Friday, November 8

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Dancer Antonina Radievska kisses her daughter at the end of the show “Drakony” created by the Ukrainian composer Maksym Kolomiets at the Kharkiv National Opera and Ballet on Nov. 7, 2024, in Kharkiv. The theater resumed operating earlier this year in a basement below the main auditorium. Kharkiv is only 40 km from the Russian border and is a regular target of Russian attacks. (Diego Fedele/Getty Images)

Peace cannot be bought by weakness, Zelensky says at Budapest summit. “Peace is a reward only for the strong,” President Zelensky said.

Zelensky says he is unaware of details of Trump plan to end Ukraine war. President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a news conference at the European Political Community summit in Budapest that he believed Trump wanted to end the war with Russia quickly, but that he had not discussed a plan with him.

Trump’s team mulls postponing Ukraine’s NATO membership for at least 20 years, WSJ reports. One idea within U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s team for ending Russia’s war involves delaying Kyiv’s NATO membership for at least 20 years in exchange for continued arms supplies, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Nov. 6, citing three sources close to Trump.

West must negotiate war’s end based on ‘current realities,’ Shoigu says. The West should recognize that Russia is currently winning the war against Ukraine and therefore start negotiations, Sergei Shoigu, secretary of Russia’s Security Council, said on Nov. 8, as the Russian state news agency TASS reported.

Putin congratulates Trump on US election victory, says he is ‘ready to have discussions’. Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Donald Trump on his victory in the U.S. presidential election during the Valdai forum in Sochi on Nov. 7.

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Ukrainian PM hopes for ‘clear and quick’ steps by Trump on Ukraine. “We understand that the U.S.’s core value is the protection of democracy, the protection of democratic values. This remains unchanged, regardless of the elections,” Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal commented.

Ukraine expected to reopen one airport by end of January 2025. President Volodymyr Zelensky insists that Boryspil International Airport be opened first.

Ukraine may have targeted Iranian weapon supply routes in Dagestan strike, media suggests. Although the precise consequences of the Ukrainian attack are difficult to establish, the recent strike is still “significant in several ways,” the War Zone’s experts said.

Zelensky’s office deputy head traveled to Russia at least 9 times after 2014, media investigation shows. Oleh Tatarov, deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, has traveled to Moscow at least nine times since Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014, RFE/RL’s investigation project Schemes reported on Nov. 7, citing obtained flight data.

No Azeri gas deal currently on table to maintain flows via Ukraine, Naftogaz CEO says. No deal is currently on the table between Europe and Azerbaijan to keep gas flowing through Ukraine once a transit deal with Russia expires at the end of the year, despite reports a contract was nearing, CEO of Ukrainian state-owned oil and gas giant Naftogaz said.

Read our exclusives

Ukrainians in US react to Trump’s comeback – ‘Aid will either increase or stop altogether’

After asking Ukrainians in Kyiv, soldiers, and politicians for their reaction to Trump’s victory, the Kyiv Independent has turned to Ukrainians in the U.S. to respond to what they make of Trump’s now-certain return to the White House.

Photo: Linda Johnson/the Kyiv Independent

Ukraine war latest: Russian mass airstrike on Zaporizhzhia kills 4, injures over 30

Russia struck Zaporizhzhia five times using guided aerial bombs. The attack partially destroyed an apartment building and houses, and damaged a cancer hospital. Four people were killed in the attack.

Photo: State Emergency Service

5 Ukraine stories you might’ve missed because of US election

As the world waited with bated breath for the result of the U.S. elections, Russia’s war against Ukraine did not relent. Russia’s grinding advances in Donbas, drone attacks, and still more alleged war crimes all continued no matter who was delivering a victory speech across the Atlantic.

Photo: State Emergency Service/Telegram

How Trump plans to end Ukraine war, according to Volker

Human cost of war

Russian strike on Zaporizhzhia kills 8, injures 42, damages hospital. Russia struck Zaporizhzhia five times using guided aerial bombs. A 1-year-old child was among the victims.

Russian attack on Kharkiv injures 25. At least 25 people were injured and more may be trapped under the rubble, local authorities said. Search and rescue operations are ongoing at the building.

Russian attacks across Ukraine kill 2, injure 13. Russia launched a mass drone attack on Kyiv, injuring two people. The air raid alert in Ukraine’s capital lasted eight hours, while the air defenses shot down over 30 UAVs.

General Staff: Russia has lost 704,300 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. This number includes 1,400 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.

Opinions and insights

Opinion: Trump’s election marks the death of Transatlanticism

“As the vote unfolded late Tuesday night and Europe awoke Wednesday morning, the transatlantic dream died once more — this time, more decisively than ever,” writes OSINT for Ukraine researcher Wilson Daily.

Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Opinion: 3 ways Trump’s return to power could unfold for Ukraine

“Trump and his proxies have shown a mix of skepticism and hostility toward continued aid to Ukraine. Ideally, he’d like Ukraine to neither win nor lose,” writes KI Insights Director Jakub Parusinski.

Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

International response

Putin, Russian officials secretly congratulate Trump, media reports. Donald Trump also received informal and indirect congratulations from other top Russian officials, including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, and others.

NATO chief Rutte wants to discuss Russia-North Korea threat with Trump. “We have to work together. So I look forward to sitting down with Donald Trump to discuss how we can face these threats collectively, what we need to do,” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said.

Trump, South Korean president discuss North Korean troops joining Russia’s war. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol held a phone call on Nov. 7 after the former won the U.S. presidential election, discussing future cooperation.

South Korea ‘not ruling out’ supplying arms to Ukraine, president says. “Now, depending on the level of North Korean involvement, we will gradually adjust our support strategy in phases,” South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told the media. “This means we are not ruling out the possibility of providing weapons.”

UK targets Russian-backed mercenaries, defense industry in major sanctions package. The U.K. government on Nov. 7 announced its largest package of sanctions against Russia since May 2023, focusing on the Russian defense industry and mercenary groups.

German aid for Ukraine in 2025 safe despite coalition collapse, Reuters reports. Germany will be able to provide most of the 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) promised to Ukraine, even if the 2025 budget is not approved in time due to the coalition collapse, Reuters reported on Nov. 7, citing unnamed sources from the budget committee.

Scholz fired finance minister over Taurus missiles proposal, ex-FM says. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz fired former Finance Minister Christian Lindner after he proposed sending Ukraine Taurus missiles instead of financial aid, Lindner said on Nov. 7.

World’s largest business organization cuts arbitration costs to boost foreign investment in Ukraine’s reconstruction. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), will lower the costs of its arbitration court for foreign investors involved in Ukraine’s reconstruction projects to encourage much-needed investment.

Kyiv-born former US soldier, Trump whistleblower, elected to US Congress. Eugene Vindman, a retired U.S. soldier who gained prominence for his role as a whistleblower against then-President Donald Trump along with his twin brother Alexander, won the election to the House of Representatives in Virginia, the Associated Press reported on Nov. 6.

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