In this episode, we sit down with retired Congressman David Bonior, former Representative for the northern suburbs of Detroit and Democratic Party Whip from 1987-2002. David worked to shift US policy in favor of independent Ukraine in the collapse of the Soviet Union and has advocated for the country ever since. We talk about the political fight in…

In this episode... 0:53 - Combat Update: Kharkiv hit heavily by Russian bombs, Chasiv Yar shaping to be the next big battle 9:05 - Mobilization age lowered to 25 14:05 - Russian citizens in the Ukrainian military 22:00 - Russian military recruitment around the world, the hows and whys 51:22 - Russian Orthodox Church declaration of Holy War...and an…

In this episode... 00:55 - Announcement: New documentary from the Kyiv Independent 01:50 - Reflections on the Kyiv Security Forum 06:57 - Combat Update: Raids into Russian territory lasting a very long time 12:30 - Russia launches a heavy nightly missile campaign against energy infrastructure and civilian homes. I go to the scene of a destroyed Art…

In this episode... We interview Ivan Zharkov, a participant in the Revolution of Dignity who enlisted to defend Ukraine in the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion. He talks about his experiences in the Battles of Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Bakhmut, especially as the leader of a medical unit. Links https://english.nv.ua/opinion/what-price-victory-opi…

In this episode... 01:00 - Another Russian ship destroyed; Russia advances in the outskirts of Avdiivka 03:24 - Czech-led artillery shell supply getting ready for shipment to Ukraine 06:27 - German Chancellor Scholz says dumb things 10:41 - French President Macron gets a whole lot more assertive, threatens French involvement in war 19:00 - Sweden j…

In this episode... 01:09 - The fall of the hero-city of Avdiivka. The city is no more. 12:04 - Remembering 10 years of Revolution and War, and 2 Years of the full-scale invasion 14:30 - The Polish farmer blockade of the border reaches grotesque new heights 22:25 - The complicated legacy of Alexei Navalny, who was killed in Russian prison 36:41 - Tu…

In this episode... 00:01:15 - Ukraine destroys two more ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet using naval drones 00:04:02 - Russia makes breakthroughs in Avdiivka, putting the defense of the city at critical risk 00:12:18 - Republican blocking of Ukraine aid leaves Ukrainian Armed Forces ammunition starved 00:23:39 - Tucker Carlson interviews Putin,…

Once upon a time, Ukraine Without Hype liked to do episodes that were biographies of some of Ukraine's various baddies. The Russian buildup and then the full-scale invasion created different priorities. In this episode, we look at the subjects of these exposés and ask Where Are They Now? 00:02:42 - Pavlo Vovk 00:12:50 - Ilya Kyva 00:29:00 - Viktor …

In this episode: 01:00 - Quick updates on Russian missile attacks, Russia freezing, and the end of the holiday season 09:00 - Combat Update - Little movement on the front line, Ukraine shoots down Russian A-50, Russian electronic warfare in the Baltic Sea 17:05 - House Republicans claim they will block Ukraine aid for the next year 24:17 - The deat…

Anthony and Romeo reflect on the biggest news stories of 2023, from the Battle of Bakhmut to the Kherson flood to Avdiivka. What went right, what went wrong, and what was unexpected? Then, we take what we learned from the year to guess what may happen next year, a year of grinding attrition warfare and an ever-more vital fight for support. Links ht…

In this episode... 2:50 - In the Combat Update, Ukrainian defenders continue to hold Avdiivka, Russia pushes through the divided city of Marinka, and the ZSU consolidates gains on the Left Bank of the Dnipro near Kherson 10:07 - The collaborator Ilya Kyva is assassinated near Moscow by the SBU. 13:37 - House Republicans stonewall Ukraine aid fundin…

In this episodes... 02:30 - The Kyiv Independent releases a new documentary (which I narrated) on the torture of Ukrainian POWs in Russian custody 03:41 - In the Start of Winter, a huge storm hits the Black Sea while Russia ups its drone attacks on Kyiv in the early phases of an expected winter campaign against energy infrastructure. 10:03 - Putin …

Olga Tokariuk is a Ukrainian journalist and Chatham Fellow who was there when the history of Ukraine - and the world - changed forever on the night of November 21, 2013. Former President Yanukovych had gone back on his promises of European Association, and fully chose Russia. What followed was protests turned into Revolution, and Revolution turned …

In this episode... 00:01:11 - Combat update - Avdiivka will be the focal point of the war for at least the rest of the year. 00:07:26 - General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, writes an article in the Economist about what Ukraine needs to break out of attritional "positional" war. 00:27:11 - Russian soldiers sla…

Some outside pressure is asking why Ukraine won't be having wartime elections. We start by going over why that would be impossible, then dig deeper into Ukrainian electoral politics and would would come of an election. 00:01:24 - Holding elections in Ukraine would be illegal, dangerous, and logistically insurmountable. 00:14:53 - A pretty confusing…

In this episode... 00:42 - Anthony recounts a reporting trip to Kharkiv and back to the former Kakhovka Reservoir 07:42 - Russia launches a massive assault on Avdiivka, and takes massive casualties in the process. Meanwhile, Ukraine launched a large but secretive incursion across the Dnipro River. 22:12 - The newly arrived ATACMS missiles from the …

We are joined by Joey Ayoub, PhD, host of The Fire These Times, about the recent massacre by Hamas in southern Israel and Israel's subsequent retaliation against Gaza's civilian population. The ferocity of Hamas' attack was unprecedented, but so was the systemic weakness and dysfunction of the Israeli state. Why did it happen, and is there any solu…

In this episode... 00:49 - Russia hits a grocery store and cafe holding a wake for a deceased community member in a village in Kharkiv region, killing over 50 people. 03:15 - Ukraine advances beyond the second line of defenses in the Tokmak direction 05:17 - After heavy attacks on the Russian Black Sea Fleet, including its headquarters in Sevastopo…

In this episode... 00:01:20 - Visiting a Hungarian-speaking town in the Zakarpattia region 00:18:40 - The anniversary of the assassination of Ukrainian journalist Georgiy Gongadze in 2000, and how the protest movement against it helped form Ukraine's democratic path. 00:33:11 - A trade dispute over agricultural goods stirs diplomatic row between Po…

In this episode... 00:01:21 - Ukrainian forces begin to pierce Russia's second line of defense in the south, and retake positions near Donetsk city. 00:08:35 - Russia caught by the Cuban authorities illegally trafficking potential soldiers. 00:11:51 - Russia looks to North Korea as a source of arms. 00:16:10 - Russia holds elections, including in t…

In this episode... 00:01:16 - Despite naysaying in the Western press, the Southern offensive makes a major breakthrough by taking Robotyne and pushing forward. 00:25:32 - How Ukraine, the country that barely has a navy, is taking the fight to the Russians in the Black Sea and Dnipro River 00:43:00 - Three Ukrainian pilots die in a training accident…

Anthony has returned from a reporting trip to the south of Ukraine and relays what he saw on the ground. 00:02:10 - Odesa's Transfiguration Cathedral was badly damaged by the recent Russia strike on the city landmark, but Odesa is undeterred from the August vacation season. 00:19:05 - We had a bit of an adventure with the Transnistria border and a …

In this episode... 00:00:36 - Announcements; join our Discord 00:02:44 - Russian counterattack thwarted in the Luhansk Oblast while progress continues in the south and Bakhmut 00:11:20 - Russia cancels grain deal, then bombs Odesa city center and port infrastructure 00:25:44 - The Ballad of Igor Girkin, the Forrest Gump of Russian Imperialism. One …

In this episode... 01:30 - Ukrainian army attacks the first line of Russian defense in the south while making gains around Bakhmut. Meanwhile, deep attacks take down the Crimean Bridge and an assassination of a Russian submarine commander. 13:30 - An update on the after-effects of the Wagner Coup attempt 20:30 - The NATO Summit in Vilnius proves to…

In this episode... 00:50 - The Ukrainian counteroffensive lurches forward across the front lines 07:23 - Wagner Group and its leader Yevgeniy Prigozhin launch a day-long uprising against the Russian government. What happened? Why? What now? 41:15 - A locked Kyiv bomb shelter leads to the death of a mother and child. 45:00 - Russian targets a restau…

Following the Russian destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Dam in the Kherson region, the area downstream was flooded, causing a massive amount of destruction. Anthony went to the city to cover the aid efforts in a city in which he has memories of a better time. While there, the Russians fired on a group of humanitarian aid workers Anthony was…

Dylan Burns is a political streamer on YouTube and Twitch who has made multiple reporting trips to Ukraine. We talk about his coverage of demining efforts and other topics, what it means to be a political streamer with a younger audience who stepped into the world of journalism, and the controversial value of debating more Russia-friendly figures. …

In this episode - 00:40 - What is it like to go through a mass suicide drone attack? 10:43 - Combat update: Ukraine continues to advance around Bakhmut, but major shifts are unlikely until the counter-offensive. They also continue to hit strategic Russian points. Meanwhile, Russia struggles to find a solution to re-do's of the Belgorod border raid.…

In this episode - 1:30 - Russian forces take control of the ruins of Bakhmut 11:15 - A questionable group of Russian volunteer soldiers fighting for Ukraine launch a raid into Belgorod Oblast of Russia and take a strangely long amount of time to be driven off. 37:30 - With the Russian success in Bakhmut, the war enters a new phase. What are the opp…

In this episode - 1:45 - An overview of the evolving situation in the war. Ukraine has made a series of localized micro-offensives throughout the front line resulting in numerous small victories against the Russian occupiers. Most importantly, in the area around Bakhmut, where they have retaken ground to the north and south of the city. This also e…

Ukraine without Hype is joined by Armenian political scientist Karena Avedissian. Karena specializes in governance, access to justice, social movements, and new media/communications in Eurasia. We asked her about the background of the Armenian-Azerbaijan conflict over the contested Nagorno-Karabakh region, recent developments of Baku tightening the…

In this Episode... 1:00 - Combat Update: Ukraine pushed back to the last few neighborhoods in Bakhmut, while a raid in Kherson Oblast gains attention as paving the way for the coming offensive. 12:05 - Putin visits occupied Kherson Oblast...maybe 17:05 - Wagner fighters blow the whistle, having been given extermination orders against Ukrainians (ht…

In this Episode... 01:10 - War Updates: The Russians advance through the city center of Bakhmut, but it seems pretty certain that the city will not be surrounded. No Russian progress around Avdiivka, and most other advances have ground down. 10:07 - The Wagner Group circulates a video of themselves beheading a live Ukrainian prisoner. We go into so…

In this News Digest... 00:50 - War Updates: The focus of the war is on Bakhmut and Avdiivka, two cities that have been largely destroyed and are threatened by attempted Russian encirclements. Russia knocks a US surveillance drone out of international skies, while Slovakia supplies Ukraine with fighter jets. Putin threatens to move tactical nuclear …

James is a US Army veteran who supported Ukraine for years before the full-scale invasion and enlisted when the time came. We talk to him about how his many years living in Russia opened his eyes to the country's simmering fascism and his path into the Ukrainian army. Since he also has a YouTube channel where he talks about old movies, we also go i…

00:45 - Combat Update, including the increasingly brutal fight to defend the strong point of Bakhmut while preparing a counter-offensive. 10:50 - A militia made up of Russian dissidents fighting for Ukraine makes a cross-border raid into Bryansk region of Russia in order to get the rest of the country to revolt. We have questions. 26:00 - China pre…

The glory of Ukraine has not yet perished, nor the will. Still upon us, young brothers, fate shall smile. Our enemies shall vanish, like dew in the sun. We too shall rule, brothers, our country. February 24th is the anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, a day that shall live in infamy. It has been a full year since the Russian-…

For this week's combat update, Russia continues to grind away at Bakhmut, making the most progress in the northern suburbs while being fought back in the south. In what appears to be the start of their much-awaited Spring offensive, most other fronts are successfully holding the Russians off. Then... 30:45 - The execution of Russian neo-Nazi could …

The second half of January has been extremely busy and there are many headlines to cover. 00:42 - Combat Update: Russian forces make troubling gains to the north and south of Bakhmut, but Bakhmut still stands. Russia fails in offensives along the southern line at Orikhiv and Vuhledar. Ukraine advances against Kreminna but is met with an increased R…

After months of little but continuous defeat, the Russian military looks like it is on the verge of taking the Donbas salt-mining town of Soledar. The battle is ongoing, but the situation is dire and would leave northern Bakhmut more vulnerable. We go into what little we know about the situation on the ground. This is followed by a discussion on th…

On the last day of a very difficult year, we do a news roundup of the last headlines of 2022. President Zelensky leaves Ukraine for the first time of the full-scale invasion to hold a joint presser with President Biden, then a speech before a joint session of Congress. In other news, Russia sends its New Year Greetings in the form of multiple murde…

Our news update covers the continuing Russian offensive on Bakhmut while Ukraine steps up its campaign of HIMARS strikes and partisan sabotage behind enemy lines, the coming and going power blackouts, the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to a Ukrainian NGO, and what may be the final death of the corrupt Kyiv District Administrative Court. Plus, morbi…

Kyiv is suffering from increasingly severe power outages as Russia focuses it strategy on making Ukraine as unlivable as possible for the civilian population during the winter. Then (@11:45) we take our time to remember the Holodomor following its remembrance day on November 26th. What is was, why it was a genocide by the Stalinist regime against t…

In a rustic candlelit recording session, Anthony covers the liberation of Kherson - the steps that led to the victory, the immediate priorities for the civilian population, and where the fighting is likely to shift to. Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithou…

Recorded and edited during the windows where everyone has electricity, this episode traces what led Russians to change strategies to targeting civilian infrastructure. Frustrated by continuous battlefield failures, the Russians can only take comfort in making Ukrainians as miserable as they can. Then, ANthony and Romeo discuss some of their recent …

Greetings Comrades! This is a crossover episode with the Eastern Border podcast where Anthony and Kristaps discuss their recent reporting trip to the city of Mykolaiv and the nearby frontlines. But first, a combat update regarding the rapid Ukrainian advances on both the Kharkiv and Kherson fronts. And a special thank you to our fixers at the Ukrai…

It is a short-form on-the-road episode by Anthony Bartaway, but these are all developing stories that deserve more focus. First up, the Ukrainian advance in the Kharkiv region and northern Donbas is continuing to roll forward and retake occupied territory, but they are discovering all of the horrors seen in all recovered territory. Putin swaps high…

While the Russian army was focused on defending its holdings in Kherson, Ukraine pulled off a stunning offensive to the east of Kharkiv. In less than a week, the Russian garrison in the Izyum salient completely disintegrated, leading to them abandoning Kharkiv Oblast to the west of the Oskil River. This offensive has not stopped, so this episode ma…

This episode is dedicated both to Ukraine's Independence Day and the 6th-month anniversary of the war that threatens that independence. In our news round-up we cover: 00:00:45 - The combat update, including the long-awaited kinetic phase of the Kherson Offensive. 00:19:00 - Russia has been staging continuous provocations at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear…

In a brief news update, Russia focuses its efforts in Donbas on the Donetsk suburb of Pisky, which guards the way to the vital strategic Ukrainian fortress-city of Avdiivka. On the Kherson front, the Russian army pours into the region in order to forestall a Ukrainian offensive, but by doing so put themselves in an extremely logistically precarious…