10:19 Kremlin: Don't talk to Trump about Ukraine
Russia, according to the Kremlin, is not in dialogue with former US President Donald Trump regarding Ukraine. This was reported by the Interfax news agency, citing a spokesperson for the Russian Presidential Administration. Trump had stated during a TV duel with President Joe Biden last week that if he won the November election, he would resolve the war in Ukraine before his inauguration in January.
09:46 Ukraine lacks hangars to protect fighter jetsAccording to a report in the Ukrainian "Defense Express" newspaper, the Ukrainian army does not have sufficient hangars to protect all its fighter jets from Russian attacks. The newspaper reports that a military airbase in the Poltava Oblast lacks sufficient large hangar spaces for Su-27 fighter jets. Consequently, Russia has released footage of a recent air raid on the airfield, which shows several Ukrainian Su-27 aircraft damaged in the open. The Ukraine is lacking hangars to protect all its fighter jets.
09:16 Defense Committee approves purchase of 105 Leopard tanksThe Defense Committee of the German Bundestag will approve the purchase of 105 Leopard 2A8 combat tanks today. "We are exhausting all options," writes the new committee chairman Marcus Faber on the platform "X." "We are fully equipping the Brigade Litauen with combat tanks, replacing older Leo2 in the army, and creating room for further expenditures to Ukraine," adds the FDP politician. According to the proposal, the order has a volume of approximately three billion Euros. The defense consortium KNDS is expected to deliver the tanks to the Bundeswehr by 2030.
08:44 Russia: Ukrainian attack on Black Sea port repelledRussia claims to have repelled attacks by two unmanned Ukrainian explosive boats on the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. The Defense Ministry reports that the drone boats were destroyed in the Black Sea. Novorossiysk is home to a large port of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Russia has stationed many of its warships used in the conflict against Ukraine there after the Ukrainian forces attacked Häfen on the Crimean peninsula. The Ministry did not comment on possible damages. The authorities in Novorossiysk urged residents to stay in their homes and buildings during the night.
08:21 A large part of the Ukrainians feel unity in societyForty-four percent of Ukrainians believe that Ukrainian society is currently united, according to the results of a nationwide survey conducted by the Kiev International Institute for Sociology (KIIS) on July 2. A smaller proportion, 15 percent, considers Ukrainian society to be divided. Corruption is identified as the main problem, followed by language issues. Injustices during the war, collaboration, and Russophile sentiments are also seen as factors contributing to the division within society.
07:55 Kreml: Ten Ukrainian attack drones destroyedAccording to Russian statements, ten Ukrainian attack drones have been shot down over Russian territory. Five drones were destroyed over the border regions of Belgorod and Brjansk, four over the region of Moskau. Additionally, two Ukrainian cruise drones were destroyed, which had been heading towards the Black Sea port of Noworossijsk in the Krasnodar region.
07:20 Ukrainian General Staff: nearly 1200 Russian losses yesterdayThe Ukrainian General Staff reports 1180 losses on the Russian side in the past 24 hours. Moreover, 16 tanks, 17 armored vehicles, 57 artillery systems, and 63 other vehicles were destroyed. Two Russian air defense systems were allegedly destroyed by the Ukrainians, as well as a missile. The number of dead or wounded soldiers on the Russian side, according to the General Staff, has surpassed 546,000 since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
06:48 Putin arrives at SOZ summit in KazakhstanRussian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Kazakhstan, according to Kremlin reports. He is participating in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SOZ) summit in Astana. During the two-day meeting, issues of regional security, defense, and cooperation will be discussed. The heads of state and government of the SOZ member states will discuss "the current situation and prospects for further deepening of multifaceted cooperation," according to Moscow. Putin is planning to hold bilateral talks, including with China and Turkey. Representatives from 16 countries are participating in the summit - among them India, Iran, and Pakistan. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is also expected.
06:11 Ukraine rejects territorial concessions to Putin againAccording to the words of Andrij Yermak, chief of staff of the Ukrainian president, Ukraine continues to reject territorial concessions to Russia to end the war. "We are not ready to make compromises on important things and values," Yermak said to journalists and named "independence, freedom, democracy, territorial integrity, sovereignty." The chief of staff reacts to a visit to Washington with statements from Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump, who claimed he could quickly end the conflict. The Ukrainian government is, however, open for advice to achieve a "just peace." Trump said during the television debate that he would not accept Putin's conditions. Putin had declared that Russia would end the war if Kiev were ready to hand over the territories claimed and occupied by Moscow in the east and south of the country. On how the Ukraine assesses Trump's handling of the war, Yermak says: "Honestly, I don't know. We'll see."
05:42 USA to provide new military aid for UkraineThe Ukrainian military is in urgent need of supplies. The USA will make military aid worth approximately 2.3 billion US-Dollars (around 2.14 billion Euros) available to Ukraine in the near future to counter the Russian offensive war in Ukraine. This was announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a visit by his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umjerow in Washington. The package includes "additional surface-to-air missiles, anti-tank weapons, and other important ammunition from US stocks", explained Austin. Additionally, a "realignment of some foreign military deliveries" will enable the USA to provide ammunition for Patriot and other air defense systems "in an accelerated timeframe".
04:49 NATO to expand presence in KievThe NATO is expanding its civilian presence in the attacked Ukraine. A spokesperson confirmed that the 32 alliance members have decided to send special representatives to the capital Kiev. The high-ranking official is to coordinate political and practical support from the alliance on site. The background is that the NATO intends to give the start signal for a new deployment to coordinate weapons deliveries and training activities for the Ukrainian armed forces at the upcoming summit in Washington. The headquarters for this should be built in Wiesbaden. Who will receive the new NATO post in Kiev is still unknown.
03:42 UN call for release of GershkovichExperts from the United Nations have called for the immediate release of US journalist Evan Gershkovich, who is in custody in Russia on espionage charges. "The detention of Evan Gershkovich is arbitrary" and violates several articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the experts write in a statement. Taking into account the circumstances of the case, the "immediate" release of Gershkovich is appropriate.
02:40 Serbian President Vucic receives Russian deputy foreign ministerThe Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic received the Russian deputy foreign minister Alexander Gruschko in Belgrade. He spoke with Gruschko about the bilateral relations between Serbia and Russia and evaluated them as "very good". He also thanked Russia "for its support for Serbia's territorial integrity, as well as in relation to the UN resolution on Srebrenica". Moscow still refuses to recognize Kosovo's independence. Serbia has been an EU membership candidate since 2012, but continues to maintain good relations with the Kreml despite the Russian intervention in Ukraine.
01:29 A Russian court sentences a 19-year-old to twelve yearsA Russian court has sentenced a 19-year-old man to twelve years in prison for "high treason," after he was accused of donating money to the Ukrainian army. "The Rostov Regional Court found him guilty and sentenced him to a twelve-year term in a penal colony," says a comment from the Russian domestic intelligence service FSB, taken up by the Kremlin media. The teenager is said to have sent money to help the Ukrainian army buy food and drones. Since Russia's attack on Ukraine, thousands of Russians have been arrested and many of them have been imprisoned. According to Amnesty International, at least 21,000 people were the targets of repressions against war opponents in 2023.
00:20 One quarter of US citizens find US aid to Ukraine insufficientAlmost a quarter of Americans believe that the United States is not providing enough military aid to Ukraine. This percentage has risen since November last year, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center. According to the survey, 24 percent of respondents believe that the United States is not providing enough aid, compared to 18 percent in November 2023, when the survey was last conducted. However, more Americans (31 percent) believe that the United States is providing too much aid, and 25 percent believe that the US aid is sufficient.
22:53 Lithuania reports airspace violation by Russian aircraftLithuania reports a violation of its airspace by a Russian aircraft. The unspecified aircraft of the Russian airline Pobeda allegedly entered the airspace of the Baltic EU and NATO member unlawfully in the evening of June 30 and stayed there for approximately one minute. The representative of the Russian embassy was summoned and the Russian authorities were asked to take all necessary measures to prevent such incidents in the future. The airspace violation occurred over the Baltic Sea, as the aircraft was on its way from Moscow to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad bordering Lithuania. The EU has closed its airspace as a reaction to Russia's aggression in Ukraine.
22:12 Survey in member states: High trust in NATO, low trust in ZelenskyNext week, NATO will celebrate its 75th anniversary. In the member states, the transatlantic defense alliance is generally viewed favorably, according to a survey by Pew Research. On average in 13 countries, 63 percent of the population has a positive opinion, 33 percent a negative. Germany is slightly above the average with 64 percent positive views. The evaluation in Poland stands out: 91 percent have a positive image of the alliance there. The trust in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is low on average, at 40 percent, and has decreased in the member states in the past year. Poland stands out again, where the head of state has lost 22 percentage points - from 70 to 48 percent. In Germany, trust has dropped by 7 percentage points to 54 percent.
21:27 Selenkyi rejects Orban's peace proposalUkraine's President Volodymyr Selenkyi refused the peace proposal of Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban for peace talks. During his first visit to Kiev since the war began, Orban proposed a quick ceasefire that could "accelerate peace negotiations with Moscow," according to him. "The President listened to him, but in response, he clarified Ukraine's stance and rejected the proposal," said a spokesperson from the Presidential Administration. Previously, Kiev had rejected ceasefires with the explanation that Russian forces could regroup during this time.
21:02 Ukraine: Moscow recruits minorsRussia is actively recruiting minors for the war in Ukraine, according to Ukraine. The contracts are reportedly signed with minors, taking effect upon their reaching adulthood. "They hope to recruit thousands of teenagers with propaganda," says the Ukrainian agency "National Resistance Center": "We warn that any enemy on our territory will be eliminated." On occupied Ukrainian territory, Russia also employs minors, for instance, to manufacture drones.
You can read about previous developments here.
06:51 Trump suggesting potential dialogue with Putin on Ukraine conflictDuring a recent interview, former US President Donald Trump proposed the idea of engaging in dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin to resolve the Ukraine conflict if he were to win the upcoming elections.
08:44 Russia accuses Ukraine of attack on Black Sea portRussia has accused Ukraine of launching an attack on the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, which houses a large port of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Russian authorities reported that two unmanned Ukrainian explosive boats were repelled and destroyed.
09:19 Trump supports increased military aid for UkraineWhen asked about the potential for a role in resolving the Ukraine conflict, former President Donald Trump expressed his support for providing military aid to Ukraine, arguing that it would help restore stability in the region.
11:30 Putin dismisses possibility of dialogue with Trump on UkraineRussian President Vladimir Putin dismissed the possibility of entering into dialogue with former US President Donald Trump regarding the Ukraine conflict, reiterating Russia's position on the issue.
15:00 Cyberwar feared as new battlefront in Ukraine conflictAs the Ukraine-Russia conflict enters its seventh year, concerns have arisen about the potential for cyberwarfare as a new front in the conflict. Both sides have been reportedly engaging in cyber attacks against each other, posing a significant threat to critical infrastructure.
