Ukraine updates in English

[US7IGN]

Due to the lack of electricity, I started reading more, and one of the most interesting books I've read recently was Albert Speer`s memoirs Inside the Third Reich. It's especially interesting to compare the situation in different countries during the war and how different regimes behaved - dictatorships and democracies:

It remains one of the oddities of this war that hitler demanded far less from his people than Churchill and Roosevelt did from their respective nations. The discrepancy between the total mobilization of labor forces in democratic England and the casual treatment of this question in authoritarian Germany is proof of the regime's anxiety not to risk any shift in the popular mood. The German leaders were not disposed to make sacrifices themselves or to ask sacrifices of the people. They tried to keep the morale of the people in the best possible state by concessions. Hitler and the majority of his political followers belonged to the generation who as soldiers had witnessed the Revolution of November 1918 and had never forgotten it. In private conversations Hitler indicated that after the experience of 1918 one could not be cautious enough. In order to anticipate any discontent, more effort and money was expended on supplies of consumer goods, on military pensions or compensation to women for the loss of earnings by their men in the services, than in the countries with democratic governments. Whereas Churchill promised his people only blood, sweat, and tears, all we heard during the various phases and various crises of the war was Hitlers slogan: "The final victory is certain." This was a confession of political weakness. It betrayed great concern over a loss of popularity which might develop into an insurrectionary mood.

After only nine years of rule the leadership was so corrupt that even in the critical phase of the war it could not cut back on its luxurious style of living. For "representational reasons" the leaders all needed big houses, hunting lodges, estates and palaces, many servants, a rich table, and a select wine cellar. They were also concerned about their lives to an insane degree.

Amateurishness was one of hitler's dominant traits, he had never learned a profession and basically had always remained an outsider to all fields of endeavor. Like many self-taught people, he had no idea what real specialized knowledge meant. Without any sense of the complexities of any great task, he boldly assumed one function after another. Unburdened by standard ideas, his quick intelligence sometimes conceived unusual measures which a specialist would not have hit on at all. The victories of the early years of the war can literally be attributed to Hitler's ignorance of the rules of the game and his layman's delight in decision making. Since the opposing side was trained to apply rules which Hitler's self-taught, autocratic mind did not know and did not use, he achieved surprises. These audacities, coupled with military superiority, were the basis of his early successes. But as soon as setbacks occurred he suffered shipwreck, like most untrained people. Then his ignorance of the rules of the game was revealed as another kind of incompetence; then his defects were no longer strengths. The greater the failures became, the more obstinately his incurable amateurishness came to the fore. The tendency to wild decisions had long been his forte; now it speeded his downfall.

One can only wonder at the recklessness and the frivolity with which Hitler appointed me to one of those three or four ministries on which the existence of his state depended. I was a complete outsider to the army, to the party, and to industry. Never in my life had I had anything to do with military weapons, for I had never been a soldier and up to the time of my appointment had never even used a rifle as a hunter. To be sure, it was in keeping with Hitler's dilettantism that he preferred to choose nonspecialists as his associates. After all, he had already appointed a wine salesman as his Foreign Minister, his party philosopher as his Minister for Eastern Affairs, and an erstwhile fighter pilot as overseer of the entire economy. Now he was picking an architect of all people to be his Minister of Armaments. Undoubtedly Hitler preferred to fill positions of leadership with laymen.

It is significant that Hitler did not choose the direct route of obtaining information on this matter from responsible people but depended instead on unreliable and incompetent informants to give him a Sunday-supplement account. Here again was proof of his love for amateurishness and his lack of understanding of fundamental scientific research.

It seems that all the warring countries are facing the same problems. Speer even mentions the issue of replacing mobilized specialists with foreigners. It is interesting that he did not hesitate to adopt the experience of one of the leaders of German industry during the First World War Walther Rathenau, despite the fact that he was a Jew, which was extremely dangerous in those times.

[N0TZU]

Congratulations on the successful outcome in the case with the mobilized man. Perhaps it will be a step in helping the judicial pendulum to swing back to normalcy.

“For Trump, accusations of breaking his word and weakness can be quite painful and require a decisive response.”

It’s hard to know how much Trump has actually given up on Putin. Unfortunately, given his long standing admiration and like for dictator Putin and affinity for Russia, it may not take much chastisement from Putin’s lackey to pull him back into Putin’s orbit.

Hungary is highly dependent on Russian energy, so it makes some sense to let them have time to adjust and solve logistics to bring it in from other sources (if possible). It’s also in character for Trump because of his like of authoritarian Orban.

The incompetence, or deliberately allowed escape of the suspects in the corruption cases is mind boggling.

Where do you think they will surface - Russia? Who do you suppose effected their escape, if deliberately arranged?How high do you suppose the scandal goes, and could it topple Zelensky?

The excerpt from Speer’s book was fascinating. I will put it on my list to read.

[US7IGN]

It’s hard to know how much Trump has actually given up on Putin. Unfortunately, given his long standing admiration and like for dictator Putin and affinity for Russia, it may not take much chastisement from Putin’s lackey to pull him back into Putin’s orbit.

Hungary is highly dependent on Russian energy, so it makes some sense to let them have time to adjust and solve logistics to bring it in from other sources (if possible). It’s also in character for Trump because of his like of authoritarian Orban.

The incompetence, or deliberately allowed escape of the suspects in the corruption cases is mind boggling.

Where do you think they will surface - Russia? Who do you suppose effected their escape, if deliberately arranged?How high do you suppose the scandal goes, and could it topple Zelensky?

Hi Bob!

Good questions, to which I can only give my opinions, based on the available information and using the methods of deduction and induction that Sherlock Holmes loved so much.

As for Trump, he clearly has a personal interest that has nothing to do with the interests of Ukraine. I can only quote Speer again: Our attempt to mobilize Goering against Bormann was probably doomed to failure from the start for financial reasons as well. For as was later revealed by a Nuremberg document, Bormann had made Goering a gift of six million marks from the industrialists' Adolf Hitler Fund.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Canada that Washington had effectively reached the limit in imposing new sanctions against russia. https://sud.ua/uk/news/abroad/346023-ssha-pochti-ischerpali-vozmozhnosti-dlya-novykh-sanktsiy-protiv-rossii-rubio

As for Hungary and sanctions, there is an opinion that all of Europe will take advantage of this opportunity. What difference does it make who brings drugs to a party? Everyone will be able to use them there.

On the third day, the world media finally reacted to the biggest corruption scandal in Ukraine in recent years. https://www.politico.eu/article/ukraine-corruption-scandal-explained-100m-plot-rocking-volodymyr-zelenskyy-energy-sector/
https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20251112-ukraine-zelensky-100-million-graft-scandal

Those who managed to escape are in Europe. They did it legally, having all the necessary documents. https://unn.ua/news/peretyn-kordonu-mindichem-pereviryly-u-dpu-kazhut-usi-dokumenty-buly-obmezhen-pro-zaboronu-vyizdu-shchodo-noho-ne-vstanovliuvalosia

But the question remains: why did anti-corruption agencies only observe the damage being done to Ukraine for 15 months and only now have they begun selectively publishing evidence and directly naming members of the criminal organization, which is expressly prohibited by current legislation before the case is transferred to court?

It seems that this is more political than criminal. The next question is who is behind this? It is clear that Zelensky will pretend that he knew nothing and had nothing to do with it. He will demand an investigation and punishment of the guilty. Which may also be true, but isn't he the head of the entire state system that made possible unprecedented corruption, and should bear direct political responsibility for it? In fact, this is only the tip of the iceberg and we can only guess what is happening in the army and other sectors given the amounts of money involved there. We also need to see who will have problems if they start with Zelensky.

But again, in my opinion, this story is not about money, although even its origin (on the bundles of dollars seized during searches, the markings of American banks are visible in the published photos) raises many questions. We need to find an answer to the question of who benefits from this? Why is this happening right now? What will be the consequences?

As for why some were allowed to escape, it seems the old tactic works - scare a fool and see what he does.

P.S. It seems that the actor who agreed to play the president many years ago did not think about the fact that he would be made into a scapegoat.

[US7IGN]

Tonight about 430 drones and 18 missiles had been launched and dozens of high-rise buildings damaged in Kyiv. I haven't slept most of the night and I feel bad. But I have water and heat, and the electricity is on its usual schedule.

A drone attack on a market at Chornomorsk in the south of the country killed two people.

Meanwhile, Ukraine stepped up its attacks on russia's oil infrastructure, with drone strikes on one of its biggest export terminals in Novorossiysk, on the Black Sea coast. Fire broke out at the Sheskharis oil refinery, and a ship and a block of flats were hit, officials said. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4jn94gyllo

[N0TZU]

More despicable drone attacks on civilians by butcher Putin. According to reports here at least 6 and perhaps more were killed.

It seems the corruption scandal will widen. How and who... Meantime, I hope that enough money is flowing to the right places to keep the country and especially the military functioning, though as you say who knows what corruption is happening in that area.

The only good news I saw from the US Sec. State Rubio was the implication that Russia’s shadow fleet of tankers may finally be interdicted. This would be effective, unlike squandering military resources on the theatrical destruction of tiny boats and the unfortunate “mules” in them in order to sink an insignificant amount of illicit drugs. (Much of what Trump does is for keeping up his reputation among the faithful on right wing cheerleader cable/satellite TV Fox News here, or responding to something they report.)

[US7IGN]

Seva completed some documents in Lviv, which finally allowed him to come to me in Kyiv for the weekend. Strange feelings at the meeting. Of course, a lot of conversations. I think I understand him, although we look at many things differently. It seems that he found some of my advice useful. Time will tell where our choices will lead us. His self-confidence exceeds even mine.

During his stay in Kyiv it was quiet and he still doesn't understand what air raids are. A power outage doesn't affect anyone who has a good battery in their laptop and a large power bank. Nevertheless, I had the opportunity to demonstrate once again how the radio works. It made me laugh that he would do it too, but he thinks his girlfriend won't let him put an antenna on the balcony.

It seems that no one is going to bear political responsibility for exposing corruption in the energy sector, and common sense suggests that despite its staggering scale, this is only part of a larger picture. NABU announced that it has launched an investigation into corruption in the defense sector. https://regionews.ua/ukr/news/ukraine/1763385444-nabu-rozpochalo-rozsliduvannya-shchodo-koruptsiyi-v-oboronniy-sferi

All this is great, but why only now? Who is behind this? Who, in turn, controls NABU and how?

Power One, owned by the Dragon Capital investment group, has signed a loan agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for €22.3 million and received a €3 million Crisis Response Special Fund (Norway) grant for the implementation of a 68 MW combined cycle gas generation and energy storage system (BESS) project in the Transcarpathian region. In July 2025, a “Mandate Letter” of intent to finance was signed between Power One, Dragon Capital, Negen (an operating partner founded by Volodymyr Kudrytskyi) and the EBRD. https://inventure.com.ua/uk/news/ukraine/dragon-capital-ta-volodimir-kudrickij-investuyut-ponad-euro25-mln-u-gazovu-generaciyu-na-zakarpatti

It is significant that the current authorities accuse Volodymyr Kudrytskyi of abuse of office and illegal appropriation of funds from the state-owned company Ukrenergo, which he headed in 2018. This happened on the eve of the corruption scandal with Ukrenergo, in which the current authorities are already involved. https://suspilne.media/1151316-ekskerivniku-ukrenergo-kudrickomu-obiraut-zapobiznij-zahid/

Head of the Verkhovna Rada's Financial Committee met with representatives of the International Monetary Fund mission, which he called the most difficult in the entire period of cooperation. Danylo Hetmantsev noted that our problem is the loss of trust of our partners due to the recent corruption scandals, which our partners speak about. openly.https://finance.liga.net/en/all/novosti/hetmantsev-calls-meeting-with-imf-the-most-difficult-in-history

At the same time, it seems that with trust in Kudrytsky, things are getting better.

So far, Ukraine has received a tranche from the European Union totaling €5.9 billion, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said. In particular, €4.1 billion came under the ERA Loans mechanism as the final tranche of the overall €18 billion program, financed by proceeds from frozen russian assets. https://sud.ua/uk/news/ukraine/346043-ukraina-poluchila-pochti-6-milliardov-evro-ot-evrosoyuza-na-chto-napravyat-sredstva

The Anti-Corruption Action Center found out that the brother of Maria Vdovichenko, the current deputy head of the Prosecutor General's Office, defected to the russians back in 2014. At the same time, the official's father runs a business in the temporarily occupied Crimea. https://hromadske.ua/suspilstvo/254362-brat-zastupnytsi-henprokurora-pratsiuye-u-viyskoviy-prokuraturi-rf-a-yiyi-batko-maye-biznes-v-okupatsiyi-tspk

The question of whether she should be responsible for her brother and father remains open, but the double standards regarding relations with russia are obvious. For some, this means arrest and charges of treason, while for others it has no consequences.

As Ukraine focusses on Pokrovsk, strategic towns in Zaporizhzhia region left vulnerable to russian encirclement. Ukrainian troops have increasingly been diverted further north to reinforce the key city – leaving its defences along the south-eastern front more vulnerable to sustained russian attacks. Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukraine’s armed forces chief, this week warned, with unexpected candour, that the front-line situation in the region had “significantly worsened”. Within the region, russian forces have advanced some 19 miles over the course of six weeks, according to pro-Ukrainian maps. With Ukraine continuing to suffer severe manpower shortages, there are growing calls for Kyiv to withdraw its troops from Pokrovsk to avoid unnecessary casualties and refortify other parts of the front. In the past, Ukrainian generals have faced criticism for waiting too long in the face of political pressure.  Meanwhile, russia has more quietly been making territorial gains at the intersection of the Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions, where defence has been comparatively de-prioritised. russia occupies around 70 per cent of Zaporizhzhia region, primarily in its east and south, though Ukraine retains control over its regional capital of Zaporizhzhia. Kyiv has downplayed losses, writes The Telegraph.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/11/16/russia-seizes-land-after-kyiv-diverts-troops/

Ukraine has “no chance” of winning against russia’s ongoing invasion, and the EU's continued financial support for the country is "just crazy," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said. In an interview with Mathias Döpfner, CEO of German media group Axel Springer, Orbán said financial support for Ukraine “kills” the EU “economically, financially” and is “just crazy.” “We have burned already €185 billion, and … our intention is to to burn even more. So we finance a country which has no chance to win the war,” Orbán said on the latest episode of Döpfner's podcast, MD MEETS. https://www.politico.eu/article/hungary-viktor-orban-war-ukraine-russia-finance-eu/

Ukraine is heading for a strategic defeat in the war with russia, and if neither the Ukrainian government nor its Western partners take immediate action, russia will gradually win this war. This is the opinion expressed by Bild analyst Julian Röpke on his page in X. Röpke notes that while Ukrainian journalists and activists have already realized the seriousness of the situation, neither the Ukrainian army nor its Western partners are drawing the necessary lessons from their previous mistakes in waging the war against russia and are not taking serious action. For example, he considers the supply of Western armored vehicles to be useless against the backdrop of russia's growing dominance in the field of fiber-optic and other unmanned systems. He also blames the critical situation on the front and the policy of the Ukrainian authorities towards evaders, stating that "the Ukrainian government does not seem to take the war of annihilation against its own country seriously." https://x.com/julianroepcke/status/1989789161331806635?s=46&t=DLJQ-0t-d5URNGa_p2zc6A

Ukraine is facing a worsening shortage of soldiers as record numbers of men flee to Europe, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko warned in an interview. “We have huge problems with soldiers — with human resources,” Klitschko told the Axel Springer Global Reporters Network, acknowledging the toll that nearly four years of war has taken on Ukraine’s capacity to replenish its ranks.
https://www.politico.eu/article/war-in-ukraine-draft-age-russia-vitali-klitschko/

Unfortunately, this politician does not offer a solution to this problem, and his own sons are also abroad and neither he nor they are in a hurry to defend Ukraine. Perhaps that is why Ukraine is now not so much harmed by the loss of money and the trust of Western partners as by the disappointment and loss of people's trust in the government and the state. Personally, I do not know who could lead the country, act only in its interests and be an example for the people, uniting them.

russian troops attacked the energy infrastructure of Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Odessa, and Donetsk regions, the Ministry of Energy reported on the morning of November 17. Power restrictions and outages continue in most regions. https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-minenerho-obstril-ataka-rf/33593691.html

Attacks on energy occur every day. https://www.slovoidilo.ua/2025/11/12/novyna/suspilstvo/ukrenerho-povidomyly-pro-novi-udary-po-enerhetychnij-infrastrukturi

The authorities have set new requirements for the autonomy of mobile operators, as due to increased shelling of energy infrastructure, the current readiness of networks to operate for 8-10 hours without electricity may not be enough. So this may be a guide to a realistic scenario. https://censor.net/n3584653

An exceptional event occurred in Poland. The bombing of the railway track on the Warsaw-Lublin route is an unprecedented act of sabotage, directed directly against the security of the Polish state and its civilian population," Tusk wrote on the X platform. He explained that this route is "crucial for the delivery of aid to Ukraine." https://www.rmf24.pl/polityka/news-mozliwe-ze-to-dywersja-premier-o-uszkodzeniu-torow-na-mazows,nId,8041061

And some good news.

Vital supplies of US liquefied natural gas are due to start flowing into war-ravaged Ukraine this winter via a pipeline across the Balkans. The deal was announced after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Athens on Sunday. Greece is working to increase the flow of American LNG to its terminals to "replace russian gas in the region", Mitsotakis said recently. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0ex0y0p31jo

In the qualifying match for the 2026 World Cup, the Ukrainian national team hosted the Icelandic team in Warsaw. The match ended with a 2:0 victory for the hosts. Thus, the Ukrainian national team finished in second place in Group D with 10 points and reached the playoffs for a place in the 2026 World Cup. https://xsport.ua/ua/football_s/news/zbirna-ukrayiny-peremohla-islandiyu-i-vyyshla-v-pley-za-vykhid-na-chs-2026/

Let me remind you that the Ukrainian national team is headed by Serhiy Rebrov UT5UDX.

[N0TZU]

I’m glad to hear that Seva was able to visit, and that you had substantial talks. I hope his travels back are safe and uneventful.

It’s hard to know what our children will take to heart from such discussions. Often our advice lies dormant with them for a long time until conditions require it and are favorable for them to understand it, like seeds in the soil.

I recall being supremely self-confident at that age too. Mostly because I didn’t know or understand half of what I actually needed to!

Congrats on the Ukrainian football team going to the playoffs for the World Cup! (So far this season the Denver, Colorado Broncos have the best record of all (9-2) in very different American football.)

Good news indeed on the natural gas supplies this winter from the US via Greek terminals and the trans-Balkan pipeline. I see that pipeline goes close to Russian dominatated Transnistria which is a bit worrisome.

But then is anyplace really safe from Russian hybrid warfare given the Baltic submarine cable cuts, Polish rail line bombing, and the continued drone disruption across Europe?

Russia is already fighting an undeclared hybrid war against Europe and the US but we are still sleeping.

[US7IGN]

There are many comments about the untimeliness of Mindichgate, but on the other hand, will it be timely when the country is destroyed by corrupt people?

Yesterday, there were only two resignations on the parliament’s agenda – Justice Minister Herman Galushchenko and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk. They were called “Mindich’s people” in the current government, and the government’s plan was probably to sacrifice them, announce a large-scale personnel shake-up of the entire energy sector – and on this the scandal with the NABU tapes could be considered exhausted.

But the opposition in parliament decided to take advantage of the situation, demanding the resignation of the entire government. Petro Poroshenko and Yulia Tymoshenko add: next, it is necessary to create a new coalition and a government of national unity, which will not be a passive tool in the hands of the President’s Office. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cgqlx438znno?xtor=AL-73-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Bukr%5D-%5Bheadline%5D-%5Bukrainian%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D
https://www.dw.com/uk/zvilnenna-galusenka-i-grincuk-u-radi-zablokuvali-tribunu/a-74789251?maca=ukr-rss-ukrnet-ukr-all-3816-xml

But so far, the deputies have not managed to dismiss even these two ministers, and Mindich may be one of the top managers of the shadow office, but by no means the ultimate beneficiary in terms of scale. Without the support of the first persons of the state, such deals would simply be impossible.

An interesting question is how far Zelensky will be able to go to retain power? Is he ready to sacrifice all his close associates, including the head of the office Yermak? Will it not turn against him if they decide to drag him along? What consequences will this have for the country?

It is significant that today, after a tour of Europe, Zelensky is meeting with Donald Trump's special representative Steve Witkoff in Turkey. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c620p6jnynko

Meanwhile, the shelling of Ukraine with drones and missiles continues. In Dnipro, the television tower, broadcasters' buildings, and the railway were damaged. https://ukranews.com/ua/news/1117649-rosiya-vdaryla-dronamy-po-dnipru-zajnyalas-budivlya-redaktsij-suspilne-j-ukrayinskogo-radio

Three western regions were hit today, Ternopil, Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk, and a drone attack targeted three districts of the northern city of Kharkiv, wounding more than 30 people. russia fired had more than 470 drones and 47 missiles. Many people were killed and injured. Power cuts were affecting a number of regions across the country, Ukraine's energy ministry said. Energy facilities, transport and civil infrastructure were damaged elsewhere in western Ukraine. The head of Lviv region said an energy facility had been struck.

The russian strikes came a day after Ukraine's military said it had fired US-supplied longer-range Atacms missiles at military targets inside russia, the first time they have admitted using the Atacms on russian soil. russia's defence ministry accused Ukraine of firing four of the missiles at the southern city of Voronezh. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0yere4k0zo

Unmanned systems hit the Zuyivska and Starobeshivska TPPs in Donetsk region. The occupation authorities announced the absence of electricity, heat and water in a large part of the region. https://www.dw.com/uk/u-zsu-pidtverdili-urazenna-dvoh-tes-na-okupovanij-doneccini/a-74793435?maca=ukr-rss-ukrnet-ukr-all-3816-xml

The big question is who has suffered more damage - the occupation troops who are in that territory, or the Ukrainians who are already suffering under occupation.

[US7IGN]

If nothing happens at night, tomorrow I will have three hours of electricity during the day.

It took the Verkhovna Rada two days in a row to dismiss Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk and Justice Minister Herman Galushchenko, who were "in the spotlight" in the Midas corruption case. They did not appear to report to parliament and it seems that few people know where they are now. The Prime Minister also does not comment on the situation with her ministers. Their deputies were appointed acting ministers in their place. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/czdrdpgj6yyo

It seems that tomorrow Volodymyr Zelensky will return to a country (and a political system) that will be quite different from what it was just a few days ago.
https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/c0exe1d0jl0o

The Trump administration has been quietly hammering out a new peace plan with russia to end its war with Ukraine, a person familiar with the talks told CNN. The president’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who has been at the center of the administration’s talks with Moscow, has been leading the effort, the source said. The negotiations accelerated this week as the administration feels the Kremlin has signaled a renewed openness to a deal, the source added. https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/19/politics/russia-ukraine-white-house-plan

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and chief of staff Gen. Randy George became the highest-level Trump Pentagon officials to visit Ukraine when they arrived on an unannounced trip this week, as the U.S. moves to find a way to speed the end of the war. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/18/top-army-officials-set-for-drone-focused-visit-to-ukraine-00658328

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has criticized politicians who are fueling anti-Ukrainian sentiment, especially in light of recent acts of sabotage on railway infrastructure. "russia is spending billions to fuel such sentiments, on disinformation and propaganda. It wants to turn part of public opinion against our neighbors, against the EU and refugees from Ukraine who fled to Poland from russian bombs," the Foreign Minister is convinced. The Minister explained that russia's key goal in these actions is to divide the European Union. "The reason is obvious - as the European Union, we are a giant in relation to russia, and in relation to each individual member state, russia is a powerful state. Is it really so difficult to understand?" Sikorski stressed. https://suspilne.media/1168700-glava-mzs-polsi-nazvav-politicnimi-diversantami-tih-hto-zvinuvacue-ukrainu-v-diah-rf/

[US7IGN]

That night was relatively calm, although they say that the first russian tank has already arrived in Pokrovsk. https://censor.net/ua/resonance/3585992/sytuatsiya-u-pokrovsku

Social media reports say that a strike with several missiles was carried out on the Ternopil radio plant, whose military products were previously inspected by a people's deputy. The YouTube video where he commented and directly named this plant has already been deleted today, but we will probably never know whether he will be held criminally liable, like those who, for example, publish videos with busification.
https://www.facebook.com/iavchasno/posts/%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B4%D1%80%D0%B8-%D1%83%D0%B4%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%96%D0%B2-%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%B2%D1%8F%D1%82%D1%8C%D0%BC%D0%B0-%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BA%D0%B5%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%B8-%D0%B2-%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%BD%D1%83-%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%87%D0%BA%D1%83-%D0%B2-%D1%82%D0%B5%D1%80%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%96%D0%B4%D0%BE-20-%D0%B7%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%B0-%D0%BA%D1%96%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%BA%D1%96%D1%81%D1%82%D1%8C-%D0%B7%D0%B0/1318765206929670/

Once again, the question remains open: who is harming Ukraine more - the russians or its authorities? It seems they are acting together to rob and rape Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, has told associates he plans to leave the administration in January, Reuters reports, a departure that would mean the loss of a key advocate for Ukraine in the Trump administration. Special presidential envoy is a temporary designation, and such envoys in theory must be confirmed by the Senate to stay in their positions past 360 days. Kellogg has indicated that January would be a natural departure point, given existing legislation, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/trumps-ukraine-envoy-kellogg-leave-post-january-sources-say-2025-11-19/

It seems that now the US has only one special representative and one direction for developments in Ukraine.

Apecular new American-russian plan to end the war in Ukraine has been presented to President Volodymyr Zelensky, just as he is grappling with a corruption scandal that marks his gravest crisis since the invasion. The plan, drafted without Ukraine’s knowledge by Donald Trump’s special representative, Steve Witkoff, and Vladimir putin’s envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, appears to be little short of a demand for capitulation, writes The Economist. https://www.economist.com/europe/2025/11/19/a-terrible-american-russian-proposal-to-end-the-war-in-ukraine

It is also unknown how this plan can be implemented without the support of Ukraine and Europe.

United States Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff did not hold a meeting with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky yesterday after it emerged that the latter was not going to discuss the new U.S. plan on the Ukrainian settlement, the Axios news website said, citing a source. https://interfax.com/newsroom/top-stories/114908/

Meanwhile, lawyers are analyzing the charges against businessman Timur Mindich and conclude that they do not meet the standards of criminal procedure, contain assumptions instead of evidence, and violate basic requirements of criminal procedure. https://sud.ua/uk/news/ukraine/346629-analiz-podozreniya-po-delu-timura-mindicha-klyuchevye-protsessualnye-voprosy-i-probely-dokazyvaniya

Indeed, we live in a difficult time when it is almost impossible to understand who is the criminal or only the one who was called a criminal?

In the past, one of the tactics of corrupt law enforcement agencies to pretend that they were doing their job well was often deliberate procedural violations, which then allowed criminals to ruin the case in court. But I see more politics than law in this matter, so I don't pay any attention to it at all.

And I want to quote Speer again: Early in February, Liischen visited me in my small apartment in the rear building of my Ministry on Pariser Platz. He took a slip of paper from his pocket and handed it to me, saying: "Are you aware of the passage from Hitlers Mein Kampf that is most often quoted by the public nowadays?"
I read: "The task of diplomacy is to ensure that a nation does not heroically go to its destruction but is practically preserved. Every way that leads to this end is expedient, and a failure to follow it must be called criminal neglect of duty." He had found a second fitting quotation, Liischen continued, and he handed me another slip: "State authority as an end in itself cannot exist, since in that case every tyranny on this earth would be sacred and unassailable. If a racial entity is being led toward its doom by means of governmental power, then the rebellion of every single member of such a Volk is not only a right, but a duty."
"But then all those will be called before the judgment seat who today, in possession of power, trample on laws and rights, who have led our people into destitution and ruin, and who, when their Fatherland was suffering, valued themselves above the life of the community.

[N0TZU]

The passage from Speer about the bitter irony of the Mein Kampf quotes is appropriate - and very sad.

The new American- Russian plan seems to be a gambit to shock Zelensky with such a bleak outcome that he will agree to something less onerous, but still bad, in order to get at least a cease fire. No reasonable person could think it to be a serious and credible peace plan on its own.

This implies that Trump will most likely not supply troves of weapons to Ukraine with which to destroy far more of the Russian oil industry, nor will he interdict Russian tankers at sea. Both of which in my view would actually be effective in motivating Putin into a bona fide negotiation.

As a bonus for Russia, it drives more wedges into NATO unity and makes Trump look even weaker and less likely to ever come to the aid of any NATO country attacked by Russia.

[US7IGN]

This implies that Trump will most likely

The Ukrainian authorities' monstrous incompetence is particularly noticeable in diplomacy. Trump looks very accessible with a skillful approach. Just ook what Arabs have achieved with a gifted plane or Swiss with a piece of gold.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2eylpdg9po
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/21/swiss-gold-and-rolex-gifts-to-trump-raise-questions-over-personalisation-of-us-presidential-power

Maybe it would be worth trying to give Trump a full-length statue of him on a horse made of gold...

Folk wisdom says that if God wants to punish someone, he deprives them of reason. Apparently, Ukrainians were punished. Instead, Ukraine has a messiah who pretends to know nothing about corruption and refuses to get rid of his head of administration. If he really believes this, then it is even worse than a blatant lie.

But it is he who continues to determine the fate of Ukraine on its behalf. At least insofar as it depends on him. Such a gift to Trump and putin is simply unthinkable. I have long stopped asking those who voted for him whether they would trust their health to the actor Hugh Laurie, who played House, M.D. so well.

The President of Ukraine must act decisively to restore the trust undermined by the corruption scandal, writes the British Financial Times. The publication notes: it is difficult to imagine a more devastating blow to trust in power than the scandal that is unfolding in Ukraine. For Ukrainians, who are preparing to survive the winter without heat and light, this causes a sense of indignation and injustice. And for soldiers at the front, who risk their lives every day, it is perceived as a betrayal. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/czjpj0ywgdxo

There is only one drawback to this recommendation - it is impossible to restore trust in someone who is himself an integral part of the corrupt system.

The Parliament calls on the President to dismiss the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov and the Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak, and the Cabinet of Ministers to consider the dismissal of the Head of the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine Philip Pronin, the heads of the supervisory boards of state-owned enterprises, and other officials involved in the scandalous recordings. https://sud.ua/uk/news/publication/346776-rada-trebuet-kadrovykh-chistok-posle-plenok-mindicha-prizyv-uvolit-umerova-i-ermaka

The meeting between Zelensky and his parliamentary faction took place late on Thursday evening, the 20th, the BBC reports. The deputies present had mixed impressions of the meeting. Some were very pleased, others say that no conclusions were drawn. No remorse. No personnel decisions. No understanding of the real situation and the consequences of a crime of such magnitude. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/ce3k37gp28po

Trump has indicated he wants to expedite the timeline for ending the war in Ukraine, hoping to conclude a conflict he once said publicly would be the easily resolved. Some US officials have said that the administration wants russia and Ukraine to agree to a deal by the end of the year, according to CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/21/politics/trump-ukraine-peace-gaza-witkoff

There is no doubt that the text of the peace agreement was written in russian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/nov/21/europe-latest-news-russia-ukraine-war-updates-zelenskyy-putin-g20?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-69204d2e8f08a77eddc21bbe#block-69204d2e8f08a77eddc21bbe

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is ready for "honest work" with the US after receiving a draft peace plan to end the war with russia. Several US media outlets report that under the plan, Kyiv would give up areas of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine that it still controls, cut the size of its army, and pledge not to join Nato. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly1ypqlle0o

Sky News is now hearing from EU sources that Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump will hold a call next week after the Ukrainian leader said he wanted to discuss the peace plan with his US counterpart. Before that, the Ukrainian president will consult on the matter with leaders of the UK, France, Italy and Germany. https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-war-latest-trumps-peace-plan-revealed-in-full-but-zelenskyy-says-his-team-must-check-its-genuine-12541713?postid=10566089#liveblog-body

The United States has threatened to stop sharing intelligence and arms to Ukraine in order to force it to agree to a framework agreement for a peaceful settlement, mediated by the United States. Volodymyr Zelensky, in turn, said that now is one of the most difficult moments in the country's history, writes the BBC. "Ukraine may face a very difficult choice - either loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner. Either difficult 28 points, or an extremely difficult winter - the most difficult - and further risks. Life without freedom, without dignity, without justice. And so that we believe the one who has attacked twice already," the president added. He also said many more pathetic words and said that he hopes for the support of Europe. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cr7lrey427xo

Well, for now, people can only watch this show in apartments without electricity for several hours at a time, in some places without water and heating. A fire broke out in Kyiv due to an explosion at a charging station https://www.rbc.ua/rus/news/tsentri-kieva-spalahnula-kvartira-mogla-vibuhnuti-1763647433.html, and an explosion at a mobilization center in the Odesa region was caused by one of those forcibly detained for mobilization. He died in the explosion, and an employee of the mobilization center was injured. https://meta.ua/uk/news/ukraine/chergova-tragediya-v-ttsk-ta-sp-vibuh-prizviv-do-smerti-970673/

[N0TZU]

Chamberlain thought he had “peace in our time”. Trump wants peace at any cost to Ukraine.

[N0TZU]

Wlad, what do you want Zelensky to do regarding this Putin-Trump peace proposal?

[US7IGN]

Wlad, what do you want Zelensky to do regarding this Putin-Trump peace proposal?

I didn't choose him to demand anything from him. In any case, it's like demanding something from someone who has been using heroin for several years. What can he do with what he hasn't done before? It seems that Ukraine chose surrender back in 2019 and was just slowly moving towards it. Poroshenko offered to fight, Zelensky offered peace. So putin is surprised why he is now against it.

"Why hasn't the war ended yet? That's what a commander-in-chief you are," Volodymyr Zelensky accused Petro Poroshenko during a debate at the Olimpiyskyi Stadium on April 19, 2019. During the presidential election, he repeatedly mentioned the protracted war in Donbas to his opponent and promised voters to do everything to end it as soon as possible. Candidate Zelensky uttered phrases that gave the impression that he had a rather superficial understanding of the events in Donbas and a vision of how this war could be ended. For example, "we should just stop shooting" and "somewhere in the middle we would agree with putin." https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/features-52542365

But you shouldn't blame Zelensky for everything. I still think he's an extremely talented actor and that he played the role of the president wonderfully. He wouldn't have done anything at all if he hadn't been elected.

“Diax said something that is still very important to us, which is that you should not believe a thing only because you like to believe it. We call that ‘Diax’s Rake’ and sometimes we repeat it to ourselves as a reminder not to let subjective emotions cloud our judgment.”
― Neal Stephenson, Anathem

Maybe elections should be made open so that everyone is personally responsible for the consequences of their choice, and not hide behind the secrecy of voting?

There is another big problem. In fact, the identification of Ukraine in the world only took place in 2022, and judging by the language of communication, almost half of Ukrainians still identify themselves as russian. At one time, during the loss of statehood by Ireland and Poland, their elite was very important, whose representatives even while abroad preserved and demonstrated their national identity. Who, besides Zelensky, is associated with Ukraine, its history and culture at the international level? By the way, this could have been a good special operation - to pull him out and demonstrate him to the whole world, strongly associating him with Ukraine, and then show what he really is with the corresponding consequences.

By the way, who do you globally associate with Ukraine?

The Trump administration has told Ukrainian and European officials that there is little room left for negotiations on a plan to end the war with russia. The United States is pressuring Volodymyr Zelensky to sign a deal brokered with Moscow's help by next Thursday. https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/articles/cd9zdvgvn0lo

Ukraine allies to hold talks on White House peace plan at G20. Ukraine's allies will seek to "strengthen" a US plan to end the war with russia when they meet at the G20 summit in South Africa, UK PM Sir Keir Starmer has said. Ahead of the talks at the G20, Sir Keir said gathered leaders would "discuss the current proposal on the table, and in support of President Trump's push for peace, look at how we can strengthen this plan for the next phase of negotiations". https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyx9xnpll8o

That is, Europe's response again boils down to conversations and discussions. But can Ukraine really count on significant help from Europe? I was reminded of the reflections of the popular English TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson about how he was forced to solve the problems with the travellers on his land himself, because the police only watched. Moreover, he risks going to prison himself, if he cause significant harm to the attackers. https://www.thetimes.com/comment/columnists/article/jeremy-clarkson-rowdy-trespassers-bcc388npg

In fact, the situation is very bad. The fog of war and the lack of a sufficient amount of information do not allow me to assess the real balance of forces on the front and russia's capabilities, but the overall picture is clearly not in favor of Ukraine. Even the US is already openly supporting russia. It doesn't even make sense to compare the economy, production, and population.