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The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]
Russia’s war against Ukraine
Members of Ukraine’s State Emergency Service work to extinguish a fire near an office building damaged in a Russian drone strike in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district on Sept. 25, 2026 (Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
Putin casts doubt on resuming Ukraine talks, citing mass drone attack during Russian election. Putin said Russia had been prepared to return to talks after the Sept. 18-20 State Duma election, but claimed the attacks had changed Moscow’s calculus.
Trump made ‘final decision’ on granting Ukraine Patriot licenses, Zelensky says. “At our meeting, President Trump stressed that he had made his final decision: Ukraine will receive licenses to produce Patriot missiles,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Ukraine strikes Russian oil refineries, missile production facilities, General Staff confirms. Among the facilities targeted was the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery in Perm, Russia, located approximately 1,450 kilometers (900 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Drone attack reportedly hits Russia’s Ilsky oil refinery, sparks fire. The Ilsky refinery, located roughly 500 kilometers (310 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled territory, is one of the largest oil-processing facilities in southern Russia, producing nearly 6.6 million tons of fuel annually.
Zelensky warns Ukraine could face ‘serious challenges’ with drones this winter amid budget deficit. Much of Ukraine’s $27 billion budget deficit is related to defense spending, including the production of drones and missiles, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sept. 25.
Read our exclusives
Ukraine’s steel industry is nearing collapse — and calling for help from abroad
During the attacks, Russia launches precise strikes that damage critical equipment like blast furnaces, preventing Ukrainian steelmakers from producing pig iron — a key material for steel.
Photo: Giulio Piscitelli / AFP via Getty Images
‘No longer hybrid’ — As Russian sabotage grows bolder, Europe lacks red lines
“We’ve got to make Russia think: ‘OK, s**t, they’re awake,'” proposes Edward Lucas, a British journalist, security analyst, and head of the Baltic International Security Center (BISC).
Photo: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images
Russia’s faster Shaheds could rival ballistic missiles this winter
The new Shaheds are powered by airplane-like jet engines, which allow them to pass through otherwise densely packed air defense zones at speeds of more than 800 km/h (500 mph).
Photo: Evgeniy Maloletka / AP
Why Ukraine’s arms makers are still waiting to sell abroad
Export restrictions limit the money Ukrainian manufacturers can earn and reinvest in production and new technology. Selling abroad could help them attract investors by offering room to grow beyond what Ukraine can afford to buy.
Photo: Nikoletta Stoyanova/Getty Images
Human costs of war
Russian attacks kill 10, injure 61 across Ukraine over past day as missile strike hits farm in Kharkiv Oblast. One of the deadliest attacks struck northeastern Kharkiv Oblast. Six people — two men and four women — were killed, and 14 others were injured in Russian strikes on the village of Stara Hnylytsia in the Chuhuiv district, Kharkiv regional authorities reported.
Russian attacks on Kyiv kill 7, including 14-year-old boy, injure 59 as drone strikes continue into daytime. Twenty-five people, including two children, were hospitalized, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
General Staff: Russia has lost 1,525,570 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.
The number includes 1,590 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
International response
Zelensky’s office denies report Trump urged him to meet Putin in Moscow.
Ukrainian officials said Trump and Zelensky discussed the possibility of trilateral talks involving the United States, Ukraine, and Russia.
Macron cites ‘several signs’ Russia preparing to mobilize 300,000 people. French President Emmanuel Macron claimed the Kremlin had been waiting to hold elections before launching another wave of mobilization.
EU defense fund unblocked, and with it new support for Ukraine. “That’s good news for Ukraine and bad news for Russia,” said the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas, after EU countries agreed on how to unblock new money for Ukraine.
Up to 12 UK companies to gain access to Ukraine’s battlefield data for AI drone swarms. British companies are now invited to turn in proposals on how they envision using the “goldmine of battlefield data,” the U.K. Defense Ministry said, adding that the selection would be made “in just a matter of weeks.”
Ukraine, Taiwan on agenda at Trump-Xi summit in Washington. Ahead of the U.S.-China summit, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on Sept. 22 that he hoped Trump would encourage Xi to use his influence with Russian President Vladimir Putin to move the peace process forward.
Opinions and insights
**Exclusive: Majority of companies involved in Russian Molniya drone production unsanctioned, research shows
**
The research, conducted by the Center for Defense Reforms, a Ukrainian security think tank, and shared with the Kyiv Independent, also shows that the majority of companies supplying components used in the production of Molniya drones are not yet subject to Western sanctions.
Photo: Alex Nikitenko/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
In other news
Zelensky breaches confidentiality agreement by disclosing transfer of North Korean POWs, South Korea says. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made the disclosure during a speech to the United Nations on Sept. 23, saying Ukraine had recently “sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea” and that one of them had tried to kill himself after being captured.
Stories from a country at war: Kyiv Independent comes to London. The Kyiv Independent will host a live storytelling event in London on Oct. 2, bringing together its journalists and readers for an evening of firsthand accounts of reporting, working, and living through Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
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Russia is running out of soldiers. What will Putin do?
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