Explaining Ukraine

Let’s take a deeper look into drone warfare and the long-term changes it is bringing to the battlefield. How is Ukraine countering Russian drone attacks? How is it developing systems of drone interceptors? Are we moving toward a future where drones will fight other drones? And what skills must our societies cultivate to prepare for this new reality?

***

The “Explaining Ukraine” podcast is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media outlet about Ukraine run by Internews Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms: https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

Support: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Taras Tymochko, a consultant at Come Back Alive (Povernys zhyvym), one of Ukraine’s most prominent charitable foundations supporting the military and veterans since 2014. Taras coordinates the foundation’s project “Dronopad”—“the fall of drones”—which aims to develop a system of interceptor drones for the Ukrainian army to take down as many Russian drones as possible.

***

SUPPORT:

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld.

We rely on your contributions to keep UkraineWorld going.

You can also help finance our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we assist both civilians and soldiers. Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 Taras Tymochko, "Come Back Alive" Foundation Consultant, "Dronefall" Project Lead.

02:15 How did drones eliminate the traditional front line?

03:10 “Kill zone”: a wide space between the two armies in which soldiers on both sides are extremely vulnerable because of the drones.

04:35 Comparing Russian and Ukrainian drone capabilities

06:03 Dronefall Project: producing interceptor drones

12:47 Why do cheap interceptors defeat expensive missiles?

18:02 AI on Battlefield: How close are we to autonomous interceptor drones?

21:21 How new interceptor divisions are created in Ukraine's forces

26:49 How Ukraine counters fiber optic drones

29:39 The future war: the role of drones vs. infantry

33:13 Starlink: advantages, vulnerabilities, and alternatives in communication

37:54 Why is "battlefield experience" so important?

42:57 What "battlefield-tested" quality means

How is Ukrainian IT transforming the country’s defence? Why is technology key to success in today’s war? Why is Ukraine one of the world’s most dynamic IT nations — and why does it still hold so much untapped potential? And finally, how has the IT sector become a driver of social change, reshaping Ukraine’s social fabric today?

***

Explaining Ukraine is a podcast by UkraineWorld, an English-language media outlet about Ukraine run by Internews Ukraine.

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms: https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

SUPPORT OUR WORK: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

***

My guest today is Taras Tymoshchuk, a board member of the IT Ukraine Association and CEO of Geniusee, a Ukrainian IT company.

Read the “Digital Tiger” report by the IT Ukraine Association.

https://itukraine.org.ua/files/DigitalTiger2024.pdf

***

This episode is brought to you by UkraineWorld with the support of the Askold and Dir Fund, implemented by ISAR Ednannia, and funded by Norway and Sweden.

***

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld.

We rely on your contributions to keep UkraineWorld going.

You can also help finance our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we assist both civilians and soldiers. Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

---

CONTENTS:

00:00 Guest: Taras Tymoschuk, Member of the Board of Representatives, IT Ukraine Association, and CEO & Founder of Geniusee

01:36: The IT sector is the backbone of the Ukrainian economy

02:56: What are the key technologies in war?

04:20: War Boosting Tech. How does it influence civil life?

07:25: Russia VS Ukraine: Who is ahead in the technological war?

09:31: What directions of war technology does Ukraine develop?

11:30: Business & Investment: What countries are the most interested in Ukrainian expertise?

14:08: The Cyber War: Russian attacks (e.g., Kyivstar) and Ukraine's defence experience

18:17: How the War Boosts AI Technology

22:40: The IT Economy Structure in Ukraine

25:31: The secret of Ukraine's IT success

28:28: Diia App. The penetration of IT solutions in Ukrainian society

37:06: What is the biggest challenge of funding in Ukraine?

40:40: Winning the Tech War. What does Ukraine need?

Yaroslav Hrytsak is one of Ukraine’s leading historians and public intellectuals. His recent book in Ukrainian, "Overcoming the Past: A Global History of Ukraine", became a bestseller. His English-language book, "Ukraine: The Forging of a Nation", is now a key reference work on Ukrainian history.

We met in Lviv to discuss the global dimension of Ukrainian history, and the features of Ukraine’s political culture that explain why the country has so often fought against tyranny.

***

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

This episode is made in partnership with Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and the project Heritage Ukraine, supported by the European Union’s Erasmus programme.

***

Listen on various platforms: https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are vital—we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas of Ukraine, where we support both civilians and soldiers. Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 — The untold global story of Ukraine

01:33 — Why the world can’t ignore Ukrainian history

03:06 — Why world wars revolved around Ukraine

06:02 — Russia’s dangerous dream of the 21st century

09:28 — Good empires vs. bad empires

14:13 — The empire paradox

17:27 — Russia’s secret weapon: violence

20:59 — Why Ukrainian nobles felt “freer” than Russians

30:31 — Ukraine’s miracle: democracy against all odds

33:35 — Breaking the myth of Moscow’s “Third Rome”

37:06 — Khmelnytsky’s gamble: alliances that changed history

41:28 — Ukraine’s naive hope: negotiating within the empire

44:13 — The only way to stop Russia’s imperial comeback

48:53 — Why history still matters

If Ukraine does not receive real security guarantees, the war will continue—and is likely to spill over into the rest of Europe. But what kind of guarantees are truly needed, and which of them are realistic?

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Our guest today is Hanna Shelest, one of Ukraine’s leading experts on international security and foreign policy. She is Director of the Security Studies Program at the Foreign Policy Council “Ukrainian Prism,” and Editor-in-Chief of the journal UA: Ukraine Analytica.

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms: https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

***

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are vital—we rely heavily on crowdfunding. You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas of Ukraine, where we support both civilians and soldiers. Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 Hanna Shelest, director of the Security Studies Programme at the Foreign Policy Council 'Ukrainian Prism'

02:04 A Century of Broken Promises: What History Teaches Us About Security Agreements

04:24 The NATO Paradox: Is Article 5 a Paper Tiger or a Real Deterrent?

16:20 The Baltic States on the Brink: How Real is the Threat of a Russian Blitzkrieg?

22:55 Non-Mutual Animosity: When a 'Gentleman's Agreement' Meets a Rapist

26:40 Has the US Abandoned Its Role as Ally to Become a Mediator?

30:32 Why Can't Europe Play This Role in the Conflict?

32:39 Alaska Fallout: Was the Meeting a Strategic Victory or a Destructive Blunder?

41:42 Sanctions in the Gray Zone: Why Do Loopholes Still Undermine Global Efforts?

47:35 The 'Orange' Fallacy: Why Ceding Territory is an Act of Awarding Aggression?

49:34 The Deeper Cost of War: Why Are We Talking About Land, Not People?

Maksym Butkevych is a prominent Ukrainian human rights defender. Before the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he dedicated his efforts to the protection of people whose rights were violated.

When Russia launched its war against Ukraine, Maksym joined the Ukrainian army to defend his country.

In June 2022, he was taken prisoner of war by Russia and accused of committing a war crime. The case was entirely fabricated: Russia sought to “balance” the real war crimes committed by the Russian soldiers in Ukraine and prosecuted by Ukrainian courts with invented charges against Ukrainian prisoners of war. Maksym was sentenced to 13 years in prison. He spent almost two and a half years behind bars in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories before being freed in a prisoner exchange in October 2024. He endured beatings, deprivations, and torture, but his spirit remained unbroken.

We met with Maksym in late August 2025. Our conversation turned philosophical—about life and death, freedom and fear, hope and despair.

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

UkraineWorld is an English-language media about Ukraine run by Internews Ukraine

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential — we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both civilians and soldiers.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 - Intro. Who is Maksym Butkevych

02:23 - Maksym’s recollections of Russian captivity

08:16 - The role of violence in Russian captivity

12:30 - How does the Russian machine distort the law

22:33 - Death and fear as key elements of the Russian violence system

29:07 - Staying yourself in captivity

37:17 - Is it possible to survive in captivity without thinking about love?

45:01 - Outro

45:41 - Support us: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

***

The podcast is produced by UkraineWorld with the support of the Askold and Dir Fund as a part of the Strong Civil Society of Ukraine - a Driver towards Reforms and Democracy project, implemented by ISAR Ednannia, funded by Norway and Sweden. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of UkraineWorld and can in no way be taken to reflect the views the Government of Norway, the Government of Sweden and ISAR Ednannia.

Why is technology playing such a decisive role in this war? Who is ahead in technological innovation—Ukraine or Russia? How are drones reshaping the battlefield, and how might they also transform technologies of peace? And why must Europe step up its technological cooperation with Ukraine?

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Glib Voloskyi, analyst at the Initiatives Centre of Come Back Alive (Povernys zhyvym) — one of Ukraine’s most prominent charitable foundations, supporting the military and veterans since 2014.

***

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms (apple, youtube, spotify, soundcloud, amazon etc): https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

This episode is also made in partnership with Politeia, a Ukrainian NGO focusing on preparing a new generation of change-makers in Ukraine.

***

SUPPORT US:

You can support our work on Patreon: www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential, as we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both soldiers and civilians.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 — The role of technology in war: who's winning the tech race?

01:34 — Russia’s real strategy: what are the goals?

02:12 — How Russia miscalculated: failed plans, logistics collapse and retreats

05:52 — The evolving Russian strategy: attrition and imperial ambitions

08:41 — Is this really a “Ukrainian conflict” or is it actually a Russian imperial war?

10:10 — Ukraine’s defence: from resilience to drone innovation

11:32 — The fierce race in drone technology

13:41 — What’s next? Land robots, unmanned vehicles and battlefield robotics

15:07 — Artificial intelligence at war: from target recognition to social media scans

16:40 — Dependency on Chinese tech: risk or overstated concern?

17:54 — Europe’s wake-up call: how possible it is to lose the technological race

20:33 — Tanks, drones and the future of warfare: what lessons are really learned?

25:24 — NATO partners and military conservatism: who adapts, who resists?

26:19 — Ukraine’s defence industry revival: grassroots innovation vs. scaling up

29:56 — Naval drones, land drones and robotics: Ukraine’s asymmetric advantage

31:37 — The myth of a "wonder weapon"

37:32 — Human body vs. artificial bodies: why soldiers can’t be replaced

39:01 — Why Russia destroys cities instead of capturing them

40:26 — The hidden battlefield: information wars and internal destabilisation

42:12 — The greatest danger ahead: forced concessions

Kherson may be the most dangerous regional center in Ukraine. Occupied by Russian forces in 2022, its residents were subjected to torture and intimidation.

The city was liberated by Ukrainian forces in November 2022 — but almost immediately came under daily bombardment and shelling from Russian troops stationed just across the Dnipro River.

In June 2023, Kherson was hit by a catastrophic flood caused by the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant — an explosion orchestrated by the Russian military.

Today, the city’s residents are hunted by Russian drones, as if caught in some macabre human safari.

“Kherson: Human Safari” is the title of a documentary film by Zarina Zabrisky, an American filmmaker who has spent significant time in Kherson, reporting from this brave and embattled city.

Link to the film: https://khersonhumansafari.com/

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Zarina Zabrisky, an American filmmaker and writer, author of the film “Kherson: Human Safari”.

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

***

LISTEN on various platforms: https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

***

SUPPORT US:

You can support our work on Patreon: www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential, as we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both soldiers and civilians.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 – Zarina Zabrisky, a U.S. journalist in Ukraine

02:30 – Why is Kherson so important in the war?

04:56 – Life in Kherson: What does it look like now?

13:50 – Why does a central store in Kherson look better than posh stores in the U.S.?

15:01 – In memory: Victoria Amelina in Kherson

16:12 – Kherson: Human Safari — the story of Kherson from the start of the full-scale invasion to date

19:40 – How did Zarina Zabrisky document the newest war crime against humanity?

24:02 – Do Russians conduct the “human safari” in Kherson for fun, or is it a strategy?

26:04 – A terror campaign: How does Russia attempt to erase Kherson?

29:20 – What exactly do Russians want to achieve with their cruelty toward Ukrainians in frontline territories?

36:00 – How Russia influences the ecosystem

41:12 – Destruction of the Kakhovka Dam: Survival and resistance stories from locals

43:30 – The rescue of Ukrainian children from Russian captivity

48:10 – Deportation of Ukrainian children as a form of genocide

50:00 - Support us: https://www.patreon.com/ukraineworld

Trump is set to meet with Putin in Alaska on August 15. Media reports and leaks ahead of this meeting, along with statements by President Trump and members of his administration, suggest that the two leaders may have discussed a plan in which Ukraine would cede some or all of the occupied territories to Russia in exchange for “peace.”

This brings us back to the basics: the fundamental truth that violating internationally recognized borders through military aggression cannot lead to sustainable peace.

In this episode, we explain why the idea of a territorial swap is dangerous — why it would undermine international law, destabilize the global order, and why neither Ukraine nor most EU member states are likely to accept it.

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Tetyana Ogarkova, a Ukrainian journalist and public intellectual, the head of the international department at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre, and author of the podcast “L’Ukraine face a la guerre: (Ukraine facing the war), in French.

***

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms (apple, youtube, spotify, soundcloud, amazon etc): https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

***

SUPPORT US:

You can support our work on Patreon: www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential, as we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both soldiers and civilians.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

Russia has committed over 160,000 war crimes in Ukraine, according to Ukraine's Prosecutor General's office.

What kinds of crimes are most widespread in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?

Why is the Russian approach to war so heavily marked by cruelty?

Why do Russian forces torture Ukrainian civilians and abduct Ukrainian children?

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Oleksandra Romantsova, a Ukrainian human rights activist and Executive Director of the Center for Civil Liberties — a Ukrainian NGO that was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022

Centre for Civil Liberties: https://ccl.org.ua/en/

***

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

Listen on various platforms (apple, youtube, spotify, soundcloud, amazon etc): https://li.sten.to/explaining-ukraine

***

SUPPORT US:

You can support our work on Patreon: www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential, as we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both soldiers and civilians.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 — The war that started in 2014: a history of Russian war crimes.

03:00 — First steps of the occupiers: a blueprint for terror.

07:11 — Why Russia fails to understand Ukrainians: a crucial mistake.

11:54 — The myth of “honest” Russian courts and police

14:19 — How Russia kidnaps Ukrainian children

16:07 — How Russia changes Ukrainian demography and militarizes Ukrainian children

19:23 — Preparing teenagers for the Russian army

21:26 — Is there a place for justice in a Russian world?

23:48 — Why returning people and achieving justice is critical

26:06 — A new war crime: kidnapping civilians

28:40 — Why documenting war crimes is crucial

29:50 — How Russia destroys any law in the occupied territories

31:20 — Using captives as hostages and resources

33:28 — Russian torture chambers exist even in small villages

34:30 — Chaos strategy: Moscow tries to create “grey zones” near NATO borders

36:10 — Why Russia is fighting a war against Ukrainian civilians.

39:23 — Why Putin fears democracy

41:14 — Breaking Ukrainians through religious persecution

42:43 — Three levels of justice: punishment, victims’ rights and historical truth

44:36 — Why crimes must be recorded now

47:02 — Lessons from other countries: never wait until the war ends

49:16 — Solutions: universal jurisdiction and a special tribunal

How can we understand what’s happening inside the Ukrainian army?

How do soldiers feel? What challenges do they face? What parts of military life do they believe aren’t working?

Traditional sociology doesn’t always provide the answers. But another discipline — anthropology, also called ethnography — offers a different approach. This method involves deep immersion into the everyday lives of soldiers.

A more recent innovation, called mobile ethnography, takes this further — allowing researchers to stay connected with soldiers even when they’re not physically present.

We wanted to learn more about what such a deep dive can reveal about the Ukrainian army.

***

Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher, editor-in-chief of UkraineWorld, and president of PEN Ukraine.

Guest: Oleksiy Moskalenko, an analyst at the Initiatives Centre of Come Back Alive (Povernys zhyvym) — one of Ukraine’s most prominent charitable foundations, supporting the military and veterans since 2014.

***

Come Back Alive foundation: https://savelife.in.ua/en/

The Foundation’s Initiatives Centre: https://cbacenter.ngo/en

From Civilian to Soldier: A Study: https://cbacenter.ngo/en/page/how-civilians-become-soldiers-come-back-alive-initiatives-center-studies-basic-military-training-in-ukraine

***

Explaining Ukraine is produced by UkraineWorld, an English-language media project about Ukraine, run by Internews Ukraine.

***

SUPPORT US:

You can support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/ukraineworld

Your contributions are essential, as we rely heavily on crowdfunding.

You can also help fund our volunteer trips to frontline areas in Ukraine, where we support both soldiers and civilians.

Donations are welcome via PayPal: [email protected]

***

CONTENTS:

00:00 - Intro. Support UkraineWorld on patreon.com/ukraineworld

01:51 - What is "Mobile Ethnography"? How a Civilian Foundation Studies the Ukrainian Army's Reality

15:14 - What Do Soldiers Really Struggle With?

17:55 - Risk Management for Civilians: How Understanding Army Life Can Prepare You?

20:49 - What "Sovietness" Really Means: Deconstructing the Biggest Complaint in the Ukrainian Army

35:12 - Ukraine's Existential Question: Can You Value Life and Still Win a War?

38:04 - From Civilian to Soldier: How Ukraine's Army is Changing from the Inside Out

43:03 - The "After-War" Problem: Why Ukraine Needs Help NOW