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Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s right-hand man, was embroiled in a corruption scandal and faced public backlash
Shweta Sharma,Bryony GoochSaturday 29 November 2025 10:40 GMTComments
CloseZelensky responds after Putin's warning over Ukraine territory
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Russian strikes have killed at least three people and wounded 30 in Kyiv after a night of explosions over the capital.
The attacks came just before a second round of peace negotiations was set to begin, as a renewed US-led push to end the war gathers steam this week.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that 600 drones and 35 missiles struck the nation in one of the largest bombardments in a while. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that falling debris from intercepted Russian drones hit residential buildings and the western part of Kyiv had lost power.
It comes as the president former chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has reportedly said he is going to the frontline after he resigned amid a $100m corruption scandal.
Often referred to as Zelensky’s right-hand man, Yermak’s home and offices were raided yesterday and he said he was fully cooperating with authorities.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office are leading the investigation involving top Ukrainian officials.
In a message to New York Post last night, he wrote: “I’m going to the front and am prepared for any reprisals,” he wrote, insisting he was “an honest and decent person.”
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Key Points
- Vast Russian overnight attack on Ukraine kills two, wounds dozens
- Zelensky's chief of staff says 'I’m going to the front' after raid and resignation
- Zelensky 'won't give up land to Russia' - Yermak
- Analysis: Ukraine has tried to bounce US into a peace deal - but Putin is still in charge
- Trump envoy Witkoff coached Russian official on how to praise US president, leaked call reveals
- Russian win 'not inevitable' according to new data
- Zelensky's right-hand man resigns amid $100m corruption scandal
Watch: Firefighters work at the site of a private home that went up in flames after it was hit by a Russian drone during a night of attacks on Kyiv
(REUTERS)
(REUTERS)Bryony Gooch29 November 2025 10:40Russia says it launched 'massive strike' on Ukrainian military, energy facilities
Russia's Defence Ministry said on Saturday that Moscow had launched a "massive" overnight strike on Ukrainian military-industrial and energy facilities overnight in response to what it called "terrorist attacks".
Bryony Gooch29 November 2025 10:20While politicians wrangle over Trump’s peace plan, soldiers are still dying, says Ukrainian filmmaker
Soldiers fighting on Ukraine’s frontline see no change on the battlefieldwhile peace talks continue back and forth between Kyiv, the Kremlin and the US, a Ukrainian filmmaker has said.
Mstyslav Chernov, the Academy award winning director of 20 Days in Mariupol, gave The Independent an insight into morale on the frontline after the limited release of his latest documentary, 2000 Meters to Andriivka, put him straight on the battlefield with Ukraine’s armed forces.
Read more here:
While Trump’s peace plan drags on, soldiers still die, says Ukrainian filmmaker
Oscar-winning Mstyslav Chernov expressed scepticism that Putin would accept peace terms as Trump’s support wavered for UkraineBryony Gooch29 November 2025 10:00Russian attacks kills 2 in Kyiv as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine gain momentum
Russian drone and missile attacks on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, killed at least two people in the early hours of Saturday, local officials said.
The attacks came just before a second round of peace negotiations was set to begin, as a renewed US-led push to end the war gathers steam this week.
Writing on its official Telegram channel, the Kyiv City Military Administration said two people were killed in the strikes. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said 15 people were wounded, noting that falling debris from intercepted Russian drones hit residential buildings. He also said the western part of Kyiv had lost power.
The latest assault on Kyiv came as Ukrainian peace negotiators are due to meet their US counterparts in America this weekend, according to an official in Ukraine's presidential administration who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
Bryony Gooch29 November 2025 09:40Fiona Hill: Russian expert on why Putin knows exactly how to get Trump on side
Vladimir Putin knows exactly how to get Donald Trump on side, a former White House adviser who observed meetings between the pair has said.
In an hour-long interview, Fiona Hill told world affairs editor Sam Kiley how the Russian president is in tune with how his American counterpart can be flattered just by being around world leaders.
The fluent Russian speaker also recalled the moment Putin could not resist the temptation to tease Trump, which translators hid from the US president.
Watch more here:
Fiona Hill: Russian expert on why Putin knows exactly how to get Trump on side
Vladimir Putin knows exactly how to get Donald Trump on side, a former White House adviser who observed meetings between the pair has said. In an hour-long interview, Fiona Hill told world affairs editor Sam Kiley how the Russian president is in tune with how his American counterpart can be flattered just by being around world leaders. The fluent Russian speaker also recalled the moment Putin could not resist the temptation to tease Trump, which translators hid from the US president. Listen and watch The Independent’s World of Trouble podcast in full above.Bryony Gooch29 November 2025 09:20Ukrainian team heads to US for talks with Trump envoy Witkoff, report says
A Ukrainian delegation is heading to the US for further discussions over a peace plan pushed by president Donald Trump, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter.
The Ukrainian group, including senior Ukrainian security official Rustem Umerov and first deputy foreign minister Sergiy Kyslytsya, is expected to meet with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in Florida, Bloomberg News reported.
Shweta Sharma29 November 2025 09:00Recap: Trump ‘to hand occupied Ukrainian land to Putin in return for peace deal’
Trump ‘to hand occupied Ukrainian land to Putin in return for peace deal’
US envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Russia next week for the next stage of peace talksBryony Gooch29 November 2025 08:40Ukrainian forces fighting in Kupiansk, despite Russian claims, top commander says
Ukrainian forces are defending their positions and hunting down sabotage groups in the northeastern city of Kupiansk despite Moscow's statements that its troops are fully in control of it, Ukraine's top commander said on Friday.
Russia seized Kupiansk in the first weeks of the 2022 invasion, but Ukrainian troops recaptured it later that year.
Russian service members hold a Russian flag in a park in Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv Region, Ukraine (via REUTERS)Russian president Vladimir Putin said last week it was back in Moscow's hands and on Thursday, while visiting Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, he said the city was "fully in our hands."
Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskyi rejected the claims.
"Our soldiers continue to conduct both defensive and search and strike actions," Syrskyi wrote on Telegram after visiting the area in Kharkiv region.
"These actions take place daily as part of comprehensive measures to stabilise the situation in Kupiansk. The scale of lies from the Russian leadership about the situation in Kupiansk is astonishing."
He said Ukrainian forces were "holding designated lines and intensifying fire pressure to block the enemy's supply routes."
Shweta Sharma29 November 2025 08:20Who is Andrii Yermak? Zelensky’s right-hand man who resigned after police raid in corruption probe
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak resigned on Friday after anti-corruption police raided his home.
The raid is part of an investigation into a $100m (£76m) corruption scandal by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. Both agencies released a report earlier this month saying that several government members were involved in an embezzlement scheme involving Ukraine’s state nuclear power company, Energoatom.
In an evening address, Zelensky said Yermak wrote a letter of resignation after officers raided his home.
Who is Andrii Yermak? Zelensky’s right-hand man resigned over corruption raid
Zelensky’s chief of staff has been integral to peace talks with the USShweta Sharma29 November 2025 08:01Latest pictures show destruction in Kyiv
Emergency responders work at the site of an apartment building that was hit during a Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv (REUTERS)
An emergency responder works at the site of an apartment building that was hit during a Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv (REUTERS)
Local residents stand next to damaged cars (AFP via Getty Images)
Resident buildings burn after Russian missile and drone strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv (REUTERS)Shweta Sharma29 November 2025 07:40Newer1 / 5OlderMore about
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