Interview with Illia Ponomarenko: Communication on the Frontline of War 

Illia Ponomarenko is one of the most internationally known Ukrainian war journalists. In this programme he addresses the issue of information warfare in conflict and explains the significance of communication in Ukraine’s struggle for survival. He also describes his own role, as well as the importance of real-time social media communication and crowdsourcing. 

Illia Ponomarenko has covered the Russian-Ukrainian war since 2014. Has visited war zones in Ukraine several times with Ukrainian combat forces. Ponomarenko has been a prominent figure on social media since the beginning of the Russian invasion and currently has over 1.2 million followers on X (formerly Twitter). Ponomarenko was involved in founding the Ukrainian English-language media outlet The Kyiv Independent. 

Ponomarenko’s memoir “I Will Show You How It Was: The Story of Wartime Kyiv” will be published in May.

Yle’s journalist Justas Stasevskij will interview Ponomarenko.

The programme will be in English. The programme will be available on-site at the Speaker’s stage and through live stream on the Festival website. The programme is not recommended for children.

What Russia is doing to Ukraine now is one of the most absurd, unnecessary, and pointless wars in human history. But this is also the largest and the most barbaric war of conquest since World War II, and we in Ukraine are in desperate need for aid from our friends, so that our military could curtail this nightmare and bring peace back to our continent.

Illia Ponomarenko

Illia Ponomarenko

Illia Ponomarenko is a Ukrainian journalist and book author covering the Russian-Ukrainian war since 2014 and also the co-founder of The Kyiv Independent, a top Ukrainian English-language media outlet.

Justas Stasevskij

Justas Stasevskij is currently Yle’s Eastern Europe journalist in Warsaw. He has also reported on the Russian-Ukrainian war. Stasevskij has previously studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and is a pianist by profession.