Tag: ukraine

Zelensky Touts That 20 Countries Seek Ukraine Drone Deals

Ukraine is emerging as a global drone export powerhouse, coming fresh off vast experience gained in over four years of war with Russia – or at least that’s the image Kiev is seeking to present to the world.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that nearly 20 countries are pursuing drone agreements with Ukraine, with four deals already finalized.

Agreements already confirmed include deals with Germany, Norway and the Netherlands, alongside ‌long-term security partnerships with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates which were inked in late March as Zelensky personally toured the Gulf, even amid the ongoing Iran war, according to Reuters.

Zelensky has been offering Ukraine’s services and drone supplies to Gulf countries as a cheaper, effective alternative to dwindling and costly American-supplied anti-air defenses.

“Nearly 20 countries are currently involved at various stages: 4 agreements have already been signed, and the first contracts under these agreements are now being prepared,” Zelensky has newly proclaimed on X.

“Ukraine has ​already ⁠started to receive the necessary volume of fuel thanks to the agreements,” Zelensky also stated. Interestingly, he’s also of late been pitching being a supplier of battlefield robots, as we’ve detailed before.

Starting in April, Zelensky had hailed that Ukrainian personnel were able to help partners build effective air defenses using interceptor drones to combat Iranian Shaheds.

Low-cost interceptor drones deployed by Ukraine are among the most effective ways to combat the inexpensive $20,000 Shaheds, as a war of attrition makes little economic sense when interceptor missiles cost hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.

Ukraine has had four years to develop low-cost one-way attack drones and interceptors during its war with Russia. Now, this technology is clearly being exported across multiple theaters in Eurasia.

Zelensky did not identify the countries or the exact interceptor drones used in his comments at the time, but it is possible that Octopus-100 autonomous interceptor drones were deployed.

Keep reading

Zelensky’s Former Right-Hand Man Andriy Yermak Charged by Anti-Corruption Bureau in Sprawling Graft Probe

Allegations of corruption, and even of witchcraft, have plagued Yermak.

We have been reporting throughout the last year about the rise and fall of Andriy Yermak, Volodymyr Zelensky’s grey eminence, and formerly the second most powerful man in Ukraine.

You can read here: KIEV REGIME INFIGHTING: Zelensky’s ‘Grey Eminence’ Yermak Is on a Power Grab, Trying To Replace Top Ukrainian Spy Budanov – White House Brands Him ‘A Liability’ Linked to Hunter Biden

In July of last year, Zelensky tried to strip the Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Agencies of power for investigating officials linked to Yermak, unleashing a wave of public popular protests for the first time during the war, so he had to backtrack.

TASS reported:

“The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have brought charges against Andrey Yermak, the former head of Vladimir Zelensky’s office, according to posts on the Telegram channels of both agencies.

‘NABU and SAP have uncovered an organized group involved in the laundering of 460 million hryvnias (roughly 10.5 million dollars) in luxury construction projects near Kiev. Charges have been brought against one of the group’s members, former head of Vladimir Zelensky’s office’, the statement reads.”

The charges involve ‘laundering of property obtained through criminal means’, a crime with a penalty of 8 to 15 years, with confiscation of property.

Keep reading

When one man, a civilian, controls the kill switch for military ops

In September 2022, Ukrainian forces prepared to launch a drone strike on the Russian naval fleet anchored off Crimea. The drones never arrived.

Elon Musk had decided, unilaterally, not to activate Starlink coverage over the region. But he wasn’t simply declining to help. SpaceX had already been managing battlefield access for both sides: restricting Russian use, imposing speed limits to prevent drone integration, and maintaining a verified whitelist with Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense. One private citizen, with no security clearance and no accountability to any electorate, was governing the battlefield connectivity of an active war.

The public debate treats this as a story about Elon Musk — his politics, his proximity to the White House, his X posts. That framing lets the actual problem off the hook. Replace Musk with the most patriotic, internationalist, apolitical CEO imaginable and the structural problem remains identical. The Pentagon has spent a decade building critical military functions on infrastructure it can’t legally compel, and the consequences are now arriving in real time.

A common reflex is to argue that private defense contractors have always been central to American military power. Lockheed Martin builds the F-35; Raytheon builds the Patriot. What’s different now is the control plane: who has real-time administrative control during use. When the government buys a tank, it owns it. The keys don’t expire. The manufacturer can’t disable it mid-mission or impose terms in combat. Software and AI are different. Vendors keep ongoing control — updates, access, and usage limits. They don’t sell a capability; they license access to one, and the license has conditions.

Those conditions have already collided with active operations. After months of failed negotiations, the Pentagon formally designated the AI firm Anthropic a supply-chain risk because of restrictions on how its model could be used. The Pentagon was explicit in its decision: “The military will not allow a vendor to insert itself into the chain of command.” Emil Michael, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, described the moment he fully grasped the vulnerability: Anthropic’s models were already embedded across combatant commands and intelligence agencies, wired into classified workflows. Anthropic retained the control plane inside the Pentagon’s cloud — able to update, restrict, or shut off access. When Michael raised hypothetical crisis scenarios, Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, offered exceptions case by case. “Just call me if you need another exception,” Michael recalls him saying. In a genuine crisis, a commander can’t call a vendor to authorize military action, nor should he have to.

This isn’t about whether Anthropic’s rules are reasonable. They weren’t set by anyone accountable to the joint force, there’s no override mechanism, and the Pentagon had made itself dependent on systems it doesn’t control.

Keep reading

Ukraine has violated Victory Day ceasefire – Moscow

The Ukrainian military has violated the Victory Day ceasefire on 8,970 occasions since it took effect at midnight on Friday, including drone and artillery strikes, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

Moscow said on Friday that it had ordered all of its troops along the Ukraine front line to halt combat operations and stay at their positions.

In a statement on Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry stressed that its forces were continuing to abide by the ceasefire. By contrast, the Ukrainian military had conducted “strikes on our forces’ positions involving unmanned aerial vehicles and artillery,” military officials in Moscow reported. On top of that, a number of Russian regions, including Crimea, Bryansk Region, Belgorod Region, Kursk Region, and Moscow Region, have come under Ukrainian attacks.

According to the ministry, of the 8,970 ceasefire violations on Kiev’s part, 1,173 attacks were conducted by Ukrainian artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, mortars and tanks. The Russian military has additionally recorded a total of 7,151 enemy drone strikes.

Keep reading

Biden-Appointed Federal Judge Tosses Lawsuit That Would Have Forced Hunter Biden to Register as Foreign Agent Over Burisma and China Deals

A Biden-appointed federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to compel Hunter Biden to register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for his work with Ukrainian energy giant Burisma and a Chinese Communist Party-linked energy fund.

U.S. District Judge Jia M. Cobb issued the ruling Tuesday in Washington, D.C., shutting down the case brought by the America First Legal Foundation, the conservative legal group founded by former Trump advisor Stephen Miller.

The lawsuit, filed in 2023, argued that Hunter Biden’s business dealings, including his board seat at Burisma Holdings and payments from the China Energy Fund Committee, required him to register as a foreign agent with the Department of Justice.

In a press release at the time of filing, America First Legal Vice President and General Counsel Gene Hamilton wrote:

“As a result of AFL’s dedicated investigation and litigation against the National Archives, it is now crystal clear that Hunter Biden should have registered as a foreign agent while his father served as Vice President. This is just another example of influence peddling and politicians and their families exploiting their positions of power for personal gain and wealth. It is crucial that the DOJ examine this new evidence and take appropriate action based on what appears to be a clear violation of FARA. We’ve only just scratched the surface of the Biden family’s influence peddling and corruption and will continue to conduct rigorous oversight to ensure no one is above the law – not even the President’s son.”

Keep reading

US greenlights bomb deal for Ukraine

The administration of US President Donald Trump has approved the potential sale of precision-guided bomb kits worth $373.6 million to Ukraine, following congressional pressure over stalled arms deliveries.

The move was announced by the State Department on Tuesday, greenlighting a possible Foreign Military Sale of 1,532 JDAM-Extended Range (JDAM-ER) tail kits and related support equipment to Kiev. The equipment could be used to convert heavy bombs into GPS-guided munitions that can hit targets dozens of kilometers away. Boeing, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, is listed as the primary contractor.

The deal does not guarantee that the weapons will be delivered, while the figures represent the maximum quantity and value of the purchase, with details subject to further negotiations and congressional review.

Keep reading

Putin Announces Truce for Victory Day on May 8 and 9, Warns Ukraine: If It Disrupts Celebrations, Russian Forces Will Strike Kiev’s Center

Victory Day truce may unleash unprecedented strikes.

We are approaching May 9, the date where Russians traditionally celebrate their defeat of Nazi Germany in the Second World War, or – as they prefer – in the ‘Patriotic War’.

Just like last year, the celebration that gathers the Russian elite and a large number of foreign dignitaries will happen under the shadow of a possible drone-missile combined strike by Ukraine.

Not only that, but after Moscow announced a truce on May 8 and 9, Kiev came today with their own truce to begin on Wednesday (6).

Also today, the Russian Defense Ministry has warned Kiev of massive retaliation if it disrupts the celebrations.

Bloomberg reported:

“Russian President Vladimir Putin designated a ceasefire for May 8-9, the Defense Ministry said in a post on Telegram. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said there was no coordination with his government. He declared his own ceasefire regime starting at midnight on the night of May 5, saying Ukraine will act reciprocally starting from that moment.

‘There has been no official appeal to Ukraine regarding the modality of a cessation of hostilities’, Zelenskiy said on X after Russia’s announcement. ‘It is time for Russian leaders to take real steps to end their war, especially since Russia’s Defense Ministry believes it cannot hold a parade in Moscow without Ukraine’s goodwill’.”

Keep reading

Russian Forces Edging Towards Fortified Ukrainian Stronghold of Konstantinovka, in Northern Donetsk Region

The city is part of the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk Agglomeration, the last Ukrainian bastion in Donetsk.

While the Russia-Ukraine war has lost the media spotlight to the Middle East Conflict, the hostilities continue, every bit as brutal as ever.

And while the Russian advances are not as fast or as meaningful as last year, they still managed to conquer over 80 settlements in 2026, and are approaching, slowly but relentlessly, the ultimate prize in the Donetsk region that is the cradle of the war.

We’re talking about the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk Agglomeration, a heavily defended area that is the last major bastion in the Donbas (Donetsk plus Luhansk).

News has arisen from Ukrainian sources that Russian troops are edging toward the city of Konstantinovka, trying to gain a foothold close to a heavily defended belt.

Watch – Putin: Kyiv regime spent 10 years building fortresses in Slavyansk, Kramatorsk & Konstantinovka

Keep reading

Russia Claims Frontline Progress in War With Ukraine, as Drone Strike Kills Two in Kherson

Two people were killed after a Russian drone attacked a minibus in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, local officials said Saturday, in the latest barrage of civilian areas, a hallmark of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

Seven people were also wounded in the attack, regional head Oleksandr Prokudin said. Hours later Russia attacked another minibus in Kherson, wounding the driver, he said.

Meanwhile, along the northern border with Belarus, Ukraine recorded “rather unusual” activity on Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on Telegram on Saturday. Without elaborating, he said activity was seen on the Belarusian side of the border and that Ukraine would act if matters escalated.

“We are closely documenting and keeping the situation under control. If necessary, we will react,” he said.

Belarus, a close ally of the Kremlin, has allowed Russia to use its territory as a staging ground to send troops into Ukraine and to host some of Moscow’s tactical nuclear weapons.

On Ukraine’s Black Sea coast, a Russian strike damaged port infrastructure in the city of Odesa. No casualties were reported.

Keep reading

No, Zelensky Is Not ‘The Leader of the Free World’

Just when sensible people might conclude that American or European members of Ukraine’s sycophantic fan club cannot become even more detached from reality, a prominent member of the club proves the opposite.  This time, it is conservative pundit David French, who wins the prize in his April 26, 2026, New York Times column, “Meet the New Leader of the Free World.”   That leader is Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.

French contends that “A remarkable thing has happened on the world’s battlefields. Ukraine – a nation that was supposed to dissolve within days of a Russian invasion – has fought Russia to a stalemate, revolutionizing land warfare in the process.  It has become an indispensable security partner in the Western alliance, including in the war against Iran.”

But according to French, such military resilience barely begins to measure the extent of Volodymyr Zelensky’s achievements. He also “is taking the next step, one that would have been unthinkable even as recently as 2024. By word and deed, he’s showing Europe and the world how the post-American free world can preserve its liberty and independence.” French then delves into well-worn episodes in which Donald Trump’s administration has alienated, antagonized, and berated America’s longtime NATO allies, thereby provoking Europe to become more self-reliant, as one manifestation of the “post-American” free world.

French seems downright awestruck at Ukraine’s alleged military prowess. “This might be difficult for many readers to grasp – given our nation’s longstanding military supremacy – but the largest and most battle-hardened land force in the Western world may well be the Ukrainian Army.”  He adds that “It’s also worth noting that the U.S. forces have much less combat experience than Ukraine forces – especially when it comes to combat with a great power.”

But there’s more!  Ukraine’s military “is the only Western force that has fully adapted to modern drone warfare.  Indeed, Ukraine is arguably the world’s leader in drone warfare.”

Observers who recall the Western news media’s hyped propaganda offensive during the prelude to the Persian Gulf War may be experiencing a sense of déjà vu.  Prominent news correspondents insisted (while maintaining sober expressions) that Iraq was a borderline military superpower.  Of course, in that case the purpose of the propaganda was to generate fear of Iraq as a military threat.  In this case, the propaganda is an attempt to convince a skeptical global audience that Ukraine is a surprisingly capable military bulwark against Russia, Iran, and other authoritarian threats.  The current disinformation is nearly as flagrant, however, as during the earlier episode.

Russia continues to make gains on the battlefield, slowly conquering additional Ukrainian territory. The bloodied Ukrainian forces appear increasingly beleaguered, and Russia (because of its much larger population and military reserves) is better positioned for a continuing war of attrition.  Western officials and their media allies have gone to great lengths to obscure the fundamental reality that Russia is winning the war, albeit in a costlier and more grinding fashion than the Kremlin had assumed.  The credibility of arguments that Moscow cannot continue to sustain the drain on its manpower is not enhanced by the continuing refusal of Western analysts to provide even a rough estimate of Ukrainian casualties.  Such clumsy attempts at concealment suggest that the actual news about that issue is not good.

If the battlefield situation were not worrisome enough for Ukraine, major domestic political fractures have occurred over the past year.  Zelensky’s latest moves also alienated some of his most reliable supporters and apologists in the West.  When prominent establishment media outlets such as the Financial Times, the Spectator, and Politico all began to publish stories critical of the Ukrainian leader’s undemocratic moves in late 2025, there was a sense that attitudes even among pro-Ukraine Western elites were shifting.  That trend has quietly continued in 2026.

Keep reading