The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to May 8, 2025. Since it was last updated at the end of April, 2,857 additional Russian military personnel have been confirmed killed.
Hungary cancelled a meeting planned for May 12 with a Ukrainian delegation on the rights of national minorities, Hungary's Deputy Foreign Minister said on May 11, amid a deepening spying scandal between the two countries.
Three were injured in Russia's Kursk Oblast when the town of Rylsk was allegedly struck by a missile attack on May 11, local governor Alexander Khinshtein claimed.
This week, the world watched in anticipation for Russia’s Victory Day parade after President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that he could not guarantee the safety of those attending. Meanwhile, the European Union moves one step forward to banning Russian gas from the European continent. It is also revealed this week that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has fallen out of step with the White House.
"(Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin... doesn't want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath. Ukraine should agree to this, immediately," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to to Antalya, Turkey, for a NATO foreign ministers’ meeting from May 14–16, where he is expected to address the war in Ukraine and push for stronger Allied defense commitments.
The Kremlin said the leaders held a detailed discussion about the Russian initiative and Erdogan expressed full support, reiterating Turkey’s readiness to provide a venue and assist in organizing the negotiations.
Erdogan told Macron that international cooperation is critical for initiating peace negotiations and the "sensitive implementation" of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction processes, the Turkish Presidency reported.
Smoke rises around the town of New York (Niu-York). Torecki has so far been one of the quietest sections of the front line on June 30, 2024. (Marek M. Berezowski/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The Ukrainian military said on Aug. 20 that clashes are ongoing at the village of Niu-York in Donetsk Oblast as multiple sources point to a rapid Russian advance deep into the settlement.
Niu-York lies just south of Toretsk, a key front-line town that has become one of the focal points of the Russian offensive in Donetsk Oblast.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Aug. 19 that according to Russian pro-war bloggers, Moscow's troops have effectively seized the settlement and are clearing its northern areas while pushing to Nelipivka further north.
Russian sources provided no visual confirmation of the claim, the ISW stressed.
The Ukrainian crowd-sourced tracking site DeepState provided a similar estimate, claiming that almost the entire settlement is in Russian hands except for the outskirts in the west, north, and northeast.
Alleged Russian advance into Niu-York, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, as of Aug. 19, 2024, according to DeepState. (DeepState/Open Street Map)
The Ukrainian military did not comment on the claims and instead said that heavy fighting is ongoing in the Toretsk sector, including in Niu-York.
Russian forces attempted 24 ground attacks in the area of Niu-York, Nelipivka, Zalizne, Pivnichne, and near Toretsk over the past day, the Khorytsia group of forces said on Telegram.
Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson for the Khortytsia group, did not provide further details following the Kyiv Independent's request for comment.
Ukrainska Pravda said that according to its military sources, Ukrainian troops continue to hold out in the northern part of the settlement.
"Our people are in Niu-York, we are holding the defenses. We control approximately 20% of the village," a source in the 53rd Separate Mechanized Brigade deployed in the area told Ukrainska Pravda.
"Russian forces are advancing at the expense of a large number of reserves... Unfortunately, we have no such reserves."
Niu-York lies just south of Toretsk, a key front-line town that has become one of the focal points of the Russian offensive in Donetsk Oblast. The estimated advance of Russian forces as of Aug. 19, 2024, according to DeepState, is marked in red. (DeepState/Open Street Map)
Another source told the outlet that as Russian forces took much of Niu-York, they are on their way to Nelipivka, the last village directly between Niu-York and Toretsk.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify all the claims.
Russian sources claimed the full capture of Niu-York already back on Aug. 6, but Ukrainian officials denied this at the time.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Emmanuelle Chaze
