Lucian Kim
@Lucian_Kim
Senior Ukraine Analyst @CrisisGroup, former correspondent based in Berlin and Moscow, author of @ColumbiaUP book on Ukraine war
The war in Ukraine is not a quarrel in a faraway country between people of whom we know nothing. We know exactly who started it and that his aggression is directed as much against Ukraine as against the US and its allies. I wrote a whole book about it: cup.columbia.edu/book/putins-re…
Just a few days ago Ukrainians were assuring me that whatever complaints they had about Zelensky, they understood the need for a united front in wartime. Now it's unclear whether Zelensky can still count on national unity—a scenario the Kremlin has long been hoping for.
Latest: Zelensky has signed law stripping powers of Ukraine’s independent anticorruption agencies, according to two sources close to the president. It has not yet been published on the presidential site.
"Shame!" shouted many Ukrainian lawmakers as a majority formed from Zelensky's ruling party, pro-Russian oppo bloc & Yulia Tymoshenko's Batkivshchyna voted to, in effect, dismantle Ukraine's independent anticorruption institutions. My story on a grim day: ft.com/content/21cf3d…
Another day, another bomb. My best Ukrainian friend says his hometown, Dobropillia, is "doomed." His mother recently fled under the threat of drones, but many of their friends and relatives remain, unwilling to accept that war is swallowing up their town. kyivindependent.com/russian-aerial…
5 other EU countries use Patriots: Poland, Romania, the Netherlands, Spain, Greece. Germany may get one Patriot system originally ordered by Switzerland—and, believe it or not, give up even one more of its own systems.
It's a perilous moment for Ukraine, for democracy in Ukraine and for democracy everywhere. Nothing happens in a vacuum.
First things first: Germany used to have 12 Patriot systems. 3 went to Ukraine; 2 went to Poland; one is used for training. Of the remaining 6, not all are in working condition. So where are the 5 additional Patriots for Ukraine supposed to come from?
End of an historic day here in Kyiv. Zelensky's status as an uncontested wartime leader is no more, whatever happens in the coming days. Huge uncertainty ahead.
So exactly how many Patriots is Ukraine supposed to get—and where from? Thanks to @rixa_fursen for doing the math after Pistorius announced that "Germany will contribute to providing the 5 urgently-needed Patriot systems as quickly as possible": politico.eu/podcast/berlin…
Trump gets to make the big announcement on US arms for Ukraine, but German fingerprints are all over the deal. Merz is working quietly but decisively. politico.eu/article/europe…
Ukrainian journalists articulate what Ukraine's international backers are reluctant to say publicly: "The war can't be a pretext for undermining Ukraine's democracy—as well as for not calling out power abuse." kyivindependent.com/editorial-righ…
