Kollen Post
Contributor
Kollen Post is the defense industry reporter for the Kyiv Independent, covering the arms industry, new weapons tech, cyberdefense and intelligence. He speaks Ukrainian and Russian. His writing has appeared in Radio Free Europe, Fortune, Breaking Defense, Science Magazine, FT's Sifted, the Cipher Brief, and the Foreign Policy Research Institute. His reporting has been cited in the New York Times, Ukrainska Pravda, and U.S. Congress.
Lessons from Russia’s Shahed fleets for US long-range drones and air defenses
When a flock of Shaheds crossed the border into Poland on Sept. 10, 2025, NATO forces had two choices. The first was to send up NATO-supplied F-16 fighters armed with $500,000 apiece Sidewinder air-to-air missiles. The second was to ignore the Russian drones and pretend nothing was wrong — the choice that Romania made in response to a similar Russian incursion days later.
1/7/2026
As Winter Comes to Ukraine's Frontlines, Zelensky is Betting on a Miracle
Autumn is fading to winter in Ukraine’s east. The battle lines with Russia are soon to freeze over, though Russia is squeezing out some last-minute victories in key fortress cities. The situation leaves Ukraine tallying the results of the past year. Despite critical hits to the Russian economy, Ukraine’s situation is only bleaker.
11/14/2025