We covered last night's mass missile and drone attack — and the resulting blackouts in Kyiv: Here's what you helped us do this week (Patreon)

Dear Kyiv Independent community members,

Thank you for your continued support.

Last night, Russia launched another mass missile and drone attack at Ukraine — firing 465 attack drones and 32 cruise and ballistic missiles — targeting the country's energy infrastructure and leaving parts of Kyiv without power and water.

Pictured above is a residential building damaged in last night's attack in Kyiv's Pecherskyi District, taken by reporter Kateryna Hodunova.

In September, we wrote about how Ukraine is bracing for more power blackouts this winter — stockpiling fuel reserves and coordinating with the military — as Russia launches new attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Before last night's attacks, Russia had reportedly already destroyed half of Ukraine's natural gas production capacity.

We know that this winter probably won't be ideal, especially in terms of heating and power. 

We'd like to say thank you for sticking with us. It's thanks to our readers that we have a stable source of funding, which helps us stock up on necessary items such as power banks and a generator. Your support makes our work possible.

We'd also like to give a warm welcome to the 261 new members who joined this week. Thank you for deciding to support independent journalism in Ukraine at this critical time.

Here's what you helped us accomplish at the Kyiv Independent this week:

Besides last night's mass missile and drone attack, we also reported on how Russia is ramping up attacks in other areas. Kateryna Hodunova looks at the recent surge of attacks on Ukrainian railways in what seems like an attempt to disrupt military logistics amid the announcements of new arms deliveries. Asami Terajima's story, meanwhile, is about Russia's increasing use of Shahed-type kamikaze drones on the front line, likely a way to conserve KAB guided aerial bombs.

Our most popular story this week was our investigation into one of the top players in Russia's defense industry. Alisa Yurchenko's investigation shows how a bid to unfreeze a superyacht exposed a Russian defense executive's ties and how Russian elites use complex networks, including Western law firms, to lift sanctions.

We reported from near Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast, as Ukraine works to stop Russia's renewed offensive. Francis Farrell and Nick Allard spent a day with the 15th National Guard Brigade, reporting on how Ukrainian artillery crews and drone operators have to adapt their tactics to counter Russia’s advance as Moscow’s troops have already crossed the Oskil River.

We wrote about why the U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles would be a "real headache for Russia." Tania Myronyshena's article breaks down what the long-requested Tomahawk cruise missiles would mean for Ukraine's war effort — in short, these missiles would allow Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia, and with larger warheads and greater accuracy than other available munitions. Supplying Ukraine with Tomahawks could also be used to push Russia towards peace talks — which seem to have reached a dead end.

We also wrote about Ukraine’s Defense Ministry's efforts to digitize and streamline the military. Kollen Post's article explains how Ukraine's military has faced unprecedented cyber pressure since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, and how the Defense Ministry is working to turn as much wartime information as possible into software — while preventing Russians from getting their hands on it.

We reported on the open fight between Ukraine's Security Service and the country's top anti-corruption agency. Oleksiy Sorokin and Oleg Sukhov's article explains how Ukraine's Security Service (which is seen as loyal to the President's Office) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau are entangled in an escalating confrontation.

We analyzed how support for Ukraine in Central Europe is wavering. In addition to Orban in Hungary and Fico in Slovakia, there is now populist billionaire Andrej Babis, who won the Czech elections last week. Martin Fornusek breaks down what's going on in Czechia and in Central Europe, and what it means for Ukraine.

Our next Q&A for our community will be about Ukrainian culture with Kate Tsurkan and Toma Istomina. Next Thursday, Kate and Toma will answer your questions about Ukrainian culture from Kyivan Rus to contemporary Ukraine, from how Ukrainians resisted russification during the Soviet era to how Russia’s war today affects Ukraine’s cultural scene. Register and submit your questions here. You can also read Kate's latest piece about a Ukrainian author executed by Soviet authorities and his legendary novel that still lives on.

Finally, to end on a positive note, we launched our fall community survey this week — and we already have over 900 responses! We'd like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has already filled out the form. Your responses help us tremendously and we read every single one. Brooke, the community manager, would also like to apologize for a (human) error that led the survey form to close for a few minutes right after it was launched. Thank you to everyone who wrote in to notify us of this. If you haven't taken the survey yet, we'd love to hear from you! It takes about 7-12 minutes and you can find it here.

Thank you for standing by our side as we bring independent, locally sourced news about Ukraine to the world.