We reported on the biggest corruption scandal of Zelensky's presidency: Here's what you helped us accomplish this week (Patreon)

Dear Kyiv Independent community members,

Thank you for your continued support. It's been another hell of a week.

Last night, Russia launched another mass aerial attack at Kyiv, using about 430 drones and 18 missiles, and striking residential buildings — so far, at least six people have been killed, and another 35 are injured.

Ukraine reportedly downed 14 of Russia's missiles with "long Neptunes," Ukraine’s ground-launched, domestically produced anti-ship rockets, that had a long-range, modernized version released in August.

Pictured above is the Azerbaijan embassy in Kyiv, damaged after last night's mass Russian missile and drone attack, taken this morning by our videographer Olena Zashko.

We'd also like to give a warm welcome to the 473 new members who joined this week. Thank you for choosing to support independent journalism in Ukraine, especially at this critical moment.

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

We reported on the biggest corruption scandal of Zelensky's presidency — inside his own ranks. For starters, here's everything you need to know about the ongoing corruption scandal involving a nuclear power company and top officials. We also published an explainer on Timur Mindich, the alleged ringleader and Zelensky's associate. We also explained how the corruption scheme is linked to Russia — as well as how it reveals links between the Ukrainian defense company Fire Point and Mindich.

Our most widely-read article last week was about the gaps in Russia's air defenses. Tania Myronyshena's article breaks down the problems with Russia's air defense, as the country struggles to respond to Ukraine's strikes on oil-related infrastructure. The only problem for Ukraine is that it lacks the weapons to exploits these gaps to the fullest.

We reported on how Russian drones are turning Ukraine's front line into a no-go zone for journalists. Deadly drone attacks on front-line journalists have become more and more common recently — in October alone, three journalists were killed and five were wounded while working in Donetsk Oblast. Asami Terajima's article explains what's changed for those reporting on Russia's war, as Russian drones are able to reach areas that were once safer to work in.

Is Russia running out of money to continue its war? Tim Zadorozhnyy's article takes a close look at Russia's draft for its 2026–2028 federal budget — which experts call anything but normal — as Russia is experiencing a full-blown budget crisis, making it increasingly difficult to operate the military-industrial complex at the current pace.

We interviewed a Brazilian volunteer fighter about the concerns of crime links to South Americans fighting for Ukraine. Jared Goyette sat down with Everson Neves to discuss his experience fighting for Ukraine — and the growing concerns that members of South American criminal groups could gain combat experience through volunteering to fight for Ukraine. You can read the article explaining the Philipe Marques Pinto case — a member of the Brazilian Red Command criminal organization who reportedly fought in Ukraine — here.

We also wrote about how AI-created deepfakes are manipulating Ukraine’s mobilization narrative. Tim Zadorozhnyy's article looks at the new disinformation campaign, which features fake videos of Ukrainian soldiers pleading for help. Experts say that this marks a new stage in the Kremlin's information warfare — one designed to erode trust in Ukraine's leadership and weaken Western support.

Our next Q&A is on a topic chosen by our members — Russian propaganda and disinformation. You can join two experts Alona Hurkivska and Keir Giles on Nov. 25 as they answer your questions about Russian propaganda, disinformation, and information warfare. They’ll discuss everything from how to recognize fake news to understanding how propaganda spreads, and how to trust the news you're reading. You can register and submit your questions here.

Finally, to end on a positive note, on Tuesday, the Kyiv Independent celebrated its fourth birthday! We'd like to say a huge thank you to every single one of you — this is all made possible by our members. For context, less than 1% of our readers choose to make a financial contribution to the Kyiv Independent. Our community is just 23,000 people — this is about half the capacity of a baseball stadium. Most of our members give just $5 a month. This shows the power of collective action, because together, your support makes a huge difference for us, helping us reach millions of readers around the world each month and keeping Ukraine in the headlines. We also launched our campaign to reach 25,000 members by the end of 2025 on Tuesday — thank you for helping us get one step closer to our goal.

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