Ukraine has climbed seven places in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index
This is stated in the annual Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders.
Overall, Ukraine has climbed 50 places since the start of the full-scale war. Despite this progress, the situation regarding media freedom remains problematic.
Ukraine has improved its performance in the political, social and cultural spheres. In particular, this refers to greater openness of parliamentary committees to journalists and the development of direct dialogue between the authorities and the media.
At the same time, the report highlights a number of problems. These include:
- restrictions on journalists’ access to frontline regions,
- pending court cases concerning the prosecution of media professionals,
- the impact of the telethon on media diversity.
The security indicator remains the weakest due to Russian shelling and risks to journalists. According to Reporters Without Borders, Russia is holding 26 Ukrainian journalists — the highest figure in the world among foreign media workers.
Globally, press freedom has fallen to its lowest level in the last 25 years. More than half the world’s population lives in countries where the media situation is assessed as difficult or very difficult.
Reporters Without Borders is an international non-governmental organisation based in Paris that specialises in defending freedom of expression, journalists’ rights and promoting freedom of information worldwide.
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