences of its own crime into a military advantage. The invaders have destroyed the Kakhovka Reservoir and are now using the exposed bottom as a staging ground for maneuvers and attacks, UNIAN reports. 

Russian soldiers are attempting to bypass Ukrainian positions in Zaporizhzhia by moving across its exposed bed, according to Vladyslav Voloshyn, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Defense Forces of the South.

Occupiers searching for flanking routes in their crime area

Voloshyn explains that the reservoir has effectively turned into a large meadow overgrown with lush vegetation.

“The Russians are trying to use this dense vegetation and the bottom of the former Kakhovka Reservoir to outflank our positions in the settlements of Plavni and Prymorske, to attack us from the west,” Voloshyn says.

He adds that personnel from Ukrainian Defense Intelligence units have carried out clearance operations near the islands of Velyki Kuchuhury, located within the former reservoir area. The Russian forces also attempted to infiltrate past Ukrainian positions in this sector.

“This zone is being monitored under special control,” the spokesperson emphasized.

Russia blew the dam, gained weeks, lost soldiers, but did not achieve a perfect result

Russia’s destruction of the Kherson dam temporarily improved its defensive posture in Kherson Oblast and delayed Ukrainian operations in the south, but it did not produce any lasting military superiority. That has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians. Some Russian troops also died during the operation. 

The destruction exposed sediments containing more than 90,000 tonnes of hazardous heavy metals, a toxic cocktail that had quietly accumulated on the reservoir floor since 1956.

However, Ukrainian forces continue to hold nearly 20% of Kherson Oblast, including the central city of Kherson. 

Assault troops of the 425th Separate Assault Regiment “Skelia” have cleared the Pokrovsk City Council building of Russian occupiers. The Ukrainian flag now flies over it once again, the regiment has reported. 

Ukrainian assault troops broke through Russian defenses

During the operation, two Ukrainian assault groups were tasked with entering central Pokrovsk and clearing the city council building of occupiers.

Watch the video for the Ukrainian flag installation on X.

“Despite the transport being hit by a waiting enemy ambush, the troops managed to enter the city. They came under fire but managed to eliminate the Russians. The only wounded soldier continued to carry out his combat mission,” the military said.

The element of surprise proved decisive

According to the unit, the operation was meticulously planned. Using the element of surprise, the fighters not only reached their target but also cleared the building, where Russian troops were indeed stationed.

The Pokrovsk City Council building is situated in the southern part of the city, deep within the so-called “grey zone.”

Meanwhile, the General Staff of Ukraine reported that Russian forces continue to suffer losses in the battle for the city. Ukrainian Defense Forces units have been reinforced, and the defense of the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad agglomeration continues.

“There is no encirclement of our units or formations,” the report emphasized.

Ukraine is fighting for 20% of Pokrovsk 

According to the General Staff, measures are being taken to block enemy forces attempting to infiltrate and regroup in the city, with active resistance to Russian infantry groups trying to gain a foothold.

At the same time, the military reports that 80% of the city remains under occupation as the Russians have thrown 170,000 troops at the Pokrovsk front. 

“We’ve lost 80% of the city and are still fighting for the remaining 20%, but even there, we are losing," say the Ukrainian defenders. 

The fighters, who remain in the city add they don't expect to withdraw from Pokrovsk's twin city of Myrnohrad. 

His name was Volodymyr Sviatnenko, 43, known as Znakhar. He was an unmanned aerial vehicle pilot serving in the 35th Separate Marine Brigade. A Russian ballistic missile killed him in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on 1 November, when he, together with other military personnel, gathered for a ceremonial formation to receive awards. Now, the families of the Ukrainian defenders want to know why that happened. 

He survived the frontlines but was killed at parade

His brother, journalist Dmytro Sviatnenko, said on social media that Volodymyr had been fighting for the Ukrainian Army since 2023.

“He endured hell in Krynky, Kurakhove, Marianka, Krasnohorivka… He was killed by Russians. But not on the battlefield. Deep in the rear,” he wrote in his post. 

Dmytro added that his brother and comrades gathered on the parade ground to receive their military awards.

"The best were gathered. The best pilots and infantry soldiers of the brigade. By order. In the open. A ballistic missile hit. A story of negligence (or possible negligence) repeated itself," he said. 

According to the journalist, Volodymyr was highly valued in the brigade, and the press service even produced a story about him. He was held up as an example to others. 

“He carried the wounded, saved comrades – his call sign ‘Znakhar’ was well-earned. From an anti-tank sailor, he became a UAV pilot. He was the first to fly using optics. He taught and motivated his comrades," Sviatnenko said. 

The journalist also added that his brother had been allowed to travel abroad on leave, from where he returned to service.

Were safety protocols ignored? Ukraine investigates

After the attack, the State Bureau of Investigation reported it had launched a pre-trial investigation into the deaths and injuries of Ukrainian soldiers. 

Preliminary findings indicate that around 5:00 p.m. on 1 November, Russian forces carried out a missile strike on a Ukrainian military base, resulting in casualties.

An investigative and operational team immediately arrived at the scene to establish all the circumstances.

Among other things, investigators are checking whether safety requirements for personnel were followed during the air alert and whether proper shelters were organized for the military.

The pre-trial investigation is being conducted under Part 4 of Article 425 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, specifically regarding negligent treatment of military service committed under martial law conditions.

How Russian strike unfolded across Dnipropetrovsk Oblast

On 1 November, Russians also struck the village of Novotroitske in the Samarskyi District of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast with a ballistic missile and a drone. Among the dead and injured were two children.

The occupiers also attacked the cities of Nikopol, Pokrovska, Marhanets, and Chervonohryhorivka communities in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast using FPV drones and artillery fire.

Ukraine's Eastern Military Group reported that the missile and drone strike resulted in deaths and injuries among Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel.

An inspection was initiated regarding the timeliness of missile warnings, restrictions on personnel placement, holding meetings and assemblies in open areas, and the use of locations not intended for such purposes.

Russia has lost 1,024,210 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on July 4.

The number includes 1,120 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

According to the report, Russia has also lost 10,988 tanks, 22,946 armored fighting vehicles, 53,999 vehicles and fuel tanks, 29,865 artillery systems, 1,428 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,191 air defense systems, 420 airplanes, 340 helicopters, 43,303 drones, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.

‘Nothing but terror and murder’ — Russia pounds Kyiv with ballistic missiles in massive overnight attack

Fires broke out across the city as Russia attacked the capital overnight on July 4. At least 19 people have been injured, with 14 of the victims hospitalized.

The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk

A Russian missile attack killed the commander of the 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade, Serhii Zakharevych, and injured 30 people in Huliaipole in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on July 1, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address.

The Russian army struck the Kamianske district, where the village of Huliaipole is located, in the morning on July 1, Governor Serhii Lysak reported.

Huliaipole, with a pre-war population of around 1,200, lies in the western part of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, roughly 70 kilometers (40 miles) from the front line.

"We will definitely respond to the Russians for this attack," Zelensky said, adding that the investigation into the Russian attack is currently underway and he is waiting for a report from the military command.

Zakharevych graduated from the Odesa Institute of the Ground Forces. After graduation, he led a platoon in a reconnaissance company of the 30th Separate Mechanized Brigade and the 1st Tank Brigade.

In February 2025, he was appointed commander of the 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade. Prior to that, he served as deputy commander of the 33rd Mechanized Brigade.

Zakharevych was involved in preparing three qualification courses for the Ukrainian Special Forces and headed the 47th Special Forces detachment. He participated in multiple combat missions at the front.

"Our army has lost another representative of a new generation of Ukrainian officers who grew up in combat and became models of courage and proactive military leadership," the General Staff's statement read.

Ukraine’s new interceptor UAVs are starting to knock Russia’s long-range Shahed drones out of the sky

Russia’s Shahed drone swarms are pummeling Ukraine on a nightly basis, inflicting ever more death and destruction in cities that had managed to carve out some sense of normalcy amid wartime. Civilian alarm has grown. With traditional air defense stockpiles running low, the government is banking on newly created

The Kyiv IndependentKollen Post

Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on July 1 that he had ordered a ban on the concentration of troops and equipment at training facilities to better protect against Russian missile attacks.

"My categorical order is to ensure and increase the safety of service members at training centers and training grounds," Syrskyi said on social media after listening to reports on the implementation of safety measures.

"The concentration of personnel and military equipment, as well as the placement of service members in tent camps, is prohibited!"

The command follows a string of Russian missile attacks against Ukrainian military training facilities that have resulted in a number of killed and injured service members.

Deadly strikes deep inside the Ukrainian rear have sparked a public backlash and increased scrutiny aimed at the military command.

Former Ground Forces Commander Mykhailo Drapatyi promised to address the issue, but resigned after another attack against a shooting range in Sumy Oblast on May 20, which killed six soldiers and injured a dozen more.

Syrskyi said that new shelters and protective structures are being constructed at training facilities.

"I emphasized the mandatory compliance with shelter requirements at training centers and ranges, as well as the proper and timely notification of air raid alerts."

In a most recently reported case, a Russian missile attack killed three soldiers and injured 14 at the training ground of a Ukrainian mechanized brigade on June 22.

Ukrainian forces push Russian army away from Sumy, General Staff says

Ukrainian troops advanced near the village of Oleksiivka and liberated the village of Andriivka, the statement read.

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova

Ukraine's one-year military contract for volunteers aged 18 to 24 is proving effective on the battlefield, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said at a June 26 press briefing, citing fresh reports from commanders across the front line.

Umerov said units made up of young contract soldiers had shown "resilience, professionalism, and confident actions in combat," challenging early skepticism about the new recruitment model.

"We saw them on the battlefield — and it's truly motivating."

The contract, launched in February, offers substantial benefits to young volunteers. It includes basic general military training, vocational training, and an adaptation course in an army unit. Volunteers will receive a one-time monetary aid payment of Hr 1 million ($24,000) and a monthly allowance of up to Hr 120,000 ($3,000).

The campaign initially faced backlash from some front-line troops and activists, who argued it created unfair disparities in pay and support. Now, the initiative is being credited with improving performance in specific units, Umerov said, citing internal military assessments received by the ministry two weeks ago.

Umerov, however, hasn't shared the number of soldiers recruited through the campaign.

The campaign is under constant evaluation based on financial, personnel, and training metrics. Umerov said the Defense Ministry is working to enhance the motivational package further, using data and feedback from participants and focus groups.

Despite pressure from international partners, particularly the United States, to lower Ukraine’s mobilization age from 25 to 18, service for those aged 18–24 remains voluntary. President Volodymyr Zelensky has consistently rejected compulsory mobilization starting at 18, warning that it could damage Ukraine's long-term future.

In a recent interview, Zelensky said Ukraine's Western allies have at times withheld new sanctions on Russia over Kyiv's refusal to lower the draft age. He stressed that the "weapons and technology," rather than raw manpower, were more decisive on the battlefield.

Ukraine faces personnel challenges as Russian forces continue to press along the front line. While a mobilization reform law lowered the draft age from 27 to 25 in 2024, the pace of new enlistment has slowed, leaving infantry units understaffed.

"The younger generation is a powerful human resource that deserves support and development," Umerov said.

Facing manpower shortage, Ukrainian brigade turns to women in first-ever female recruitment drive

Editor’s note: This article originated as a winning story idea in a vote by members of the Kyiv Independent’s community. Join our community today and join our exclusive members-only Discord channel, where you can discuss and suggest stories, ask our journalists questions, and more. “Her strength is her

The Kyiv IndependentNatalia Yermak

A Chinese journalist was reportedly injured in a drone strike near Russia's border with Ukraine in Kursk Oblast, acting governor Alexander Khinshtein said on June 27.

According to Khinshtein, 63-year-old reporter Lu Yuguang from the Chinese television network Phoenix TV was wounded in a Ukrainian drone strike on the village of Korenevo in Russia's Kursk Oblast. He sustained an open head injury and a contusion on the parietal region of his skull, but later declined hospitalization after being examined at a regional hospital, Khinshtein wrote on Telegram.

"Fortunately, the journalist received skin wounds on the head. No other damage was found," the governor said, adding, "Please refrain from traveling to the border area, it can be dangerous."

If confirmed, this would be the first publicly reported case of a Chinese journalist being injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast as a result of cross-border drone strikes amid Moscow's full-scale war against Ukraine. The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify the claims.

Ukrainian forces launched a cross-border incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast in August 2024, marking the first large-scale invasion of Russian territory by foreign troops since World War II. The move was intended to disrupt a planned Russian offensive targeting Ukraine's Sumy Oblast and to relieve pressure on the Donetsk front.

Since then, Ukraine claims it has inflicted 63,402 Russian troop casualties in the oblast, including 25,625 killed and 971 captured. Ukrainian forces also say they have destroyed or damaged over 5,664 pieces of Russian military equipment in the area.

Russia retook most of the lost territory during a renewed offensive in March 2025, supported by North Korean troops.

North Korea likely to send more troops to Russia by August, South Korea says

Pyongyang has already begun recruiting soldiers for deployment to Russia, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy

The Ukrainian military leadership aims to overhaul the draft office system amid numerous reports of abuses since the start of Russia's invasion in 2022, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi told journalists on June 21.

To "clean up the system", 136 officers and 325 other service members from the draft offices involved in misconduct were transferred to other positions in the army, Syrskyi said at a briefing attended by the Kyiv Independent.

Mobilization of men through the draft offices remains the main source of manpower for the Ukrainian army which defends against Russia's much more numerous forces in a war of attrition, Syrskyi added.

Draft offices are often accused, at times justly, of forced conscription without compliance with fundamental civil rights and ill-treatment of conscripts in recruitment centers. These reports are used by Russian propaganda to help escalate social tensions in Ukraine and further damage Ukraine's recruitment efforts.

"Cases of forced detention of citizens (by the draft officers) are absolutely unacceptable," Syrskyi said during the briefing.

Ukrainian leadership expects the newly appointed commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces, Brigadier General Hennadii Shapovalov, to "overcome problematic issues," Syrskyi added.

Shapovalov's appointment on June 17 followed the resignation of Mykhailo Drapatyi earlier this month after a Russian missile strike killed at least 12 Ukrainian soldiers at a training ground in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.

Inspections are underway in the draft centers to send draft officers without battlefield experience to the front, replacing them with soldiers wounded in battles, Syrskyi said.

Draft offices should fulfill their duties and "disallow these shameful cases that sometimes occur," according to Syrskyi.

"Corrupt officials and violators of the law in the mobilization process must be exposed. All necessary measures should be taken against such violators," Syrskyi added.

Ukraine is failing the mobilization test

Ukrainian society largely does not want to mobilize. Nearly 6 million Ukrainian men have not updated their information in military enlistment centers, and most of them likely don’t have grounds for a deferment or exemption. Forced mobilization of these men is categorically opposed by society. Rosy-cheeked aunts gather and shout

The Kyiv IndependentIllia Krotenko

Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) announced on June 20 the establishment of a new command group that will unite the branch with other top drone units in the country's military.

Drones have become one of the defining tools of the full-scale war, used extensively by both Ukraine and Russia for surveillance, long-range strikes, and tactical battlefield firepower.

The new formation will unite all military units of the USF with the Drone Line, a project launched by President Volodymyr Zelensky in February this year to coordinate and expand five of the country's strongest drone units.

The new command umbrella was created to "improve the efficiency of management, transform the Forces, and adapt to the requirements of modern warfare," according to the statement.

The units will operate within a single chain of command, with a defined structure and a common vision of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) tactics in order to harmonize approaches, establish joint work, and use unmanned systems more effectively in combat, the USF said.

The Unmanned Systems Forces were created as a separate branch of Ukraine's military in June 2024.

At that time, Ukraine's strongest existing drone units served in other branches of the defense forces, including the Ground Forces, National Guard, and the Security Service of Ukraine.

The newly-created group will be led by Major Robert Brovdi, better known by his callsign Magyar, whom Zelensky appointed as the commander of the USF in early June.

Brovdi had previously served as commander of the eponymous Magyar's Birds Unmanned Systems Brigade, a founding member of the Drone Line initiative and one of the most consistently high-performing drone units in the Ukrainian military.

A world-first phenomenon, Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces works to improve the country's drone operations, creating drone-specific units, ramping up training, increasing drone production, and advancing innovation.

The USF has also carried out hundreds of operations deep within Russian territory.

Following in Ukraine's footsteps, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the creation of his country's own individual drone branch on June 12.

Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi, previously deputy commander-in-chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces, was named the first commander of the USF on June 10, 2024.

Brovdi replaced Sukharevskyi, who was dismissed on June 3.

According to military personnel who spoke anonymously to Ukrainian news outlet Suspilne, Sukharevskyi's relationship with Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi was tense from the beginning of the USF's formation.

Sukharevskyi's appointment was a decision by president Zelensky, not Syrskyi, sources said.

People close to both Syrskyi and Sukharevskyi also claimed the two men avoided face-to-face interactions.

Not content with waging war inside Ukraine, Russia has now taken it into the virtual world

The new game is the first to focus on Russia’s war in Ukraine, featuring real battles and characters.

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova

President Volodymyr Zelensky on June 19 appointed Brigadier General Hennadii Shapovalov as the new commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces, following the resignation of Mykhailo Drapatyi earlier this month.

Drapatyi stepped down on June 1 after a Russian missile strike killed at least 12 Ukrainian soldiers at a training ground in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. He described the casualties as young recruits who "should have learned, lived, and fought — not died."

Zelensky accepted Drapatyi's resignation and appointed him Commander of the Joint Forces on June 3. An investigation into the incident is ongoing, with the Ground Forces promising accountability if misconduct or negligence is confirmed.

Shapovalov, born in 1978 in Kirovohrad Oblast, is a career officer who graduated from the Military Institute of Tank Troops in Kharkiv and later studied at the National Defense University of Ukraine. He also received training at the U.S. Army War College.

Shapovalov previously led Ukraine's South Operational Command in 2024 and was appointed in February 2025 as Ukraine's representative to the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) mission in Germany.

Drapatyi, in his final remarks as Ground Forces chief on June 11, said he had overhauled more than half of the command's senior leadership, launched a revamp of recruitment centers, and pushed through reforms focused on decentralization, accountability, and modernization.

Zelensky said Drapatyi's new role would allow him to focus "exclusively on combat issues" as Ukraine faces intensifying Russian attacks across several fronts.

Trump’s peace push falters in both Ukraine and the Middle East — for similar reasons

U.S. President Donald Trump addressed a wide range of subjects during his inauguration speech. When speaking about international relations, he was adamant — “Our power will stop all wars and bring a new spirit of unity,” he said, talking about Russia’s war against Ukraine and the fighting in the Middle

The Kyiv IndependentOleg Sukhov

Ukraine's 59th Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces said on June 17 that former fighter Ryan O'Leary no longer has access to current information about the unit's operations and cannot speak on its behalf.

The statement follows public criticism from O'Leary, an American volunteer and former commander of the Chosen Company, who alleged widespread leadership failures within Ukraine's Armed Forces.

On June 14, O'Leary said mismanagement within the military, rather than Russia's action, was responsible for "more deaths," accusing commanders of prioritizing personal power over troop welfare.

"The officer corps behaves like a caste system of untouchables or 'army lords,'" he wrote on X.

Chosen Company, originally formed as the 312 Swedish Volunteer Company at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, has drawn members from more than 31 countries.

Its first commander, Swedish veteran Edvard Selander Patrignani, was killed in action in July 2022. O'Leary took command afterward, and the unit was integrated into the 59th Brigade in early 2023.

O'Leary accused the former commander of the 59th Brigade, Lieutenant Colonel Bohdan Shevchuk, of sending intelligence officers into reckless assaults, resulting in avoidable casualties. Shevchuk was recently removed from command after being accused of submitting false reports.

"In the first two months of his command, he sent soldiers into unattainable positions with no hope of reinforcement or survival," O'Leary claimed.

In response, the 59th Brigade, deployed in the Pokrovsk sector in Donetsk Oblast, said O'Leary voluntarily resigned from service on Feb. 8, 2024, and has not taken part in any operations or internal decisions since.

"He does not have up-to-date information on the state of affairs in the unit and cannot comment on it," the brigade said. "The dissemination of unfounded accusations and misinformation undermines morale and negatively affects the unit's combat readiness."

The 59th Brigade emphasized that its soldiers continue to perform combat missions under challenging conditions and "maintain high efficiency and effectiveness."

O'Leary had announced the disbandment of the Chosen Company on May 26, but said he would wait to discuss details until his contract officially ended.

‘A brutal strike’ — Massive Russian missile and drone attack hits Kyiv, killing 10, injuring at least 124

Russian drones and ballistic missiles targeted the capital overnight, killing 15 people and injuring at least 114, local authorities reported. Damage to civilian infrastructure has also been reported throughout the city.

The Kyiv IndependentOlena Goncharova

Russia has lost 1,001,560 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on June 13.

The number includes 1,220 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

According to the report, Russia has also lost 10,934 tanks, 22,791 armored fighting vehicles, 51,821 vehicles and fuel tanks, 29,105 artillery systems, 1,416 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,184 air defense systems, 416 airplanes, 337 helicopters, 40,507 drones, 3,337 cruise missiles, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine.

As Russian losses in Ukraine hit 1 million, Putin’s war economy heads toward breaking point

Russian losses in Ukraine hit a massive, and grim milestone on June 12 — 1 million Russian soldiers killed or wounded during the 39-month-long full-scale war, according to figures from Kyiv. Although hugely symbolic, the number is unlikely to prompt a change in tactics from Moscow as it gears up for

The Kyiv IndependentChris York