Russian invasion of Ukraine
Special Coverage

Vladimir Putin began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, in an escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War that he started in 2014. The invasion received widespread international condemnation, including massive economic sanctions. Milwaukee’s Ukrainian American community began with immigrants in the early twentieth century, and continued to grow in the years after World War II and the fall of the Soviet Union.
These news stories cover the local connections in Milwaukee to an international crisis, and all the complexities woven into America’s political climate.
- Links to complete news coverage of Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine: mkeind.com/ukraine
- Reports from Ukraine – Series of news reports from May 2022 in Ukraine: mkeind.com/reportsfromukraine
- Return to Ukraine – Series of news reports from June-July 2023 in Ukraine: mkeind.com/returntoukraine
- Selected features that focus on news from Milwaukee’s Sister City of Irpin: mkeind.com/irpin

Featured: Jennifer Vosters: A visit to Kyiv that offered insight, awareness, and an inspiration for solidarity [Feb 24, 2022]

Putin flaunts his so-called doomsday weapons as ongoing threat to block support for Ukraine
This year has seen Russia’s dictator Vladimir Putin repeatedly brandish the nuclear sword, reminding everyone that Russia has the world’s largest atomic arsenal to try to deter the West from ramping up support for Ukraine. He ordered his military to hold...

Outrage grows in Odesa after Russia terrorizes port city with attacks on beloved historic sites
“They shot at themselves. This cathedral was a symbol of Russia’s presence in this city. And now the same country that blessed this church is destroying it.” – Father Yevhen Gutyar Tetiana Khlapova’s hand trembled as she recorded the wreckage of...

Officials and analysts believe that Kyiv has launched a major push against Russian forces
Ukraine has launched a major push to dislodge Russian forces from the country’s southeast as part of its weekslong counteroffensive, committing thousands of troops to the battle, according to Western and Ukrainian officials and analysts. The surge in troops and...

Putin’s alleged deployment of nuclear weapons to Belarus dismissed as more bluster and blackmail
Sometime over the summer, if Vladimir Putin can be believed, Russia moved some of its short-range nuclear weapons into Belarus, closer to Ukraine and onto NATO’s doorstep. The declared deployment of the Russian weapons on the territory of its neighbor and loyal...

True Stories of Love: Ukrainian women use painting as a therapy to help them cope with loss
In a sunlit art studio in Kyiv filled with easels and canvases, Iryna Farion puts the finishing touches on an oil painting with a predominantly dark color palette in shades of blue and brown. The artwork depicts two intertwined trees held together by their roots, as...

Putin’s sales pitch: Why GOP members of Congress are suddenly outspoken against aid to Ukraine
Make no mistake. There is a battle right now between autocracy and democracy around the world. Countries are lining up on either side. And that is really what is going on, at this stage, with Ukraine. This is literally a battle for the 21st century order. For the way...

Disaster Debate: Pro-Russian voices spread toxic propaganda on social media after Ohio train crash
Soon after a train derailed and spilled toxic chemicals in Ohio last month, anonymous pro-Russian accounts started spreading misleading claims and anti-American propaganda about it on Twitter, using Elon Musk’s new verification system to expand their reach while...

Putin charged with war crimes after international court issues warrant over child abductions in Ukraine
The International Criminal Court said on March 17 that it has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes, accusing him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine. It was the first time the global court has...

Child Victims: Why prosecuting Putin for abductions in Ukraine will not guarantee the kids can return home
By Stefan Schmitt, Project Lead for International Technical Forensic Services, Florida International University The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on March 17, 2023, over war crimes in Ukraine, alleging he...

New mass grave: Mourners in Bucha commemorate volunteers who tried to stop Russian drive to Kyiv
Clutching flowers and wiping away tears, relatives, neighbors and friends of eight men executed by Russian forces during the occupation of the Ukrainian town of Bucha gathered on March 4 to mark the first anniversary of the deaths. The eight had set up a roadblock in...

United For Freedom: Milwaukee holds vigil to honor the lives lost in 365 days of defending Ukraine
More than 64 cities across America joined the “365 Days Defending Freedom” event, which began on February 24. The Milwaukee rally was organized to remind the world that Russia’s war against Ukraine has been going on for nine years. It has been one year since the unprovoked full-scale invasion started on February 24, 2022.

A World War: How information became a key weapon of the Ukrainian defense against Russia’s brutality
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II, and the first to see algorithms and TikTok videos deployed alongside fighter planes and tanks. The online fight has played out on computer screens and smartphones around the...

Ukrainian armed forces now control almost 390 square miles of Russia’s Kursk region in blow to Putin
Ukraine’s top military commander says his forces now control 386 square miles of Russia’s neighboring Kursk region, the first time a Ukrainian military official has publicly commented on the gains of the lightning incursion that has embarrassed the...


Featured: Photos from the frontlines: Sergi Mykhalchuk documents images of war as civilians evacuate Irpin [Mar 16, 2022]

Featured: Milwaukee formalizes Sister City status with Ukraine’s Irpin [Mar 23, 2018]
Milwaukee has a small but thriving Ukrainian American community, and Irpin is a sister city. Follow our special coverage at mkeind.com/ukraine for updates on Putin’s invasion, and about how the fight by Ukrainian people to preserve their democracy is having an impact on the families and businesses here in Milwaukee. 🇺🇦 Слава Україні! Героям слава!
Help maintain a reliable news source in Ukraine by supporting the Kyiv Independent, an English-language media outlet created by journalists who were fired from the Kyiv Post for defending editorial independence. Donations can be made via patreon or gofundme.