Weekly Exclusives
Weekly Exclusives - a newsletter that contains author publications, interviews, exclusive comments, photos and videos.
Photos and videos of the week
On February 5, the 71st prisoner exchange took place, during which 157 Ukrainians returned home
The video shows the first meetings of the released with their relatives and friends after arriving at the first point in the territory controlled by Ukraine: hugs, kisses, calls home, tears of joy and exclamations of “Heroes!” and “Congratulations!”.
All former prisoners of war are expected to undergo treatment and rehabilitation, because returning to normal life after captivity requires time and support.
For security reasons, highways around Kharkiv are protected with anti-drone nets
Darnytsia CHP after the Russian attack
Interview
Andrii Turchyn, Colonel, Commander of the 25th Separate Sicheslav Airborne Brigade
Andrii Turchyn embarked on his military career well before 2014. He faced Russia’s full-scale invasion while serving as deputy chief of staff at a battalion tactical group. Today, Turchyn is a full recipient of the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky (all three classes). Under his command, the 25th Separate Sicheslav Air Assault Brigade is fighting on the Pokrovsk front. In late March 2024, the brigade carried out an operation near the village of Tonenke, inflicting heavy losses on Russian forces.
In an interview with Ukrinform, Andrii Turchyn spoke about how the Russo-Ukrainian war has evolved, the role of technology and people on the battlefield, and the true cost of command decisions.
Milos Vystrcil, President of the Senate of the Czech Republic
The Speaker of the upper chamber of the Czech Parliament is among the most consistent supporters of Ukraine. This is especially evident now, when statements by the new governing coalition and the majority in the lower house of the legislature have at times raised doubts about the future of Czech support for Ukraine. The shift is visible even in symbolic gestures: while Ukrainian flags have disappeared from some official buildings, they continue to fly over the Senate.
In an interview with Ukrinform, the the President of the Senate Miloš Vystrčil explained what the upper chamber is doing to maintain strong support for Ukraine, why he believes that Tomio Okamura will not succeed in halting assistance to Kyiv and reflected on the Czech Republic’s historical experience, which, in his view, leaves little room for illusions about how an aggressor behaves when not confronted He also outlined why he sees no risk of a repetition of the Munich betrayal this time around.
Nicolas Forissier, Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness of France
This month, in response to Russian terror in the midst of the cold, Ukraine convened the “Energy Ramstein.” Its goal was to coordinate assistance to bring warmth back to Ukrainian homes. As a result of the first meeting, the partners announced the provision of more than 6,000 units of energy equipment. The co-chairman of the meeting was France.
Paris supports Ukraine in many areas. And if two weeks ago the Minister Delegate to the Minister of the Armed Forces of France visited Kyiv to discuss a program to support veterans, now the Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness, Nicolas Faurissier, is heading to Kyiv.
Ukrinform asked the French diplomat on the eve of his visit about how Paris supports Ukraine’s energy and recovery, as well as what role Ukraine can play in the EU, one of the largest and most complex economies in the world.
Fact Checks
Epstein files: Russian propaganda spreads fake claims of Ukrainian government’s “involvement” in human trafficking
The Russian state propaganda agency TASS and the Kremlin-linked network of Telegram channels are spreading claims that the so-called “Epstein files” allegedly contain references to a “connection” between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and human trafficking.
Russian propagandists cite a letter from an unknown author, dated 2024, claiming that Zelensky may have collaborated with Jean-Luc Brunel, a French modeling agent and associate of Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in 2022 after being accused of pedophilia and human trafficking.
This is fake. First, Russian media provide no evidence of such correspondence. The publications do not include screenshots of the letter or any direct references to it. Leading international and Ukrainian media outlets that analyze the Epstein case documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice typically publish scanned copies or photographs of the materials.
Second, Ukrainian media have indeed reported on documents linking Brunel to Ukraine, but solely in the context of his contacts with Ukrainian modeling agencies. For instance, the “Epstein files” contain correspondence between Masha Manyuk, director of the Kyiv modeling agency Linea 12 Models, and Jean-Luc Brunel. The letters show that in the 2010s, he was seeking models in Ukraine for work abroad. Manyuk clarified to Ukrainian media that these were just inquiries, none of which led to collaboration, and all proposals for Ukrainian models to work in New York were rejected. The documents do not mention Volodymyr Zelensky or any other Ukrainian high-ranking officials.
Third, according to Ukrainian outlets, the released documents do mention Zelensky – at least 24 times. However, these references are mostly news headlines or mentions in articles sent by email to FBI staff. They likely relate to his 2019 presidential campaign. In Epstein’s correspondence with former Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s advisor Miroslav Lajčák, the financier asked about the chances of Petro Poroshenko’s rival in the elections, which likely referred to Zelensky, according to Ukrainian journalists who analyzed the U.S. Department of Justice documents.
In conclusion, there are no mentions of human trafficking or collaboration between Zelensky and Brunel in the documents.
Russian propaganda also circulated a video using the logo of an opposition Russian media outlet called Agentstvo, claiming that Ukrainian elites after 2014 supposedly knew about child trafficking for Jeffrey Epstein’s schemes and “turned a blind eye.”
This is also fake. Russian propagandists doctored the video, using the Agentstvo logo to mislead viewers. The actual outlet has a different video format, visual markers, and watermarks.
These fake materials are intended to undermine trust in the Ukrainian government. Russia has used the “Epstein files” as a pretext for a disinformation campaign against Ukraine. According to SPRADVI, over the past few days, Russian propaganda has spread more than 300 news posts containing fake content related to the “Epstein files” and Ukraine.
Earlier, Russian propaganda also spread fake stories about Zelensky amid tensions around Greenland and the Davos Forum.
By Andrii Olenin
News:
War
Netherlands emerges as one of Ukraine’s leading partners in drone support – Ambassador
Voloshyn denies Russian capture of Ternuvate, Richne in Zaporizhzhia region
Poland capable of maintaining Ukrainian MiG-29s at high combat readiness – expert
Politics
Ukraine support remains cross-party priority in Netherlands, Ambassador says
EU’s first €10 million for Special Tribunal marks real step toward justice – Ambassador Kostin
France’s new special envoy for reconstruction to visit Ukraine soon
Melnyk speaks about his first protest at UN over disagreement with Russian narratives
Support for Ukraine to be on agenda of NATO summit in Turkey – Rutte’s deputy
German expert: Ukraine shows that, together with partners, Russia can be stopped
Belgium can no longer rely solely on soft power – Mayor of Mechelen
Preparatory team for special tribunal on Russian aggression to work in Strasbourg, Netherlands
Clear parallels can be drawn between Putin and Hitler – Belgian official
Economy
Society
Over 130 Ukrainian service members undergoing rehabilitation in Netherlands
Kyiv epidemiologists: Frost prevents spread of intestinal infections despite sewer damage
Tragic shootout in Cherkasy: Law enforcement tried to involve veterans before attack
See you next Friday!