An excerpt:
Ukrainian political elites would like nothing more than to paint [Nadia Savchenko] as a laughable character, a woman completely unsuited for politics. But the strategy has, arguably, misfired. Savchenko’s outsider appeal has only increased. Not unlike Donald Trump, she has capitalized on her position as a figure so completely outside the political mainstream as to be honest and unsullied by the dirty game. “Top Ukrainian politicians are scared of her unpredictability and refusal to play by the rules,” prominent Ukrainian journalist Iryna Slavinska tells me.
The Ukrainian public’s sky-high expectations of Savchenko are borne of their frustration with a lack of reform. Ukraine’s scorched-earth political landscape has offered no new leaders to choose from. “People feel like she can wave her right hand and liberate Donbass, wave her left hand and defeat corruption. But when you have the chance to speak to her, you can see that she is a great, interesting and charismatic person, but also just a human being,” said Alex Ryabchyn, a leading figure in Savchenko’s Motherland party.
Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council (CLICK TO ENLARGE):
