Political news from Kyiv region, government decisions and Ukraine politics
First Deputy Commander of the 12th Special Purpose Brigade "Azov" Lev Pashko described the tactics of continuous fire pressure, which, according to him, develops a conditioned reflex in Russian soldiers and has already yielded concrete results: 24 prisoners captured in a single day with no losses on their side.
A two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran halted attacks and temporarily reopened the Strait of Hormuz—but neither side obtained what it declared as its war objective. The phenomenon of "mutual victory" reveals the logic of the conflict better than any official statement.
Deputy Commander of the 429th Regiment "Achilles" Oles Malyarevych arrived at the Capitol with a concrete arithmetic argument: six assault troops covered by 200 specialists is not an exception, but a new norm of warfare that breaks with US doctrine.
Ukraine has increased the use of strike unmanned aerial vehicles and now has an overall advantage over the enemy — but the Kursk operation demonstrated that local air superiority with fiber-optic drones was already deciding the outcome of battle.
# Chief of Staff of the 12th "Azov" Brigade Explains Why Unmanned Ground Vehicles Remain "Workhorses" Rather Than Soldier Replacements Lev Pashko, the Chief of Staff of the 12th "Azov" Brigade, explained at the Ground Truth Symposium in Washington why unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) remain "workhorses" rather than replacements for soldiers. Meanwhile, UGVs have set a record of 45 days of combat duty on the front lines without a single soldier nearby.
According to the President's Office, in the first quarter of 2026, average Russian losses across the entire line of contact in the Donbas increased nearly threefold compared to 2025 — but the advance did not stop.
# Romanian Coach Transformed Donetsk Club from Regional Champion to UEFA Cup Winner — and Remained Honorary Citizen of a City Now Occupied by Russia A Romanian coach turned a Donetsk club from a regional champion into a UEFA Cup winner — and remained an honorary citizen of the city that is now occupied by Russia.
# SBU, FBI and EU partners expose "Dying Ember" operation — GRU used over a thousand compromised routers from small businesses and households in over a dozen countries, including Ukraine, to steal credentials from government and military structures. A device sitting in the corner of an office could have been a Moscow spy node.
The resolution on the Strait of Hormuz was rewritten several times, removing increasingly sharp language — down to a completely powerless text. Moscow and Beijing vetoed even that.
The European Commission responded to Zakharova's threats against Baltic countries with the principle of collective defense. Meanwhile, Ukrainian intelligence claims that the drone incidents themselves are the work of Moscow.
London has drawn a strict line: defensive strikes – yes, attacks on civilian infrastructure – no. This boundary is based on legal logic, not diplomatic courtesy.
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance has criticized European restrictions on Russian energy, calling them a threat to stability. Behind the scenes, American liquefied natural gas is being promoted as an alternative.
# The U.S. Vice President's Visit Five Days Before Hungarian Elections: Both Pre-Electoral Support for Trump's Ally and Fresh Accusations Against Kyiv Without Any Evidence
Perun company has presented AI-based optical navigation with an error margin of up to 5% — the drone independently detects GPS spoofing and switches to autonomous mode. This is no longer a prospect, but a weapon on the front lines.
Strikes on Baltic and Black Sea terminals caused the biggest disruption to Russian oil supplies in its modern history. But not through sanctions — through drones, at a moment when Washington eased those very sanctions.
Bloomberg obtained a transcript of a conversation from October 17, 2025, in which Orbán proposed to Putin to be a "mouse" helping the "lion." The summit in Budapest for which this was done never took place — but the recording remained.
The number of Russian sabotage operations in Europe increased fourfold between 2023 and 2024 — and almost all perpetrators did not know who they were actually working for. SBU General Viktor Yagun explains why this is the strategy.
The suspect, according to the SBU, was passing production secrets and geolocation data of workshops to two Russian intelligence services simultaneously. His son, imprisoned in Russia on drug-related charges, was used as leverage, with promises of amnesty.
Two days after a partial resumption of oil exports, Bloomberg recorded a new drone attack. The port, which handled over 130 million tons of cargo annually, came under fire for the fifth time in ten days.
# Tehran Rejects 45-Day Ceasefire Proposal, Demands Permanent Security Guarantees — Brent Crude Trading at $109 as Diesel Prices in Ukraine Surge 34% Tehran has rejected a proposed 45-day ceasefire, insisting on permanent security guarantees instead. Meanwhile, Brent crude oil is trading at $109 per barrel, with diesel prices in Ukraine surging 34%.
Russia is systematically using remotely scattered anti-personnel mines "Prynik" (Gingerbread) in residential areas — from Nikopol to Kherson. Their main characteristic is invisibility, not lethality.
Oleksandr Otroshchenko participated in the annexation of the peninsula in 2014, commanded the Black Sea Fleet aviation during the occupation — and died in the same place where he began. The details of the catastrophe have still not been officially disclosed.
The SBU, together with the GUR and other forces, struck an oil terminal in Novorossiysk — the same facility for which the United States had previously sent Kyiv an official diplomatic warning. The terminal services not only Russian oil, but also Kazakh exports through a consortium that includes stakes held by Chevron and ExxonMobil.
On April 6 in Kharkiv, a civilian attacked a military recruitment center (TCC) serviceman with a knife during an awareness campaign. This is no longer an isolated incident: in 2025, the number of attacks on TCC employees has increased almost threefold compared to the previous year.
# Ground Robotic Systems on Front Lines Increasing in Number — Along With Rising Losses The number of unmanned ground systems on the front is growing, and with it comes an increase in their losses. Combat commander Darwin explains the logic: the enemy has adapted quickly.
A two-year credit was agreed upon by EU leaders back in December, the European Commission finalized the documents on April 1 — yet Hungary's single veto is blocking both this package and a parallel IMF program worth $8 billion.
# Court Orders Russian Chess Federation to Cease Activities in Occupied Ukrainian Territories The Court of Arbitration for Sport has obligated the Russian Chess Federation to cease all activities in the occupied territories of Ukraine within 90 days, or face a three-year suspension from FIDE. The case was initiated by two grandmasters who simply accessed the Russian Chess Federation's website and counted the tournaments held there.
Washington and Tehran are discussing a two-phase agreement — first a temporary ceasefire, then an end to the war. However, the Iranian side publicly denies the fact of negotiations.
Another strike on the oil terminal in Novorossiysk hits not only the Kremlin's budget — it complicates the transit of Kazakh oil to Europe and turns infrastructure attacks into a diplomatic problem.
After Starlink was blocked for Russian occupiers, Russia is massively supplying compact "Spirit-030" terminals to the front lines. The first sample found on the frontline was destroyed by "Birds of Madhara" — but Beskrestnov warns: there will be more.