Explaining Ukraine

What are the consequences of the Wagner “revolt” against the Kremlin? Will it weaken Putin’s power? What is the future of Russian criminal paramilitary groups like Wagner? Listen to our Twitter space with Petro Burkovskyi and Maria Zolkina, analysts at the Ilko Kocheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation, a Ukrainian think tank. Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Mykola, the acting head of Nechvolodivka, a village near Kupyansk in Kharkiv Oblast, was twice kidnapped and tortured by the Russian occupiers. We went to his village and spoke to him and his family. In this episode, we tell you the story of him and his family’s story - and try to look at the patterns of Russian cruelty during the occupation. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld Support our volunteer trips to the frontline: PayPal ukraine.resisting@gmail.com

While Ukraine is gradually moving forward in its counteroffensive, Russia keeps attacking Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles almost every night, and is blackmailing the whole world with the threat of a nuclear disaster. Even though the war rages on, Ukraine is already planning reconstruction, and discussed its plans with international partners at this week’s Ukraine Recovery Conference in London. This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasymchuk, analysts and journalists at UkraineWorld, to discuss 7 key events in and around Ukraine over the past week. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Another Rammstein meeting delivers on further support to Ukraine while the latter achieves its first successes in the counteroffensive. In the meantime, a delegation of African leaders embarks on a peacemaking tour to Ukraine and Russia. This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasymchuk, analysts and journalists at UkraineWorld, to discuss 7 key events in and around Ukraine over the past week. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Every war is different, yet they share a lot of similarities. Bosnia, Syria, Iraq, Chechnya, Ukraine - how can these wars be compared? What are the patterns of Russian actions in Chechnya and Syria which are being repeated in Ukraine? Why should we talk about evil? - Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, invites Janine di Giovanni, a prominent American war correspondent who has worked in Chechnya, Iraq, Syria, Bosnia, and many other places, and is the Executive Director of the Reckoning Project Thinking in Dark Times is a podcast series by UkraineWorld. This series seeks to make Ukraine and the current war a focal point of our joint reflection on the world’s present, past, and future. We try to see the light through and despite the current darkness. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld The Reckoning project: https://www.thereckoningproject.com/ Janine di Giovanni’s website: https://www.janinedigiovanni.com/

On June 6th, Russia blew up the Kakhovka dam, causing a massive environmental catastrophe in southern Ukraine. The impact of this ecocide will last for decades. In this episode, we discuss the causes of this crime, and its consequences for Ukraine’s people, ecosystems, economy, and war effort. - Volodymyr Yermolenko, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, talks to Maksym Panchenko and Anastasiia Herasymchuk, analysts and journalists at UkraineWorld.org. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine. You can support our work at patreon.com/ukraineworld

In 1994, Ukraine gave up the nuclear weapons it had inherited from the Soviet Union. It was invited to sign the Budapest Memorandum with Russia, the UK, and the US, which was supposed to give Ukraine security assurances. Russia broke these assurances first in 2014, and then in 2022, by invading and occupying Ukraine. Since 1994, Ukraine has found itself in a security vacuum, which, directly or indirectly, invited Russia to attack. - In this episode, Ukrainian philosopher Volodymyr Yermolenko speaks to Mariana Budjeryn, Senior Research Associate at the Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center. Mariana is the author of the recent book Inheriting the bomb. The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of Ukraine. In this episode, we talk about the genealogy of the Budapest Memorandum, its consequences for today’s war, Russia’s nuclear blackmail, and lessons for the future. Thinking in Dark Times is a podcast series by UkraineWorld. This series seeks to make Ukraine and the current war a focal point of our joint reflection on the world’s present, past, and future. We try to see the light through and despite the current darkness. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

On June 6th Russia blew up the dam of the Kakhovka hydropower plant in Southern Ukraine. This act of geopolitical terrorism and ecocide produces a major environmental disaster for decades to come. It also puts the Zaporizzhia nuclear power plant (the biggest NPP in Europe) at a significant risk. We have recorded a Twitter space to discuss this tragedy, based on our conversations with the Ukrainian experts and journalists. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko, journalist and analyst at UkraineWorld. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Russia’s daily bombardment of Ukrainian cities; a drone attack on Moscow; Ukraine’s efforts to create a coalition to deliver Patriot air defense systems; China’s peace diplomacy in Europe; the US new aid package to Ukraine; another raid by the Russian Volunteer Corps in Belgorod; and the creation of a Marine Corps in Ukraine. - This is our weekly overview of key events and trends in and around Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, the chief editor of UkraineWorld, is joined by Maksym Panchenko, journalist and analyst at UkraineWorld, to discuss 7 key events in and around Ukraine over the past week: UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Why is Ukraine important to the Jewish world? Which figures and elements of Jewish religious history and culture are linked to Ukraine? How can we look at Ukrainian and Jewish history in a way that treats tragedies with justice but also discovers parallels and interconnections? – Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld, speaks to Rabbi Jacobson, a Jewish scholar, best-selling author, and Founding Dean of The Meaningful Life Center in New York. Thinking in Dark Times is a podcast series by UkraineWorld. This series seeks to make Ukraine and the current war a focal point of our joint reflection on the world’s present, past, and future. We try to see the light through and despite the current darkness. UkraineWorld (ukraineworld.org) is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld The Meaningful Life Center: https://www.meaningfullife.com/