Weekly Exclusives
Weekly Exclusives - a newsletter that contains author publications, interviews, exclusive comments, photos and videos.
Photos of the week
1,000 candles lit at the foot of the "Motherland" sculpture on the 1,000th day of the full-scale invasion
November 19 marks the 1,000th day of the full-scale war and the 3,925th day since the start of Russia's armed aggression.
Ukrinform offers a photo chronicle of these 1,000 days of invincibility, created based on the photographs of its photo correspondents. They capture the course of the Great War from the first day.
Ukrainian artist Vlodko Oleshchuk during the opening of the MOOD (performative painting) exhibition project at the Mercury Intellectual Art Center, Lviv, November 10, 2024.
Interview
“There are no humans on the other side, the enemy are worse than beasts”, - Ivan Medvedyuk, second in command, 97th Battalion, 60th Independent Mechanized Brigade, AFU.
Ivan Medvedyuk went to the defense of Ukraine while being a bulldozer-excavator driver at the Zasyadko Mine, a coal mining company in Donetsk. The war caught him at his workplace. He, however, did not hesitate to join the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) ranks. On the first days of the all-out invasion, he went to fight carrying just a hunting rifle in his hands.
Currently, Ivan serves as deputy commander of the 97th Battalion at the 60th Independent Mechanized Brigade. His military service experience for nearly three years of the Great War includes recon and subversive missions behind enemy lines and command of a company-size unit.
In an Ukrinform interview, held as part Victory Commanders series, Ivan Medvedyuk was telling about the situations he encountered while behind enemy lines, about successful operations and the elimination of a Russian army colonel, the current situation in the Lyman stretch of the frontline, and also shared his deliberations about whether it is more difficult to shoot at a human than an animal.
Herman Makarenko, conductor at Ukraine’s National Opera, artistic director of the Kyiv-Classic Orchestra
On November 11, Kyiv hosted the world premiere of Creonte, the first opera by Ukrainian composer Dmytro Bortnyanskyy.
Herman Makarenko is a People's Artist of Ukraine, conductor at Ukraine’s National Opera, artistic director of the Kyiv-Classic Orchestra, Head of the UNESCO Chair in Music, Education and Science for Peace, Doctor of Arts (History), Honorary Citizen of Kyiv, Ambassador of Ukrainian Culture, UNESCO Artist for Peace.
In an interview with Ukrinform, he told about how this real treasure was rediscovered after being considered missing for nearly 250 years. After all, this conspicuous work by the baroque composer, singer and conductor is a great asset not just to the Ukrainian and European culture, but also to the world culture, considering his other works created in the 18th century.
Herman Halushchenko, Ukraine’s Energy Minister
On November 13-14, Warsaw hosted the two-day international exhibition and conference “ReBuild Ukraine Construction and Energy”. The event aimed to join efforts to help Ukraine restore its war-ravaged economy, with a focus on infrastructure projects, industry, energy and the residential sector. ReBuild Ukraine Construction and Energy brought together attendees from across the world and Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, in a brief interview to Ukrinform’s correspondent on the margins of the forum, summarized the outcomes of this significant international gathering, and outlined the most urgent needs of the country’s energy system ahead of the incoming winter season. He also touched on topics such as Russia’s continuing attacks on civilian and energy infrastructures in Ukraine, Ukraine-Poland energy cooperation, as well as promising directions for renewable energy conversion in Ukraine.
Publication
1,000 Days of the Great War: What Lessons We Have Learned About Ourselves, About Our Friends and Our Foes
Behind us are 1,000 days of full-scale war, 24,000 hours of incredible resistance, 1,440,000 minutes during which not only we have been at the forefront of history, but have been creating it. Indeed, behind this heroic fight lies the immense loss and pain: never-ending air raid alerts; the thunder of air defense missiles blasting off skyward to intercept targets; artillery salvos; explosions of missiles, drones, and shells; houses destroyed to ruins; schools, hospitals, cities and villages wiped off the face of the earth, fields mined and clogged with explosive hazards, tens of thousands of killed and crippled; millions of refugees and displaced.
Behind us are 1000 days of full-scale war. Through blood, sweat and tears, we continue proving to all of the world, but first of all to ourselves, that we are a truly mature nation, consolidated and courageous, rather than some “failed state” as someone referred to and portrayed us. Let’s not forget that we were given just three days [to hold out against a Russian invasion], but we took this and have already multiplied it by 333.3. And we will multiply it further, again and again, and the enemy will be “multiplied by zero”. We are getting stronger, more furious, and we are not going to surrender. Victory will definitely be ours.
These 1,000 days behind us –… Let’s try to look into what we have learned about ourselves, about our friends and about our enemy during this time?
Fact Checks
Russians faked photo of wounded Ukrainian soldier and blamed it on ‘Ukrainian media’
Russian media outlets, z-Telegram channels, bots on social network X and Reddit are spreading an alleged screenshot of a news story by an unnamed Ukrainian newspaper about a rehabilitation center for soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, illustrated with the photo of a wounded soldier. The Russian propagandists claim that the "newspaper" edited the photo with Photoshop adding the lower limb of a soldier who lost it in the war. They also claim that Ukrainian media outlets are promoting an alleged rehabilitation center in Odesa that was created on the instructions of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, while the funds allocated for it are being stolen.
This is a fake. The photo from the newspaper's “news story” distributed by Russian propagandists does not identify the publication, as it does not indicate its name, the date of publication, or the author.
The text says that the rehabilitation center was allegedly opened by a decree of President Volodymyr Zelensky in 2023. However, this is not true. In April 2023, two branches of the RECOVERY rehabilitation centers network were opened in Odesa, which are privately owned and funded by Ukrainian businessman Victor Pinchuk and his wife Olena.
Russian propaganda spreads fake news about Ukrainian soldiers surrendering en masse after U.S. election
Russian media outlets and Telegram channels falsely claimed that after Republican Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election, Ukrainian soldiers began surrendering eight times more frequently. The sources for this disinformation included a post on X (formerly Twitter) by Irish "journalist" Chay Bowes, a doctored video attributed to the U.S. think tank ISW, and alleged "data" from Euronews.
This claim is entirely false. Chay Bowes, portrayed as a journalist from Ireland, is in fact a Kremlin propagandist employed by the state-run Russia Today channel. He frequently poses as a "Western journalist" who admires Russia's so-called achievements and its dictator, Vladimir Putin.
The photo Bowes used in his post, supposedly showing Ukrainian soldiers surrendering, actually depicts captured Russian soldiers who surrendered to Ukrainian Azov special operations forces in August 2022.
Video
Ukrainian doctors performed the world's first heart surgery on a child in the first minutes of life
On November 19, on the thousandth day of the full-scale war, the Center for Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine performed the world's first operation in the first minutes of life on a child with heart defects incompatible with life, creating the conditions of an "artificial uterus".
The operation was conducted under the guidance of a cardiac surgeon, director of the state institution "Scientific and Practical Medical Center for Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine", Professor Ilya Yemets, and an obstetrician-gynecologist, director of the Kyiv Prenatal Center of the city of Kyiv, Professor Dmytro Govseev.
The woman in labor specifically came to give birth to the Ukrainian cardiocenter from Moldova, because during pregnancy her child was diagnosed with one of the types of serious congenital heart pathology - transposition of the great vessels, which means the incorrect position of the main vessels that depart from the heart, that is, the aorta and the pulmonary artery trunk, relative to each other and to the heart chambers from which they depart.
In the Netherlands, Ukrainians held a gratitude event on the 1000th day of the full-scale Russian invasion
Russians attacked Odesa during a massive shelling on November 17
Preparing new fighters in the 57th OMB for assault operations
News:
War
Minister Galushchenko: Ukraine ready to help Poland develop nuclear power industry
Poland is planning to develop the nuclear power industry, and Ukraine has significant experience and corresponding professionals. Hence, Kyiv is ready to provide assistance to Warsaw in this area.
According to Galushchenko, cooperation between Ukraine and Poland in the energy sector is “very good”, and the two countries have many areas of such cooperation.
In particular, last year another interconnector, Khmelnytskyi NPP-Rzeszów, was put into operation, having increased the capacity of the energy systems of Ukraine and the EU.
Galushchenko also mentioned cooperation in the gas sector, gas interconnectors and the use of gas storage facilities, as well as future cooperation in the nuclear power industry.
Ukraine needs more air defense systems to protect energy sector - Galushchenko
Ukraine urgently requires air defense systems from its Western partners to protect its infrastructure from Russian attacks.
Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said this during an interview with Ukrinform at the international exhibition and conference "ReBuild Ukraine: Construction and Energy" in Warsaw.
"Air defense. An effective defense system is the main issue. My fellow energy ministers also talked a lot about this publicly at the conference," Galushchenko said when asked about Ukraine's most pressing needs.
He called it a "good sign" because everyone is aware that much of the infrastructure repaired and restored in 2023 to ensure a stable winter was unfortunately destroyed again this year.
Ukraine may target Crimea bridge if U.S. extends ATACMS permission - expert
"If the U.S. agrees to use ATACMs without restrictions, then Ukraine has various options. For example, it could try to destroy the bridge to Crimea, which would cause serious problems for Russia's logistical supply to Crimea. Or it could target depots, airfields, and other static targets deep inside Russian territory. In general, it would provide Ukraine also with a future bargaining chip (Russia ending long-range strikes in exchange for Ukraine doing the same)," said Dick Zandee, a senior research fellow at the Netherlands Institute of International Relations "Clingendael" in The Hague, commenting on future possible development scenarios in the event of the unrestricted use of the provided weapons.
Politics
NABU requests Interpol to issue "red notice" for MP Odarchenko
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) has submitted materials to Interpol to announce a search for Andrii Odarchenko, a Member of Parliament from the Servant of the People party, who was sentenced to eight years in prison by the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC).
As reported earlier, on November 14, HACC sentenced Andrii Odarchenko, an MP from the Servant of the People party, to eight years of imprisonment. He was accused of attempting to bribe the then-head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development, Mustafa Nayyem, with bitcoin in exchange for facilitating a decision to allocate money from the Fund for Elimination of the Consequences of Armed Aggression for repairing university buildings, where Odarchenko served as rector (the contract for this position has been suspended).
France never emphasizes to its partners how they should use provided weapons – diplomatic source
The French position on the use of long-range weapons currently does not require clarification. At the same time, France is confident that the entire arsenal of missiles provided to its Ukrainian partners is being used appropriately — for the defense of Ukrainian sovereignty and the protection of Ukrainian lives.
"Our position does not need clarification. France has never emphasized to its partners exactly how they should use the weapons provided. And it has never previously stated any restrictions," the source reminded, adding that French long-range Scalp missiles have long been used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
According to the source, France builds its relations with Ukrainian partners based on trust and necessity.
"France trusts its Ukrainian partners to use the previously supplied weapons, as well as those that will be delivered in the future, solely for the purpose of defending the country," diplomatic circles explained.
Economy
Own Business programme: 22,000 Ukrainians receive grants worth UAH 5.2B
Over more than two years since the programme was launched (as of November 12, 2024), positive decisions on microgrants have been endorsed for 22,000 Ukrainians, including 9,000 recipients in 2024. The total amount of microgrants (following the endorsed decisions) is UAH 5.2 billion, including UAH 2.2 billion in 2024.
As noted by the Ukrainian State Employment Service, the government-funded grant programme ‘Own Business’ is an irrevocable, interest-free government assistance to individuals and economic entities to start or develop the existing business.
The amount of grants under this programme ranges from UAH 50,000 to UAH 250,000. For applicants whose place of activity or registration is the city of Kharkiv or the Kharkiv region, the grant size is UAH 500,000.
The main condition for obtaining grant funds is the creation of new jobs.
Regions
Some 40% of all relocated businesses now operating in Zakarpattia region
“Let me explain better with figures. In 2021, the regional budget was UAH 2.6 billion. Now, our budget is UAH 2.4 billion. Indeed, it is slightly lower than the pre-war budget, but there is an important nuance. As of 2021, 60% of our budget was government subsidies. As of 2024, our dependence on subsidies is around 25%. Therefore, relocated businesses are billions that we have never collected until now. Prior to that, we collected millions in taxes,” noted Zakarpattia Regional Military Administration Head Myroslav Biletskyi.
According to Zakarpattia Regional Council Head Roman Sarai, 40% of all relocated businesses are now operating in the Zakarpattia region.
Some 300MW of renewable electricity facilities created in Zakarpattia region
A total of 300 megawatts of renewable electricity facilities have been created in the Zakarpattia region.
“As of November 2024, there are 300 megawatts of renewable electricity facilities in the region, i.e. those related to wind, solar and water energy,” Biletskyi told.
In his words, the first windmill installed in the mountains of the Nyzhni Vorota territorial community is already running.
“One windmill is running and generating 4.8 megawatt-hours. Another one is near completion, totaling 5.2 megawatts,” Biletskyi added.
By the end of 2024, gas generation facilities are expected to be launched in the Zakarpattia region, totaling 50 megawatts.
Society
Judge Volkov wins over UAH 14M compensation for three years of 'idle' period
Judge of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Oleksandr Volkov, has successfully claimed UAH 14,128,000 (approximately USD 386,000) in back pay from the newly formed Supreme Court that resulted from judicial reforms. This compensation covers the period from 2021 to 2023, during which he was effectively unable to perform judicial duties.
See you next Friday!