The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]
This newsletter is brought to you by Medical Bridges.
Medical Supplies for Ukraine’s Hospitals. Partnering for global health equity.
Russia’s war against Ukraine
A man carries a child at residential district after a massive Russian drone and missile attack on July 31, 2025 in Kyiv, Ukraine. At least 16 people were killed and over 130 injured, with children among the casualties. (Yan Dobronosov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
16 killed, record number of children injured in Russia’s massive attack on Kyiv. Three police officers and 12 children were among the injured. Thirty people, including five children, remain hospitalized as of 2:40 p.m. local time, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
‘Russia’s latest escalation of terror’ — Ukraine calls emergency UN Security Council meeting following large-scale attack on Kyiv. The U.N. Security Council will hold a meeting on Aug. 1 over Russian aggression against Ukraine following a large-scale attack on Kyiv on July 31, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.
Trump sets Aug. 8 deadline for Ukraine peace deal, US diplomat tells UN. “President Trump has made clear this must be done by Aug. 8. The United States is prepared to implement additional measures to secure peace,” senior American diplomat John Kelley told the Security Council.
Russia ‘lying again’ about capture of Chasiv Yar, Ukraine claims. “The situation in Chasiv Yar is the same as in recent months. Russia is simply lying again, precisely so that the claim spreads through refutations,” said Viktor Tregubov, spokesperson of the Khortytsia group of forces, in a comment for the RBK-Ukraine news agency.
Zelensky calls on allies to push for ‘regime change’ in Russia, warns of further aggression against Europe. “I believe Russia can be pushed to stop this war. It started it, and it can be made to end it. But if the world doesn’t aim to change the regime in Russia, that means even after the war ends, Moscow will still try to destabilize neighboring countries,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on July 31.
Your contribution helps keep the Kyiv Independent going. Become a member today.
Trump envoy Witkoff to visit Russia in coming days as peace deal deadline looms. Trump said he found Russia’s latest attacks against Ukraine “disgusting” and said the Kremlin has “about eight days” to make a deal or face sanctions.
’11 explosions recorded’ — Ukrainian drones strike key Russian radio plant in Penza, SBU source says. One of the main targets was a radio factory in the western city of Penza, which produces advanced communications systems for the Russian Armed Forces, according to Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation.
Ukraine’s parliament approves nearly $10 billion defense spending boost. The amendment to the 2025 budget raises total defense and security spending to an estimated $50 billion, or 26% of Ukraine’s GDP.
Zelensky, Polish President-elect Nawrocki hold first call, discuss support, historical issues. Polish President-elect Karol Nawrocki emphasized that cooperation must be based on “mutual respect and genuine partnership,” according to his spokesperson Rafal Leskiewicz.
‘No other option’ — Russian state media article demands no Ukrainians ‘be left alive.’ In a piece titled “There is no other option: no one should be left alive in Ukraine,” columnist Kirill Strelnikov repeats Kremlin propaganda lines, including the claim that Ukraine is a “military training ground” for the West and that Ukrainians are mere pawns of the U.S. and Europe.
Read our exclusives
‘It was the end of the world’ — Russian missile and drone strike on Kyiv kills at least 16, injures over 130
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the overnight attack saw the largest number of children injured in Kyiv since the beginning of the full-scale war.
Photo: Andriy Zhyhaylo/Oboz.ua/Global Images Ukraine
Russia’s rocket-powered kamikaze drones are now hitting Kyiv — here’s everything we know
According to reports, the drone is 3.5 meters long, has a 3-meter wingspan, can fly at a height of over 9,000 meters, and has a flight time of two hours.
Photo: Masoud Shahrestani / Wikimedia
When hope and horror share the night: 12 hours in wartime Kyiv (PHOTOS)
Life doesn’t pause for war — not entirely. Even as missiles and drones target Ukrainian cities and front lines shift, people find ways to carry on. For those not holding a weapon, survival means more than staying alive. It also means showing up to work, gathering with friends, keeping routines stitched together with fragile hope.
Photo: Serhii Korovayny / The Kyiv Independent
Under pressure from activists, Kyiv moves to protect iconic Soviet market
After more than a year of public advocacy, Kyiv authorities have added the iconic Zhytnii Market to the city’s list of cultural heritage sites — a crucial step toward granting it official monument status. The change puts the market under legal protection, banning alterations to the building’s Soviet-era modernist design.
Photo: Oleh Tymoshenko / The Kyiv Independent
We choose to stay in Ukraine — to bring the world the truth about Russia’s brutal war.
If you think the truth matters — here’s your chance to stand for it.
Human cost of Russia’s war
9 killed, 107 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over past day. Ukraine’s Air Force said Russian forces launched 309 Shahed-type attack drones and decoy drones, along with eight Iskander-K cruise missiles, in an overnight assault.
Anti-corruption
Following street protests, Zelensky signs law restoring independence of anti-graft bodies
The law reverses legislation passed last week that effectively destroyed the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), two agencies founded as part of the post-EuroMaidan anti-graft reforms.
Photo: Andrii Nesterenko/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
International response
US Senate committee backs $1 billion in aid for Ukraine despite Trump administration’s objections. A U.S. Senate committee approved a spending bill that includes $1 billion in support of Ukraine on July 31, despite the Trump administration’s previous pledge to reduce funding allocated for military assistance to Ukraine in its upcoming defense budget.
US, Russia discussed Ukraine war this week but made no progress, Rubio says. “What bothers the president the most is he has these great phone calls where everyone sort of claims, ‘we’d like to see this end…’ And then he turns on the news and another city’s been bombed,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
Trump says Medvedev entering ‘dangerous territory’ after US-Russia war threat. The remarks follow former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s July 28 statement that U.S. President Donald Trump’s “ultimatum game” with Moscow amounts to a threat to Russia and pushes the United States itself closer to war.
Nicaragua signals readiness to recognize Russia’s annexation of occupied Ukrainian territories, media says. If formalized, Nicaragua could become the first country to officially recognize Russia’s annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts — territories Moscow declared part of Russia in 2022.
Opinions and insights
Editorial: Democracy won the day in Ukraine — but it will be tested again
“This is how democracy is defended — by standing up for it. Ukrainians have demonstrated it in the past, have shown it again now, and will likely have to stand up for it in the future,” writes the Kyiv Independent in their latest editorial.
Photo: Tetiana Dzhafarova/AFP via Getty Images
Doing business in Ukraine’s front-line regions: Myths vs. reality
“Unfortunately, many international stakeholders rely on overly generalized views, resulting in a distorted image of Ukraine’s economic landscape,” writes Anna Derevyanko, executive director of the European Business Association.
Photo: Dmytro Smolienko/Ukrinform/NurPhoto/Getty
In other news
Up to 20% of Russian car dealerships at risk of closure amid sales slump, media reports. Nearly one in five car dealerships in Russia could shut down by the end of the year as the country’s auto market struggles from plummeting sales and a worsening economic outlook, the Moscow Times reported.
Russia to fine people for ‘extremist’ search queries under new law. Russia has been using the “extremism” label to target anything that contradicts the Kremlin’s narrative, including the official version of global or Russian history.
This newsletter is open for sponsorship. Boost your brand’s visibility by reaching thousands of engaged subscribers. Click here for more details.
Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Martin Fornusek, Tymur Zadorozhnyy, Kateryna Hodunova, Toma Istomina, Anna Fratsyvir, Dmytro Basmat, Olena Goncharova, and Abbey Fenbert.
If you’re enjoying this newsletter, consider joining our membership program. Start supporting independent journalism today.
