• The plan for the Zaporizhia plant in Moscow was submitted to the UN: “Security is our priority”. USA: “It’s up to Russia to avoid disasters”
• Moscow: “Ukrainian attack on a refugee camp in the Belgorod region: one dead and two seriously wounded.”
• Wall Street Journal: “Kiev and its allies plan July summit (without Russia) on peace formula.”
• The Ukrainian drones fired on Moscow represent a quantum leap ahead of the counter-offensive.
10:28 – GB, Moscow is increasingly losing initiative in the conflict
Since the beginning of this month, Russia has been increasingly losing the initiative in the Ukraine conflict, writes the British Ministry of Defense in its daily intelligence update. According to the report published on Twitter, Moscow is reacting to the actions of the Kiev armed forces instead of actively pursuing its war aims. London experts note that Russian forces have had little success in their likely goals of neutralizing air defenses and destroying Ukrainian counterattack forces. In addition, Moscow has redeployed its security forces on the ground to respond to partisan attacks in Russia’s western regions. Operationally, Russian commanders are likely trying to build up reserve forces and position them where they think the expected Ukrainian counter-offensive will take place. However, the report concludes that this strategy was likely undermined by indecisive troops being sent to fill gaps in the front line around Bakhmut.
10:26 am – Von der Leyen, who can supply long-haul systems
“The immediate need is military assistance in support of the efforts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.” That is why we have just proposed an ammunition production law, let’s call it ASAP. We want to push our defense industry to increase production of 155mm and 152mm artillery shells, which are urgently needed.” This was stated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her speech at Globsec 2023- Forum in Bratislava.
“And those capable of doing so should provide long-range artillery and weapons systems that can help Ukraine close the battlefield gap within the reach of the invading forces,” he added. Our support is also needed for the military training of the Ukrainian armed forces. The Member States are doing a lot, and we at European level are also doing our part. By the end of the year we will have trained 30,000 soldiers.”
10:11 am – Pope: “Positions for peace in all, including those with political responsibilities”
Pope’s new call for peace in Ukraine with a warning to political leaders. The Pope greets the Italian faithful at the general audience and “greets with affection the young people of Rondine Cittadella della Pace with a grateful thought to those who, from Ukraine, Russia and other countries at war, decided not to be present. “ Enemies, but to live as brothers.
May your example – says Francis – awaken peace resolutions in everyone, even in those who bear political responsibility. And that must make us pray more for and be close to tormented Ukraine.”
09:22 – Medvedev vs. Clever, officials are a legitimate military target
Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev criticized British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who said yesterday that Ukraine “has the right to use force beyond its borders”.
“The stupid officials of the UK, our eternal enemy, should remember that under the generally accepted international law governing modern warfare, including the Hague and Geneva Conventions with their additional protocols, their state too is classified as being at war Medvedev tweeted: “In this case, any of his officials (both military and civilians who support the war) can be considered a legitimate military target.”
8.40 a.m. – Russia, Zakharova: Western position on attacks in Moscow is “cowardly”
Western countries’ stance on drone strikes in Moscow is “absolutely cowardly,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said today, adding that the West only comments on what it wants to comment on. Yesterday, the Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine had attacked the Russian capital with eight unmanned aerial vehicles, adding that all the drones had been shot down. “Obviously this is an absolutely cowardly position. There is no other word, no definition: they (western countries, editor’s note) only see and comment on what is useful to them. And that is propaganda,” Zakharova said on RIA Novosti radio station.
08:35 – Ukraine, 5 killed and 19 wounded in attack on occupied Luhansk territory
Five people were killed and 19 others wounded in a shelling on a village in the Russian-held Luhansk region of Ukraine, local Russian officials said on Telegram. Four rockets were reportedly fired by a Ukrainian army Himars unit and hit the village of Karpaty. Luhansk is one of four regions of Ukraine that the Russian Federation has declared as its territory.
08:07 – Kiev, 32 Russian drones have been shot down in the last 24 hours
Ukrainian forces shot down 32 Russian kamikaze drones in the past 24 hours, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kyiv said in its daily update on the situation at the front, Ukrinform reports. “In the last 24 hours, our defenders have destroyed 32 Shahed attack drones.
The missile and artillery forces units hit three command posts, an area occupied by enemy soldiers, four artillery systems in firing positions, one anti-aircraft missile system, three fuel depots and an electronic warfare facility,” the report said. In total, in the past 24 hours, the Russians have carried out 64 airstrikes on Ukraine, conducted one missile attack and launched 88 multi-launch missiles.
07:52 – Drones “pierce” the sky over Moscow. Putin: “They want to terrorize us”
FROM OUR envoy IN Kyiv
(by Andrea Nicastro) The war in Ukraine is poised to increase, perhaps even escalate, the level of violence, and it certainly shows no sign of stopping. According to President Zelensky, the start date for the Ukrainian counter-offensive to recapture the occupied territories has already been set. Moscow is relentlessly targeting cities far from the front lines. And it seems obvious that if you think about the Ukrainians, someone is increasingly attacking Russian territory up to the capital.
It happened earlier this month with a drone exploding over the Kremlin dome, it happened again in mid-May with the 48-hour attack by the Free Russia Legion, and again yesterday with a small force of unmanned aerial vehicles taunting Russian defenses until he hit some skyscrapers in residential areas. “We have nothing directly to do with any of this,” defends Ukrainian presidential adviser Mikhail Podolyak, “but of course we’re happy to help and expect the number of attacks to increase.”
The war goes beyond the borders of the invaded country and reaches the invader’s capital. The statements are getting harder and harder. Vengeance, revenge, destruction of the enemy, victory are the only words in the political discourse that can be heard. A few days ago, the spokesman for the US Security Council said that the United States “encourages and does not want” the weapons donated to Ukraine for self-defense “to be used on Russian territory”.
07:39 – Governor: “Ukrainian drone causes fire in Krasnodar refinery”
The governor of Russia’s Krasnodar Territory said a Ukrainian drone was likely the cause of a fire that broke out at the Afipsky oil refinery. The fire was extinguished and there were no injuries, Veniamin Kondratyev added. The Afipsky refinery is not far from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, near another refinery that has come under multiple attacks this month.
07:04 – The wife of the dissident Kara-Murza: “We have returned to the methods of the USSR: torture and punitive psychiatry”
(by Federico Fubini) Alongside Alexej Navalny, Vladimir Kara-Murza is the most important opponent in Russian prisons. He survived two poisonings, in 2015 and 2017. He was arrested a year ago. He was recently sentenced to 25 years in prison for “treason”. Since then, his wife Evgenia Kara-Murza has devoted all her energy from exile to the fight against Vladimir Putin’s regime.
Ma’am, you could think about the kids and stay calm. Why are you putting yourself in danger now?
“I don’t think I could have done anything else, also because we have three children. He’s her father, I have to fight for him. Everything that happened is devastating for me as a Russian, as a mother, as a wife. But I don’t see an opportunity to just sit back and wait for things to happen by themselves. War is raging in the heart of Europe, people are dying in Ukraine, people are being beaten up and thrown in prison for 15 years in Russia simply for defying this genocidal war. I’m in a much better position.
06:28 – Russia, attack on a refinery in Krasnodar, there are no casualties
A crude oil storage tank has caught fire at an oil refinery in the Krasnodar region of southern Russia, allegedly due to a drone attack, Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said on his Telegram channel. “A fire broke out at the site of the Afipsky oil refinery. A refinery caught fire. “A drone attack is currently considered the most plausible cause,” he added, stating that “the fire was contained over an area of 100 square meters and there were no injuries.” The fire was soon finally extinguished.
06:11 – Russia accuses Kiev of bombing Shebekino again
Russian defense authorities have accused the Ukrainian military of renewed bombing of the town of Shebekino in Russia’s southwestern Belgorod region, injuring a woman. “Residential buildings were damaged. “A number of vehicles caught fire,” according to a statement released by TASS from the region’s Crisis Response Center. The Shebekino district bordering Ukraine has been heavily shelled in recent days. On Monday alone, 155 shells fell on its territory, 48 of them in the administrative center of the district
5:36 am – The $300 million in US aid also includes ammunition for drones
A new $300 million aid package for Ukraine, including new munitions for drones, will be announced this week. This was reported by US military sources. The anticipation comes after the new drone strikes on the Russian capital, for which Kiev denies responsibility. Also today, the White House reiterated its opposition to attacks on Russian soil, but did not comment on the possibility that the recent raids were carried out with funds provided by the United States.
05:32 – Grossi (IAEA): “In the UN Council I am going in the right direction in Zaporizhia”
“We are encouraged by the statements of support for our work, including the five principles proposed today,” said International Atomic Energy Agency Director Rafael Grossi at the end of the UN Security Council meeting on the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.
“Today is a positive day for the safety of the plant, we have taken a step in the right direction,” he stressed, repeating that the words must be measured and cautious. Grossi then reiterated that “our work continues to be present in Zaporizhia and we will strengthen our mission”.