Russia has started using a new drone tactic in Ukraine. Russian Shahed kamikaze drones have begun performing complex maneuvers mid-flight in an apparent attempt to evade Ukrainian interceptor drones, according to electronic warfare expert Serhii Beskrestnov, also known as Flash. 

“Shaheds have started executing a set of complex in-flight maneuvers aimed at reducing the effectiveness of our aerial interceptor drones,”  explains Beskrestnov. 

According to him, the Russian military has long been preparing to counter Ukrainian interceptors, and this new drone approach is only the beginning.

Ukraine prepares to strike back

Despite the new threat, the expert assures that Ukraine is actively improving its own interception technology.

“We will keep working on countering their tech with ours. You didn’t really think the enemy would abandon its most widespread weapon so easily, did you?” the expert says. 

A technological fight unfolds

Shaheds remain one of the main threats to Ukraine’s rear, making the development of interceptor drones a key component of defense. As the situation shows, the air war is entering a new phase, the one where each side upgrades its unmanned systems in real time.

Despite escalating fighting and a humanitarian catastrophe, the UN has received only 34% of the planned $2.6 billion for aid to Ukraine in 2025, reveals UN Deputy Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya, UkrInform reports. 

“Without immediate funding, even priority programs may be shut down,” she warned during a UN Security Council meeting.

The UN has already launched its 2025–2026 winter response plan, which targets the 1.7 million Ukrainians left in high-risk areas.

Nearly 50% more civilian casualties

Since the last Security Council meeting on 20 June, the humanitarian situation has significantly worsened, Msuya said. In the first half of 2025, the number of civilian casualties increased by nearly 50% compared to last year.

Currently, 13 million Ukrainians need assistance, but due to a funding shortfall, only 3.6 million have received it.

Access to Russian-occupied regions remains extremely limited, Msuya emphasized. This makes it impossible to provide basic aid to millions of civilians.

She stressed that Ukrainians cannot depend on donor fatigue or delay, urging UN member states to act without hesitation.

Earlier, Euromaidan Press reported that Ukrainians suffer from dehydration and violence in Donetsk. The city’s residents under the Russian occupation face catastrophic water shortages, with no supply to homes for up to three days at a time. 

Military expert Roman Svitan said that the Russians destroyed the Khanzhonkivske Reservoir in 2022. The pumps capable of moving millions of tons of water were completely demolished. This water sustained all of Donbas, all the way to Mariupol.

Russia is wiping out Ukrainian cities daily. In the first half of 2025, 6,754 civilians in Ukraine were killed or injured, the highest number for a six-month period since 2022, says Miroslav Jenča, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia, and the Americas, UkrInform reports.

Daily shelling of Ukrainian towns and villages with missiles and drones has only intensified, he said during a UN Security Council meeting. June saw the highest monthly civilian casualty count in three years.

In July alone, Russia launched at least 5,183 long-range munitions at Ukraine, including a record 728 drones on 9 July. Kyiv and the port city of Odesa have been hit hardest in recent weeks.

Even Ukraine’s western regions, once considered relatively safe, are no longer spared from massive aerial attacks.

According to official UN data, at least 13,580 civilians have been killed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, including 716 children. Another 34,115 people have been injured.

“There is no safe place in Ukraine today,” said Jenča.

He stressed that international law clearly prohibits attacks on civilians and that the UN strongly condemns all such assaults.

German company Hensoldt AG says it has received an order worth € 340 million to supply Ukraine’s air defense forces with TRML-4D and SPEXER 2000 3D MkIII radar systems. These radar systems have already been in use in Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion.

“Our high-performance radars are urgently needed by Ukrainian air defence,” says Hensoldt CEO Oliver Dörre, emphasizing that the company is proud to supply systems that are “critically important for protecting civilians.”

What is TRML-4D?

TRML-4D radars are based on advanced Active Electronically Scanned Array technology. They can simultaneously detect and track up to 1,500 targets within a radius of up to 250 km, including drones, aircraft, helicopters, and cruise missiles.

Their fast response time and ability to operate under complex conditions make TRML-4D systems essential in providing precise countermeasures against Russian aerial attacks.

SPEXER 2000 is the “eyes” of Skyranger guns

SPEXER 2000 3D MkIII systems are designed for the automatic detection and classification of ground, maritime, and low-flying aerial targets. They are integrated into the Rheinmetall Skyranger 30 air defense gun system, which provides close-range and very short-range protection.

The system is based on the wheeled armored Boxer vehicle, equipped with a combat module featuring a 30mm Swiss Oerlikon KCA gun firing 1,200 rounds per minute. Optionally, it can be fitted with a launcher for two FIM-92 Stinger or Mistral missiles, according to Militarnyi. 

The gun’s ammunition includes a wide range of shells, including airburst rounds with radio fuses. The total ammunition load consists of 252 30mm shells. The vehicle is equipped with five antennas, providing full 360-degree coverage.

It also features the Rheinmetall FIRST passive target acquisition system, which excels at detecting small targets. Since it emits no radar signal, the system can operate without being detected by enemy electronic intelligence.

The system is a part of Germany’s NNbS program, a new short-range air defense “umbrella” for the Bundeswehr, meaning Ukraine is receiving the best from NATO’s arsenal.

On 25 July, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi met with the newly appointed Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), General Alexis Grinkevich, in Kyiv. 

Major General Andrii Hnatov, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and Curtis Buzzard, Head of NATO’s Security Assistance Mission, also joined the comprehensive discussion. 

Russia throws everything it has, but Ukraine braces for the counterstrike

During the talks, Syrskyi emphasized that Russia has already mobilized the maximum of its human and material resources in an attempt to break through. However, despite the pressure, Ukraine retains conventional capabilities to destroy offensive groupings.

“Our allies fully understand the scale and complexity of the tasks facing the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” he said.

Patriots incoming: NATO sends weapons — Europe pays

The parties discussed the expedited transfer of new air defense systems purchased for Ukraine by European allies.

“We are grateful to President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte for the swift delivery of these systems. They are already on their way,” Syrskyi stressed.

The systems in question are Patriots, a key Ukrainian defense against ballistic missile strikes. As of now, Kyiv has eight batteries, six of which were operational in May. The new deliveries could increase the total to 13.

The deliveries were announced by US President Donald Trump after Russia began launching massive attacks on Ukraine, right after any conversations he or US representatives had with Russian ruler Vladimir Putin.

Trump also revealed a new aid model: the US will produce weapons for NATO and Ukraine, while European partners will foot the bill. Ukraine will receive modern missiles and military equipment, critically needed at this stage of the war.

Ukrainian military intelligence cyber specialists have carried out a powerful operation against Russian authorities in occupied Crimea. According to RBC-Ukraine’s intelligence sources, the cyberattack lasted several days and paralyzed the entire digital infrastructure of the occupation administration.

It began with a powerful DDoS assault that took down the occupiers’ government services. While panic spread in Crimea and technicians scrambled to identify the source of the outage, Ukrainian hackers had already infiltrated the electronic accounts of the so-called “authorities.” And that was just the beginning.

100 terabytes stolen, systems destroyed

The Ukrainian Defence Intelligence has gained access to the occupiers’ key digital systems:

•  DIALOG,
• SED,
• Delo,
• accounting systems including 1C:Document Management”, Directum, and ATLAS.

In just two days, over 100 terabytes of classified information were downloaded. Among the documents were files marked as top secret, including data on military facilities and logistics for supplying Russian troops.

After completing the operation, HUR specialists destroyed all the occupiers’ administrative servers, at both regional and district levels. These structures have effectively lost access to their documents, databases, and internal communications.

Panic in Moscow, chaos in Crimea

“So much data was extracted that we’ll soon uncover plenty of sensational details about Russian crimes in Crimea. Special thanks for the assistance goes to the deputy minister of health of the occupation government, Anton Lyaskovsky,” an intelligence source told RBC-Ukraine with irony.

Moscow has already labeled the operation as “elements of hybrid warfare.” Meanwhile, the so-called “Ministry of Internal Policy” of Crimea has admitted that some services remain offline. However, the true scale of the destruction is only beginning to come to light.

She returned to the hell of war, haunted by the life she couldn’t save. A vehicle of the chief military nurse of the Ukrainian 95th Air Assault Brigade’s medical company, Nataliia Vysotska, was hit on a mine, while evacuating a wounded soldier from the front line. 

Only two of the four crew members survived in the blast. Nataliia suffered severe injuries: fractures to her pelvis, leg, and spine. She was classified with a second-degree disability. However, she went back to the front.

“I still remember—we didn’t make it to that wounded soldier… Every mission is a trial,” Nataliia recalls.

Return as a challenge of fate

It wasn’t her first wound. In 2022, she had already sustained shrapnel injuries to her stomach and leg during a shelling, and quickly returned to duty. But the mine explosion proved especially devastating, physically and emotionally. Treatment, rehabilitation, the loss of comrades, and the feeling of unfinished duty. Through it all, one thought kept her going: to return.

“At war, there’s no time to recover after losing a brother-in-arms… You must hold yourself together to remain a professional,” she says.

Unbroken spirit

Recently, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has awarded Nataliia Vysotska the Order of Princess Olga, 3rd Class, an honor recognizing strength, resilience, motivation, and loyalty. But for her, the most important thing is being by her comrades’ side.

“Maybe life has more trials ahead, but I’ll stay as long as I can be of use… When our team manages to save a soldier’s life, that’s what matters. That’s our victory!” she adds.

Earlier, the Ukrainian forces reported that a hundred women who served prison sentences had already joined the ranks of the army. They now fight alongside men, both on the frontlines and in communications, logistics, and medical units. Upon completion of their military service, the court will reconsider their case, and the service may be taken into account as a mitigating factor during sentencing.

Masked men appeared at anti-corruption demonstrations in Kyiv Thursday evening, carrying inflammatory signs targeting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy personally—exactly 24 hours after Ukrainian intelligence warned that Russia would deploy provocateurs to exploit the crisis.

The timing wasn’t coincidental. Defense Intelligence had warned Wednesday that “Kremlin agents are actively studying the internal situation” to weaponize protests against the law that subordinates Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

When the real protesters left, others appeared

The incident unfolded around evening as legitimate demonstrators wrapped up their third day of protests against Law No. 12414. What happened next looked like textbook destabilization.

Masked individuals emerged with signs reading “Ukraine is not Kvartal! Ukrainians are not slaves!” “Killers of democracy traitors of Ukraine,” and “Heroes are dying for Ukraine and these two are destroying it!”—directly targeting Zelenskyy and his chief of staff Andriy Yermak, according to footage captured by a Euromaidan Press correspondent.

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Legitimate protesters had focused on defending institutions: “Hands off NABU and SAP!” and “The lost generation wants democracy.” These newcomers turned it into a vitriolic attack on the country’s leadership.

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The power concentration driving protest anger

Why target Zelenskyy and Yermak specifically? The anti-corruption law represents broader concerns about power centralization during wartime.

When investigators began targeting Zelenskyy’s closest associates—including Oleksiy Chernyshov, the only Cabinet minister invited to Zelenskyy’s COVID birthday party, and business partner Tymur Mindych from Kvartal 95—the response was to subordinate the investigators rather than allow the process to continue.

The law effectively places NABU and SAPO under the Prosecutor General’s control, ending a decade of institutional independence. The protesters aren’t calling for Zelenskyy’s removal—they want the law repealed while maintaining effective war leadership. Most Ukrainians still oppose holding elections while fighting Russia. Their primary concern remains winning the war.

That’s precisely what makes this moment valuable to Moscow. The Kremlin hopes to exploit these real institutional tensions to destabilize Zelenskyy’s government entirely.

Explore further

Explained: why Ukraine nuked its own anti-corruption agencies

Surgical timing raises questions

Witness Mladena Kachurets documented the evening’s events. The suspicious activity began about 10 minutes before an air raid alert—perfect timing for dramatic effect.

“Masked individuals gathered the remaining protesters around them and delivered some kind of recorded speech,” she wrote. Multiple distractions played out simultaneously. While media focused on MP Maryana Bezuhla giving comments, “behind her was a verbal altercation between two young men, drawing part of the attention away.”

Then came the crescendo. When the air raid alert sounded, “the masked individuals demonstratively lit flares—an impressive picture, you’ll agree.”

Intelligence gets it right

Ukrainian Defense Intelligence issued their warning 23 July. The provocateur incident materialized 24 July. The prediction proved remarkably accurate—the agency had specifically warned that Russian intelligence services were “attempting to destabilize Ukraine amid the anti-corruption crisis.”

Classic Russian propaganda operation

The provocateurs’ work didn’t end with the flares. Multiple Russian media outlets, starting from TASS, quickly fabricated coverage, with headlines like “Protesters in Kyiv called Zelenskyy and Yermak ‘traitors of Ukraine'” appearing the next day.

They cited Strana.ua, a pro-Russian media outlet that Ukraine sanctioned in 2021, as their source without providing actual links to any such article. Strana indeed reported on the event, on their Telegram channel, using a video by UNIAN with a comment presenting this as legitimate sentiments of the protesters.

The catch is that Ukrainian media, sensing Russian hybrid warfare operations from a mile away, either did not report on the men or reported them as provocateurs. Even the opposition 5 Kanal tweeted the video with a comment “provocative action” and followed up with a comment from the organizers that dismissed the burned Yermak and Zelenskyy portraits as a “provocation.”

The UNIAN video that Strana.ua shared the video with this comment: “At a protest in Kyiv, a group of planted provocateurs are lighting flares to the sound of air raid sirens. It looks like these uninvited guests are clearly and openly staging a photo op. Makes you wonder who needs this footage besides Russian propaganda—and who’s pulling the strings?”

What unraveled in the backyard of the President’s Office in Kyiv on 24 July was a classic Russian influence operation. Its aim was to fabricate a virtual reality inside the heads of Russians to validate the propaganda narratives driving Russia’s war—that Ukrainians want this, because they don’t support Zelenskyy anyway.

The inflammatory signs calling Zelenskyy a “dictator” and “traitor” now circulate in Russian information space—manufacturing evidence that Ukraine is fragmenting internally to validate Moscow’s narrative that its invasion “liberates” Ukrainians from their government.

We’ve seen multiple examples of how these operations work in the Surkov Leaks, a collection of Vladimir Putin’s gray cardinal Vladislav Surkov, who worked to destabilize Ukraine from within after the Euromaidan revolution with hybrid warfare means. So far, it appears that the operation has influenced solely Russians, as the incendiary narrative of “down with the dictators” proved too radical for Ukrainians.

But that doesn’t mean that the Kremlin won’t keep trying and finding other ways to mess with the minds of Ukrainians—and anybody else gullible enough to fall for the Kremlin’s information warfare.

Explore further

What Surkov’s hacked emails tell about Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine

What happens next?

But here’s what actually happened to the supposed “dictator”: within three days of signing the controversial law, Zelenskyy submitted corrective legislation under intense public pressure.

“We heard the street,” he admitted, promising new legislation to restore anti-corruption agency independence. Parliament has scheduled July 31 to vote on the bill—though passage isn’t guaranteed.

Protesters haven’t declared victory yet. They’ve vowed to keep demonstrating until the corrective law actually passes and institutional independence is genuinely restored. The danger to democratic institutions was real, and vigilance remains essential.

But that’s precisely the point. The provocateur operation aimed to show Russians that Ukrainians reject their leadership and welcome “liberation.” Instead, it captured something different: a democracy under stress but still functioning. Public pressure forced a presidential retreat. Protests work. Institutions push back. Citizens stay engaged.

Ukraine’s democracy is imperfect and fragile—but it’s alive. The operation succeeded only in Russian information space, manufacturing the illusion of internal collapse for domestic consumption while the real Ukraine continued the messy, contentious work of democratic governance.

In 2023, a Ukrainian officer named Volodymyr shot down a Russian Su-24MR aircraft with a missile bearing the inscription: “For Artur Batiyi. A true Cossack.” It was an act of revenge for his friend, killed in a Russian assault, the Operational Command West reports. 

“This was for you, and I hope you saw it,” the soldier recalls the successful strike.

His crew has destroyed over 30 targets, such as jets, a helicopter, a cruise missile, and drones.

But the most unforgettable shot was that one in March 2023.

“That day, I received the devastating news that my friend Artur Batiy had been killed… He died in an enemy mortar attack,” the air defense officer says.

Before the mission, he signed the missile and set out on the hunt with his unit.

“After we hit the target, I looked to the sky, and my first thought was, ‘I did everything I could. That was for you, and I hope you saw it,” he adds. 

From student to hero of the sky

Before the war, Volodymyr was a student who dreamed of military service. In 2014, when his family fled occupied Donetsk, he joined the army.

Since 2020, he’s been an officer in the Ukrainian Armed Forces. His first shootdown happened at 5:30 a.m. on 24 February 2022.

“The sky turned red. The enemy was everywhere. But there was no fear, only focus,” Volodymyr says. 

Dreams of Crimea

For his heroism, Volodymyr has been awarded the Orders For Courage of II and III class, the Medal For Military Service to Ukraine, and a badge For the Destruction of Enemy Aircraft.

His dream after victory is to visit Crimea, where he once walked with his parents “to feel that we endured and reclaimed what’s ours.”

One-third of Americans approve of President Donald Trump’s handling of the situation in Ukraine, according to a new Gallup poll that shows declining support for the president’s foreign policy approach six months into his second term.

Since his inauguration in January 2025, President Trump has pursued ending the Russia-Ukraine war by engaging in direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, seeking a ceasefire, and pressuring Ukraine to agree to terms. Trump also paused some military aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine in March 2025.

Despite initial confrontations with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and criticism for sidelining Ukraine in talks, Trump later announced renewed weapons support and coordinated arms deliveries through NATO. He also claimed to impose potential sanctions on Russia if a settlement is not reached quickly.

The poll, conducted 7-21 July, found that 33% of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of Ukraine, representing an eight-point decline from earlier measurements this year.

The survey began days after Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on 4 July, which addressed “tax cuts for individuals and corporations and increased spending for border security, defense and energy production.”

Trump’s overall job approval rating has fallen to 37%, “the lowest of this term and just slightly higher than his all-time worst rating of 34% at the end of his first term,” Gallup reports. The president’s rating “has fallen 10 percentage points among US adults since he began his second term in January, including a 17-point decline among independents, to 29%.”

On Ukraine specifically, partisan divisions remain stark. Republicans approve of Trump’s handling of the situation at 70% – the lowest rating he receives from his party on foreign policy issues.

“Aside from the situation in Ukraine, his ratings on the other issues range from 81% to 88% within his party,” according to Gallup.

Democrats give Trump his highest marks on Ukraine compared to other issues, with 12% approval. 

Among independents, no more than 36% approve of Trump’s performance on any measured issue. Ukraine ranks among the lower-rated issues for this group, though Gallup did not specify the exact percentage.

The survey shows Trump “earns the highest marks for his handling of the situation with Iran (42%) and foreign affairs (41%).” His approval ratings on other issues include immigration at 38%, the economy at 37%, and the federal budget at 29%.

Gallup reported that “apart from the situation with Iran, which was not previously measured in Trump’s second term, ratings on each of the issues are lower now than earlier this year.” The poll included approximately 750 respondents.

Ukraine has secured commitments for three Patriot air defense systems but requires 10 to adequately protect its airspace, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a meeting with journalists on 24 July

“Officially I received confirmation from Germany for two systems, Norway — one. Now we are working with Dutch partners,” Zelenskyy said, according to hromadske.

The announcement comes after German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius recently reported that Germany and the United States had agreed to transfer five additional Patriot systems to Ukraine.

According to Telegraph, Germany will provide funding for two systems under these arrangements, while Norway has promised to pay for the third. The replacement systems are expected to come through orders once promised to Switzerland.

Telegraph reported that one Patriot system and a batch of PAC-3 interceptor missiles have already arrived in Ukraine, though Ukrainian authorities have not officially confirmed this delivery.

Zelenskyy revealed Ukraine’s broader air defense requirements during the briefing.

“We are now working with partners to secure these 10. We are working on the missile issue, we have missiles. We are still fighting for a production license. It’s important that a production facility is appearing in Germany. Not yet with us, but with Europeans with whom we have good relations,” he said.

The Patriot commitments are part of expanding defense cooperation between Ukraine and its allies. Zelenskyy announced on 24 July that the United States had agreed to purchase Ukrainian-made drones, with potential contracts worth $10-30 billion under discussion.

“I really want America to help us protect our sky. This is very important,” Zelenskyy said, linking the drone deal to Ukraine’s air defense needs.

The systems are urgently needed to counter Moscow’s escalating long-range strikes. The US has already sent three systems and is involved in ongoing discussions to provide up to 17 systems in total.

Ukraine’s parliament will convene on 31 July to review President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s draft law 13533, which promises to restore independence to the country’s anti-corruption agencies, according to parliamentary speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk.

The speaker said that he would propose adopting the bill immediately as a basis and in full, while supporting its urgent signing. Beyond Zelenskyy’s anti-corruption measure, parliament will also consider other “important legislative initiatives,” Stefanchuk added.

The session will come nine days after parliament passed law №12414 on 22 July, which amended the Criminal Procedure Code to make NABU and the Specialized Anti-corruption Prosecutor’s Office dependent on decisions by the prosecutor general. Zelenskyy signed the document the same evening.

The 22 July law triggered protest actions across multiple Ukrainian cities. Amid the protests, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with the heads of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies, including the Prosecutor General.

 Zelenskyy announced later he submitted the new draft law to parliament, stating it would ensure “strength for the law enforcement system” and preserve “all norms for the independence of anti-corruption institutions.”

The National Anti-corruption Bureau confirmed that Zelenskyy’s bill would restore all powers and independence guarantees for NABU and SAPO that were affected by the earlier legislation.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on 24 July that the United States has agreed to purchase Ukrainian-made drones, with potential contracts worth $10-30 billion under discussion.

“We have an agreement with America, with President Trump, that they will buy drones from us,” Zelenskyy told journalists during a briefing. “I have set the task for Umerov, Shmyhal and Kamyshin. They will deal with this. It is very important to prepare this contract for 10-20-30 billion dollars.”

The president has tasked National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov, Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, and presidential advisor on strategic issues Oleksandr Kamyshin with preparing the contracts.

Zelenskyy first disclosed American interest in Ukrainian drone technology on 16 July, when he revealed discussions with President Trump about bilateral defense procurement.

“There are many drones that only we have. We are discussing this with President Trump. I told him that I really want to buy things from you that only you have. He told me that America wants to buy Ukrainian drones,” Zelenskyy said in an interview with Newsmax correspondent Shelby Wilder in Kyiv.

The Ukrainian leader framed the potential deal as part of broader defense cooperation, emphasizing Ukraine’s need for American Patriot air defense systems.

“I really want America to help us protect our sky. This is very important,” Zelenskyy said during the 16 July interview.

Ukraine urgently needs these systems to counter Moscow’s escalating long-range strikes. The US along with Germany has agreed to deliver five Patriot systems, with Germany, Norway, and other allies financing and facilitating the deliveries. The US has already sent three systems and is involved in ongoing discussions to provide up to 17 in total.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy not to abandon the fight against corruption amid ongoing concerns over the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies, Poland’s Foreign Ministry reported on 24 July

“We conveyed to President Zelensky that the worst thing he could do now is turn away from the fight against corruption. Ukrainians are fighting for an honest, European state,“ Sikorski said, according to the Polish Foreign Ministry.

The ministry did not specify when or how this message was conveyed to the Ukrainian president.

The Polish announcement comes against the backdrop of legislative changes that threatened to make the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) – the main anti-corruption agencies in Ukraine – dependent on the prosecutor general.

On 24 July, Zelenskyy submitted a bill to parliament containing provisions to ensure NABU and SAP independence. This move followed mass protest actions – the first since Russia’s full-scale invasion began – and extensive criticism from Ukraine’s Western partners, who warned of risks to European integration and financial support.

In response to the backlash, Zelenskyy, together with law enforcement agencies, has already prepared and submitted a new bill on “strengthening the independence of anti-corruption agencies.”

The legislative changes followed extensive searches of NABU and SAPO employees.

Roman, also known as Peugeot, a fighter from the machine gun company of Ukraine’s 21st National Guard Brigade, lived through a brutal ambush on the Pokrovsk front in Donetsk Oblast. His group had almost no ammunition while Russian forces stormed them from three directions.

From Sevastopol to the front

Roman completed his mandatory military service in Sevastopol. When Russia launched its full-scale invasion, he didn’t hesitate to enlist.

“Started from our city, then we went to the Kherson and Donetsk fronts. Got around a bit,” he recalls.

He was stationed across from the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant when it was blown up.

“A wasteland appeared there… just islands left. A massive catastrophe,” he says. 

The destruction exposed lake bed sediment containing more than 90,000 tons of dangerous heavy metals, a toxic cocktail that had been quietly accumulating on the reservoir floor since 1956.

Drone strike, buried comrades, and a fight for survival

On 26 March, Roman’s armored vehicle was hit by a Russian FPV drone on the Pokrovsk axis.

“We had to abandon the vehicle and walk,” he continues. 

Later, he was assigned to reach a buried position and dig out comrades trapped under debris.
Under shelling, five soldiers hid in a single trench. 

“The enemy was trying to storm from three sides. That’s when drone operators saved our lives,” Roman says. 

The UAVs struck back at the enemy, giving the fighters a chance to survive.

“Almost no ammo left”: when the sky saves the ground

In the woods, eight Russian soldiers encountered Roman’s five-man group. The Ukrainian defenders were left with “only two magazines for five of us.”

However, drone operators not only repelled the attack but also dropped extra ammunition. Despite heavy fire, the group crossed 13 kilometers of open terrain and made it out alive.

“I can say with confidence — I eliminated the enemy and sent several more to ‘the 300s’,” Roman adds.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin told US President Donald Trump that Moscow plans to escalate military operations in eastern Ukraine during its summer offensive.

As of now, Russia occupies about 20% of Ukraine’s territory, including most of Luhansk Oblast, two-thirds of Donetsk Oblast, and parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson Oblasts. 

Day 1247

On 24 July, there is a lot of news from the Sumy direction.

Here, after Russian commanders forced their soldiers into a bloodbath in the fields, the result of a larger Ukrainian strategy in play began to bear its fruits. With fresh reserves stationed too far from the frontline to reinforce, Ukrainians executed a beautiful pincer maneuver that pushed Russians back from yet another settlement, as the Russian Sumy offensive seems to have reached a complete stall.

As you remember from a previous report, after weakening Russian positions through precise airstrikes, Ukrainian forces launched successful multi-directional counterattacks, prominently retaking Andriivka in a swift maneuver. The goal behind Ukraine’s push is clear: disrupt Russia’s forward momentum, slow down their offensive, and exploit the resulting vulnerabilities. By preserving their combat power for only surgical strikes and inflicting maximum damage on Russian units, Ukrainian commanders are carefully taking the initiative and systematically weakening enemy forces.

Determined to regain the initiative themselves, Russian commanders immediately ordered repeated counterattacks to recapture Andriivka. However, evidently based on faulty intelligence, Russian troops appeared unaware that Ukrainian forces had already fully secured the settlement, mistakenly expecting to meet and support Russian forces on the ground. As a result, these Russian assaults quickly devolved into catastrophic failures.

Geolocated footage revealed fields surrounding Andriivka littered with Russian casualties and burning motorcycles, clear evidence of the heavy price paid for their reckless and misguided attacks. Not only did these fruitless assaults drain Russian manpower, but they also achieved no real gains, compounding Russia’s operational predicament.

Russian difficulties intensified further amidst the ongoing Ukrainian strike campaign targeting rear-area troop concentrations, command posts, and logistical hubs. These strikes not only inflicted substantial casualties on Russian forces but also forced Russian commanders to position their reserve forces further from the immediate area of operations. However, with these reserves stationed away from watchful Ukrainian drone reconnaissance, Russian forces are also unable to respond swiftly to rapidly unfolding events on the frontline, playing right in the hands of Ukrainian commanders. Following the devastating losses and bloodbath in the fields around Andriivka, Russian units near the frontline faced a critical manpower shortage, and lacked immediate reinforcements to stabilize their weakening positions.

Recognizing this window of opportunity and the vulnerability of the Russians, Ukrainian forces acted decisively. With Russian reserves either dead in the fields or stationed too far to provide timely reinforcements, Ukraine pressed its advantage, launching coordinated air, drone, and HIMARS missile strikes against known Russian troop concentrations in Kindrativka. Ukrainian drones methodically hunted down and eliminated Russian infantry clusters, while precise HIMARS strikes obliterated remaining fortifications and munitions stores with devastating effect. Airstrikes with AASM Hammer bombs ensured no immediate reinforcements could move forward safely, effectively neutralizing major resistance within Kindrativka itself and limiting the possibility of surviving Russian troops finding cover within the ruins.

With organized resistance in Kindrativka decisively broken, Ukrainian commanders rapidly executed a lightning assault to retake the town. Swiftly deploying units to sever Russian reinforcement routes in a pincer maneuver, Ukrainian forces prevented any additional enemy units from reaching Kindrativka and helping the entrenched but scattered Russian soldiers holed up in the town. Simultaneously, Ukrainian assault teams penetrated the settlement, systematically sweeping through houses and basements, clearing the area of remaining Russian holdouts. Within hours, Ukrainian troops secured Kindrativka, facing minimal opposition and establishing full control over the strategically significant village.

Overall, the recapture of Kindrativka represents an important milestone in Ukraine’s wider strategy to halt the Russian offensive into the Sumy region. By reclaiming this key border settlement, Ukraine significantly disrupted Russian logistics and troop rotations, effectively sabotaging Russia’s goal of establishing drone and artillery fire control over the regional capital, Sumy. By exploiting Russian vulnerabilities created by previous strikes, Ukraine has carefully engineered tactical breakthroughs, forcing Russia into unsustainable losses and operational confusion. The strategic success in Kindrativka showcases Ukraine’s ability to leverage precision firepower and agile maneuver warfare, systematically dismantling Russian advances while creating opportunities for further counteroffensive actions.

He could leave the war, but he refused. Ukrainian soldier Andrii, 24, from Poltava, is a father of three and a fighter in the drone battalion of Ukraine’s 128th Mountain Assault Brigade. He has pulled over a thousand vehicles off the battlefield: tanks, BMPs, APCs, self-propelled guns, and trucks during his service in the army.

“I’m staying here because I don’t want the Russians to reach my home,” says Andrii, explaining his motivation. 

Andrii’s journey began as a conscript and led him to become an FPV drone operator. Initially, he served as a mechanic-driver of a BREM-1 evacuation vehicle, working right on the front lines, under shelling and rain, just 250 meters from the enemy.

“When my comrades jumped off the armor to hook up a vehicle, artillery hit us. One was killed. I survived because I was behind the controls,” he recalls.

“You’re the first I’ve ever allowed to use 4th gear”

For his exceptional courage, Andrii was awarded the Order “For Courage,” 3rd class. Recognized as one of the top mechanics in the Armed Forces, he was sent to Germany to train on the German Bergerpanzer-2 armored recovery vehicle, based on the Leopard tank.

The German instructor was stunned by how experienced and skillful the young Ukrainian soldier was.

“You’re an excellent mechanic-driver. I’ve never let anyone use 4th gear on this vehicle — you’re the first,” he says. 

It was a moment where Ukrainian bravery and mechanical precision earned deep trust across allied lines.

The enemy sees him only in their final moments

Today, Andrii operates a fiber-optic FPV drone, navigating into enemy dugouts and capturing every detail. He was trained by Officer Andrii Zadorozhnyi, a hero who was killed in April.

His wife and children wait for him at home. His daughter often calls him right at the front line.

“Ah, you’re in a trench again! When are you coming home?” she asks. 

But Andrii answers firmly, “My home is just 200 kilometers from the enemy. I’m doing what I have to do.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected media reports about his conversation with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen regarding a law that limits the independence of anti-corruption agencies.

“I have not spoken with Ursula von der Leyen in recent days. Everything that was written about this, everything she supposedly told me, is fake. We did not have a conversation,” Zelenskyy announced during a meeting with journalists attended by Hromadske.

On 23 July, multiple media outlets cited European Commission spokesperson Guillaume Mercier, reporting that von der Leyen expressed concern to Zelenskyy about signing legislation that restricts the independence of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). According to the spokesperson, the European Commission was “very concerned” about the law’s adoption.

The controversy stems from Zelenskyy’s decision on the evening of 22 July to sign legislation limiting NABU and SAPO’s independence. MP Anastasiia Radina said amendments were added that “make SAPO a decorative institution and provide for complete subordination of NABU and SAPO activities to the will of the prosecutor general.”

The presidential decision triggered mass protests in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. Demonstrators chanted “Veto the law,” “Return Europe,” and “Shame.”

In response to the backlash, Zelenskyy, together with law enforcement agencies, has already prepared and submitted a new bill on “strengthening the independence of anti-corruption agencies.”

The legislative changes followed extensive searches of NABU and SAPO employees. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Office of the Prosecutor General announced they had uncovered Russian influence on NABU. Individual Bureau employees face charges including treason, illegal trade with Russia, and corrupt actions in the interests of oligarchs.

Zelenskyy maintains that “criminal proceedings should not last for years without legal verdicts,” apparently referring to accusations of NABU’s “ineffective work.” SBU chief Vasyl Maliuk said that the anti-corruption bureau “needs to be cleansed of Russian intelligence influence.”

NABU emphasizes that even if individual employees’ guilt is proven, this does not justify eliminating the independence of anti-corruption agencies.

The NABU and SAPO developments have drawn attention from Ukraine’s international partners. Over recent days, several politicians have appealed to Zelenskyy and Ukrainian authorities with public calls or personal communications, emphasizing the need to preserve anti-corruption institutions.

Exclusive

Ukraine’s black stealth drone just flew deep into Russia—again. Ukraine has a jet-propelled stealth attack drone. We’ve just spotted the mysterious UAV for the second time since 2024.

Explained: why Ukraine nuked its own anti-corruption agencies. It took ten years to build them. It took one hour in parliament to bring them down.

Military

From Finnish forests to Ukraine’s frontline: Volunteer Tapani joins International Legion to protect Europe’s future from war. Tapani left his quiet life to fight in Kharkiv, warning the war could reach Europe within five years.

Ukraine hits Sochi — oil depot burns, flights grounded in Russia’s top Black Sea resort. A Ukrainian drone strike hit a Lukoil fuel depot near Sochi, igniting a fire and halting air traffic across Russia’s southern resort hub.

Last of Ukrainian defenders behind legendary “Russian warship, go f*ck yourself” phrase, returns from captivity

. Vitalii Hyrenko was released after three years in a Russian prison.

21-year-old Ukrainian adopted by Italian family dies fighting Russia. A Ukrainian man who spent nearly a decade in an Italian adoptive family has been killed fighting Russian forces after traveling to Ukraine to find his brother.

Intelligence and technology

Russia tests new UMPB-5 guided bomb on Kharkiv civilians day after Ukraine’s ceasefire proposal. Moscow unleashed a 250-kg bomb after ceasefire talks.

Ukraine to get 5 Patriots and 220,000 Gepard shells. Is that enough to stop Russian drone swarms?. Ukraine’s interceptors are scarce and expensive. Russia’s drones are cheap and relentless.

China secretly supplies Russia with drone engines disguised as refrigeration equipment. To bypass Western sanctions, Chinese companies are funneling critical drone engines to Russia under the guise of industrial cooling units. Meanwhile, civilian death rate is increasing month by month in Ukraine.

Estonia says Russia is moving electronic warfare systems closer to NATO borders. Russian military forces have positioned additional electronic warfare systems within 20 kilometers of Estonia’s border, Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro said, as Moscow expands GPS jamming operations across the Baltic region.

India helps Russia to increase Ukrainian civilian death rate with octogen explosives exports worth $1,5 million

. Octogen exports from Telangana-based Ideal Detonators empower Russia’s arsenal, as Ukraine suffers record casualties during the last months.

Ukraine rolls out domestic RPG-7 simulators to train soldiers for tank-killing precision. Troops now train with realistic laser-guided systems that mimic combat against armored targets.

As Putin vows summer escalation, Berlin says Kyiv will soon gain secret tools to “affect Russian territory”. Kyiv to receive undisclosed systems from Germany capable of reaching Russian targets, as Moscow ramps up civilian terror.

US approves sale of two military aid packages to Ukraine worth $ 322 mn. Ukraine secured approval to buy $172 million in HAWK Phase III missile system components and $150 million in Bradley infantry fighting vehicle support through two separate Pentagon-announced packages.

International

EU praises Kyiv’s response to anti-corruption law rallies but underscores need for reforms to keep integration hopes alive. In the wake of nationwide protests, Brussels embraces Ukraine’s commitment to address the issue, while demanding transparency in reforms.

EU had a secret plan to bypass Orbán. Zelenskyy blew it up instead.. Brussels had quietly crafted an extraordinary workaround to Hungary’s obstruction before Ukraine imploded its own chances.

EU Officials demand Ukraine explain controversial anti-corruption law weakening NABU, SAPO

. European Parliament members raised concerns over Ukraine’s adoption of the controversial anti-corruption law and warned that the legislation threatens both EU financial assistance and the country’s accession prospects, with one deputy calling it “a clear breach of trust.”

Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul for the third time—and agreed on one thing: swapping POWs. The latest round of closed-door talks in Türkiye lasted under an hour and focused on returning captured soldiers and civilians.

Humanitarian and social impact

Russia doesn’t want peace, says Zelenskyy after Moscow ruins iconic Odesa market, despite peace proposition in Turkiye. The historic Pryvoz, once alive with jokes and bargaining, is torn by Russian drones, as Putin answers diplomacy with terror.

Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna suffered neck injuries, fractures in Russian captivity – new autopsy. Ukraine discovered new evidence of torture in the death of journalist Victoria Roshchyna, with a recent forensic examination revealing neck trauma and bone fractures not identified in previous reports.

Russia uses thirst as tool of genocide against civilians in occupied Donetsk, says expert. Civilians survive up to 72 hours without water as Russian forces build military hubs atop the ruins of Ukrainian infrastructure.

Russia’s warplanes just bombed central Kharkiv—a baby is among the wounded. Two Russian glide bombs hit Kharkiv, injuring 33 people — including a baby, a 10-year-old girl, and a teenage boy with head wounds.

Russia bombs Odesa’s UNESCO district, injures child with cluster missiles in Cherkasy

. Russia launched 103 drones and four missiles overnight, hitting Odesa’s historic center and striking Cherkasy with cluster munitions that injured seven, including a child.

Political and legal developments

Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies approve Zelenskyy’s new bill to restore their independence amid mass protests. NABU and SAPO say the president’s urgent legislation fully reinstates their power, signaling a possible end to the weeklong crisis over Ukraine’s reform path.

Russian-run EasyStaff funnels €50 million through Lithuania, dodging SWIFT sanctions. On paper, it’s a freelancing service.

Zelenskyy backs new anti-corruption bill amid protests and a Russian spy scandal. As public pressure mounted, Zelenskyy reversed course on a law critics say undermined Ukraine’s anti-corruption system.

Read our earlier daily review here.

Ten Russian oblasts came under drone attacks overnight against 25 July, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defense and Russian Telegram channels.

Russian air defense intercepted 105 unmanned aerial vehicles, the ministry reported. Over 20 drones were destroyed above Belgorod, Bryansk and Rostov oblasts each. The remaining drones were shot down over the Sea of Azov waters, Krasnodar and Stavropol oblasts, and Kursk, Tambov, Voronezh and Oryol regions.

Nevinnomyssk mayor Mikhail Minenkov said about “37 arrivals” in the Stavropol Oblast city. The attacks allegedly passed without casualties or destruction, according to the mayor.

The Nevinnomyssk Azot chemical plant came under attack, reports Astra resource. Local residents reported the attack on the facility overnight, and eyewitness footage documented the strikes, according to Astra.

The city mayor later showed the plant territory from a distance on video and praised the “plant workers,” indirectly confirming that the enterprise was the target of the attacks. 

The chemical plant has been struck for the second time in two months. On 14 June, a 13-drone attack on the Nevinnomyssk Azot facility knocked out doors, windows and premises of one of the workshops. The plant’s cafeteria roof and anti-drone protection were also damaged. Some 800 chemical plant employees waited out the attack in a bomb shelter, with no evacuation conducted. The enterprise had to suspend operations.

Reuters reported that two EuroChem plants – Nevinnomyssk Nitrogen Plant and Novomoskovsky Azot – shipped at least 38,000 tons of acetic acid and nearly 5,000 tons of nitric acid to the Sverdlov plant in Dzerzhinsk, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, from 2022 to 2024. These materials are used to produce octogen and hexogen, which are then used for artillery shells, the publication noted.

According to Astra, the NAK Azot plant in Novomoskovsk, Tula Oblast, has also been attacked by drones at least three times this year.

In Krasnodar Oblast, minor damage to private houses and damage to the Timashevsk railway station occurred, reported governor Veniamin Kondratyev.

Drone debris damaged one of the passenger train cars there. Two people sustained minor injuries.

During the drone attacks, airports in Vladikavkaz, Grozny, Mineralnye Vody, Nalchik, Stavropol, Tambov and Sochi temporarily ceased operations.

German defence contractor HENSOLDT has secured a contract worth over 340 million euros ($399 mn) to supply radar systems for Ukraine’s air defence capabilities, the company reported on 24 July.

The order includes TRML-4D high-performance radars and SPEXER 2000 3D MkIII short-range radars as part of the Near and Very Short Range Air Defence System commissioned by the German Armed Forces.

“Our high-performance radars are urgently needed by Ukrainian air defence,” HENSOLDT CEO Oliver Dörre said. “A number of radars have been protecting Ukraine since the start of Russia’s war of aggression. We are proud to be supplying further systems. The radars are extremely important for protecting citizens.”

Ukraine first received the TRML-4D radar in October 2022, with an initial delivery of four units integrated into their IRIS-T air defense systems. Additional deliveries followed, including another four TRML-4D radars in June 2023, and six more units are scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2024 as part of a major contract with HENSOLDT. 

The TRML-4D radar operates on AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) technology and can detect and track approximately 1,500 targets within a 250-kilometre radius. The system identifies and classifies cruise missiles, drones, aircraft and helicopters.

SPEXER radars provide surveillance across various ranges for automatic detection and classification of ground, sea and low-flying air targets. The SPEXER 2000 forms part of Rheinmetall’s Skyranger 30 cannon-based air defence system and is deployed in German artillery installations and qualified air defence systems.

According to HENSOLDT, several of their radar systems have been operational in Ukraine since the beginning of the war. The company maintains decades of experience in air defence radar systems and continues developing technologies in this sector.

The radar delivery represents part of Germany’s broader military support package for Ukraine’s defence against Russian forces.

One of Ukraine’s stealth attack drones has made another fleeting appearance somewhere over the 1,100-km front line of Russia’s 42-month wider war on Ukraine. A video that circulated online in recent days may mark only the second appearance of the mysterious drone.

This black-painted UAV is special. 

Most of Ukraine’s long-range attack drones feature the same basic design elements: long straight wings, narrow booms connecting the fuselage and engine to the trail and propeller propulsion. By contrast, the mystery drone is a flying wing with no separate fuselage—and it’s propelled by a jet engine. Reportedly a $2,000, US-made SW140B turbine.

ukrainian jet drone in action https://t.co/y2yQozc2Jl pic.twitter.com/v3CyptmJTE

— imi (m) (@moklasen) July 23, 2025

The flying wing planform, which lacks highly reflective right angles, scatters radar waves in all directions instead of bouncing them straight back at the emitting dish.

All that is to say, the black drone could be highly stealthy. And that should help it slip past Russian air-defenses on its way to strike targets deep inside Russia. There’s no official information about the mystery drone—we don’t even know its name—so we can’t say for sure how far it ranges. 

Explore further

One Ukrainian drone keeps smashing Russia’s top war factories—so Germany’s paying for 500 more

But one of the black drones that crashed in Russia in June 2024 appears to be around 10 feet long. If the Ukrainian drone carries as much fuel as a Russian Shahed attack drone, which is roughly as long, it might be capable of traveling hundreds of miles. 

The mystery drone has company. There’s a slightly bigger Ukrainian jet drone, also with a flying wing planform, that has made a couple of appearances on social media since last year. The main difference between the two stealth drones, besides their size, is that the bigger model has a single vertical stabilizer; the smaller model has twin vertical stabilizers. The bigger drone is powered by a German-made JetCat P400-PRO turbojet costing $14,000.

It’s clear both stealth drones exist in small numbers, likely owing to their higher cost and complexity compared to other drone types. The Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces’ main attack drone is the straight-wing, propeller-driven An-196. Ukrainian firm Ukroboronprom builds the An-196 by the hundreds: Germany recently ponied up $100 million to pay for 500 of the drones. 

The stealth drones’ rarity may imply the USF deploys them only for the most difficult missions requiring the attacking drones to penetrate dense air-defenses. 

Russia’s got stealth drones, too

The Russians possess a similar but much bigger drone—the 46-foot-long Okhotnik. One of the few copies of the Okhotnik came to a bad end over the front line in eastern Ukraine in October when it lost contact with its operators—and began flying toward free Ukraine.

An escorting Russian Sukhoi Su-57 stealth fighter shot down the Okhotnik, and the wreckage fell on the Ukrainian side of the front line. Ukrainian police recovered the drone’s remains, and the precision glide bomb the drone carried, right before a Russian Iskander missile streaked down—clearly intended to destroy what was left of the Okhotnik.

It’s not clear what, if anything, the Ukrainians have done with the information they gleaned from the Okhotnik’s crash. To be fair, the Russians have also recovered the remains of several Ukrainian stealth drones. If there’s anything either side can learn from the other when it comes to radar-evading drones, they’ve both learned it by now.

The basic principles of stealth aircraft design are well-known by now, however. The challenge for both Ukraine and Russia isn’t to build a few radar-evading drones—it’s to build lots of radar-evading drones.

Until either side can scale up production, both will continue relying on non-stealthy drones for most of their attacks. The Shaheds in Russia’s case. The An-196s in Ukraine’s.

Explore further

Ukraine just solved the hardest math problem in modern air defense – with a 1970s German gun

Finnish volunteer Tapani left behind a peaceful life to resist Russian aggression. He believes Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty need to be protected for peace in Europe. 

Before the start of Russia’s all-out war, Tapani ran his own business in Finland, working in real estate and forestry consulting. After five years studying silviculture and working in France, he chose to leave it all behind as soon as his contract ended at home.

“If we don’t stop this war, it will come to Europe in five years at most,” he warns.

Despite joining the unit recently, Tapani has already served in tough parts of the front in Kharkiv Oblast.

“One drone dropped 200 meters from us. We had just left the building when it struck nearby,” he recalls.

Despite language barriers and frontline danger, he remains undeterred: “It’s not hard for me here, I have no problems. There’s always a way.”

Tapani’s greatest wish is peace: “I hope the war ends and I can go home. And that Ukraine remains independent and sovereign, that’s what matters!”

Earlier, Pavel Slavinsky, Chief of Staff of the 2nd International Legion, said that many Western veterans join Ukrainian Army to end unfinished wars from Afghanistan and Iraq. 

He did not disclose the exact number of volunteers in the Legion, saying “that such information is classified.” 

Western veterans join Ukrainian Army to end unfinished wars from Afghanistan and Iraq, chief of staff of International Legion reveals

Russia tests new modified bomb on Kharkiv — children, an infant, and a pregnant woman among the wounded. On 24 July, Russian forces used a new type of aerial bomb, the UMPB-5, in an attack on the central part of the city in the first known use of this weapon.

Two airstrikes were launched from over 100 kilometers away, targeting residential districts and causing widespread destruction.

According to the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, 41 people were injured in the attack, including six children. The youngest victim is just 28 days old. A pregnant woman was also among the wounded.

The strikes damaged 20 residential buildings, including 17 apartment blocks in the Shevchenkivskyi and Kholodnohirskyi districts. The blast wave shattered over 600 windows, forming a crater in the street. Seven cars were destroyed by fire, and 18 more were damaged. One industrial facility caught fire, resulting in a large-scale blaze.

Regional prosecutor’s representative Spartak Borysenko confirmed that Russia used the new UMPB-5 bomb, which carries a 250-kg warhead.

“Russia is using Kharkiv as a testing ground. Today it’s the UMPB-5, before it was the D-30… These modified bombs cause greater destruction and lead to more civilian injuries,” he explained.

Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that people were on the streets during the strike. Fortunately, no fatalities were reported.

While Ukraine proposes peace, Russians again terrorize cities with missiles and drones. After talks in Istanbul where Ukraine offered a complete ceasefire, occupying Russian forces immediately struck Ukrainian cities, says President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“Yesterday at the meeting in Istanbul, the Russian side was again offered the proposal to immediately and fully cease fire. In response, Russian drones struck residential buildings and the ‘Pryvoz’ market in Oblast, apartment buildings in Cherkasy, energy infrastructure in Kharkiv region, a university gym in Zaporizhzhia, and targets in Donetsk, Sumy, and Mykolaiv regions,” Zelenskyy claims.

Pryvoz is one of the oldest and most famous markets in Odesa, a living iconic part of the city’s culture and history. Founded in 1827, it was the economic heart of the city, supplying food to Odesa and the region.

It became not only the main shopping place for locals but also a hub of Odesa’s humor. There, sellers and customers joke during bargaining, shout sayings, and win over buyers. It is believed that the unique Odesa dialect, the city’s distinctive linguistic culture, began forming there.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasizes that Russia not only continues its terror but also blocks diplomatic efforts, thus deserving harsh sanctions and strikes on its logistics, military bases, and production facilities.

“We will do everything to make diplomacy work. But it is Russia that must stop this war it started,” the Ukrainian president stresses. 

Earlier, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Kyiv forces would receive secret weapons to “influence” Russia’s territory. He did not mention specific names or dates for the deliveries.

As Putin vows summer escalation, Berlin says Kyiv will soon gain secret tools to “affect Russian territory”

Wadephul added that European partners worked intensively on delivering weapons to Ukraine. The issue is not about finances but about the defense industry’s production capacity.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have stated that the bill submitted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy restores all guarantees of independence for these institutions.

“Bill No. 13533, submitted by the President of Ukraine as urgent, restores all procedural powers and guarantees of independence for NABU and SAPO,” the agencies report.

NABU and SAPO participated in drafting the text and are urging the Ukrainian Parliament to adopt the President’s initiative as soon as possible, both in the first reading and as a whole.

“This will help prevent threats to the criminal proceedings investigated by NABU and SAPO,” they emphasize. 

The work of Ukraine’s independent anti-corruption bodies is a key requirement for its path to European membership. It also affects the future of Ukraine’s aid, which mostly depends on Ukraine amid US President Donald Trump’s foreign policy. The bloc’s leaders have appealed to Kyiv with questions on the controversial law and urged transparency in reform.

After Zelenskyy decided to respond to the mass rallies and work on the law restoring the activities of NABU and SAPO, the EU viewed such actions positively.

Western trust under threat as Zelenskyy nears signing controversial law that crashes Ukraine’s anti-corruption system

At the same time, European Commission Spokesperson Stefan de Keersmaecker emphasized the need for continued efforts in this direction.

The company EasyStaff, founded by Russians in Vilnius, has transferred over €50 million to Russia while facilitating the hiring of Russian freelancers by Western companies, LTR reports. 

Founded in 2020 by Russian citizens Vitaly Mikhailov and Yevgeny Fedorov, EasyStaff brands itself as a global freelancing platform. In reality, however, it may act as a mechanism that may allow EU and US sanctions to be circumvented.

EasyStaff utilizes alternative payment methods such as PayPal, Skrill, card transactions, and cryptocurrency, thereby bypassing SWIFT restrictions.

According to Lithuania’s State Data Agency, imports of computer services from Russia rose from €2.64 million in 2023 to over €56 million in 2024, which is nearly twice the pre-pandemic level. Yet when contacted by LRT’s investigative team, no government agency could initially explain this surge.

Eventually, the reporters discovered that most of the €56 million traced back to a single company: EasyStaff.

Though EasyStaff presents itself as a global platform helping companies hire and pay foreign freelancers, in practice it serves as a bridge for EU and US businesses seeking to contract Russian workers without direct interaction with sanctioned banks.

Mikhailov insists the platform is globally oriented and denies that Russians form its main client base.

When asked whether EasyStaff helps Russian firms navigate sanctions, Mikhailov replied that the company breaks no laws and works only with non-sanctioned banks. He added that EasyStaff consults with two law firms to ensure full compliance with restrictions and claimed that clients choose the company for its efficiency, not to evade sanctions.

Since EasyStaff lacks a payment institution license in Lithuania, it is not regulated by the Bank of Lithuania. A spokesperson for the central bank noted that EasyStaff appears to function more like a marketplace for service contracts than a payment processor.

Lithuania’s Financial Crime Investigation Service has confirmed awareness of the company but said it has detected any threats.

As Russia ramps up missile and drone attacks, Ukraine is set to strengthen its air defenses with new Western support: five Patriot missile systems and 220,000 rounds for Gepard anti-aircraft guns.

Announced during the latest Ramstein-format meeting, the pledge marks a significant upgrade to Ukraine’s layered air defense network.

BBC explores how these deliveries could shift the balance—and why speed and supply will be key.

Patriots: Expanding missile shield, but time matters

The US-made Patriot system is Ukraine’s main defense against ballistic and cruise missiles. According to New York Times reports, Ukraine currently has eight Patriot batteries, though only six were operational as of May 2025. The new systems could increase that number to 13.

Each battery includes:

• Missile launchers
• Radar
• Command unit
• PAC-3 interceptors, capable of downing advanced ballistic threats

But timelines remain uncertain. Germany’s Spiegel reports the first new system may not arrive before March 2026. President Zelenskyy has said 25 Patriots are needed to secure the country—meaning even after this delivery, Ukraine remains far from that goal.

There’s also a shortage of PAC-3 missiles, raising concerns about sustaining the new systems once deployed.

Gepards reloaded: Short-range defense gets ammo

Ukraine’s Gepard anti-aircraft guns have proven essential for shooting down Shahed drones and low-flying missiles. The country operates about 100 Gepards, each armed with twin 35mm cannons and radar.

The new shipment of 220,000 rounds will allow for three full reloads across the fleet.

Ammo had become a bottleneck after Switzerland blocked re-exports, citing neutrality. Germany’s Rheinmetall stepped in, restarting production to fill the gap.

Military analysts estimate a single Shahed can often be downed with just 7–30 rounds, meaning this batch could neutralize thousands of drones—a crucial upgrade as Russia continues near-nightly drone assaults.

A layered strategy for a shifting threat

Russia’s aerial tactics are evolving. Drones now fly extremely low or at high altitudes to avoid detection, testing Ukraine’s defenses.

Kyiv is responding with a layered air defense approach:

• Patriots for long-range missiles
• Gepards for drones and close-range threats
• Mobile air defense and electronic warfare to fill the gaps

Even with 13 Patriot systems, Ukraine cannot cover its entire airspace. But together, these tools help protect cities, infrastructure, and military sites more effectively.

BBC verdict: A critical step, not a final answer

This package—five Patriots and 220,000 Gepard shells—is one of the most impactful pledges yet. But delays in delivery and limited missile stocks could slow its effect.

Ukraine has the plan. The tools are arriving. But the outcome will depend on how fast systems are delivered, how well they’re supplied—and whether support continues as the threat evolves.

Beijing continues fueling Russia’s war against Ukraine. Chinese companies are supplying engines for attack drones through front companies, falsely labeling them as “industrial refrigeration units” to bypass Western sanctions, Reuters reports.

According to the report, Russian arms producer IEMZ Kupol signed a contract with Russia’s Ministry of Defense to manufacture over 6,000 Garpia-A1 drones in 2025, which is three times more than the previous year.

By April, over 1,500 drones had already been assembled and were being launched en masse against Ukrainian military and civilian targets, up to 500 per month, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence.

A key component of the Garpia drone is the Chinese L550E engine produced by Xiamen Limbach Aviation Engine Co. After sanctions were imposed on Xiamen, a new Chinese firm, Beijing Xichao International Technology and Trade, began delivering the same engines to Russia.

In shipping documents, they were labeled as cooling units, enabling unimpeded transfer in violation of sanctions.

The supply route ran through a network of shell companies: from Beijing to Moscow, and then to Izhevsk, where the Kupol plant is located. According to sources in three EU intelligence services, the shipments first went to a firm called SMP-138, then to another company, LIBSS, which delivered the engines directly to the factory. This is how “refrigerators” became weapons.

Despite repeated warnings, Chinese airlines, including Sichuan Airlines and China Southern Airlines, continued transporting drone components since at least October 2024.

Previously, US Army Europe and NATO Allied Forces Supreme Commander General Alexus Grynkewich warned that American and its European allies likely have only a year and a half to prepare for a potential global military conflict with China and Russia. The dictatorships may launch a coordinated strike in 2027.

Russia has deployed additional electronic warfare equipment near the Baltic nation’s frontier, escalating regional tensions as GPS jamming incidents increase across the region, Estonia’s Interior Minister Igor Taro said on 24 July.

Western security assessments warn that Russia poses a continuing threat of future aggression against EU countries, with concerns growing over its long-term strategic intentions beyond Ukraine. The Baltic nations – Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia – are named among the most threatened nation.

Russian forces moved signals jamming systems to the Kingisiepp area, located 20 kilometers from Estonia’s border, Igor Taro announced during a press conference in Tallinn on 24 July, according to Bloomberg.

The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

The equipment mirrors technology Russia employs in Ukraine to disrupt drone navigation systems. However, the electronic warfare capabilities create widespread interference with GPS systems used by commercial aviation and maritime vessels.

Estonia’s internal security agency has contacted Russian military officials regarding the deployment, according to Taro. The development follows earlier warnings from Estonian authorities about intensified GPS interference near Narva and the Narva Bay coastline.

The jamming campaign extends beyond Estonia’s borders. Lithuanian Deputy Defense Minister Karolis Aleksa said that Russia’s GPS signal blocking scope “is expanding.” Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said on 17 June that his country “records GPS disruptions over the Baltic Sea” linked to Russian activities.

Estonia, positioned on NATO’s eastern flank, maintains strong support for Ukraine while rapidly expanding its defense capabilities to counter potential Russian aggression. Regional tensions have heightened since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with Baltic states reporting increased electronic warfare incidents.

The electronic warfare systems pose risks beyond military applications, as GPS interference affects civilian aircraft navigation and commercial shipping operations throughout the Baltic region.

A new forensic examination of Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna’s body has uncovered additional injuries not previously reported, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General’s response to a LIGA.net inquiry.

The examination, conducted on 9 July by the Main Bureau of Forensic Medical Examination of the Ministry of Health, revealed that Roshchyna suffered neck trauma, bone fractures, hemorrhages in soft tissues of the temporal area, right shoulder and shins, and abrasions on her left foot. The previous examination had identified hemorrhages on various body parts and a broken rib.

Roshchyna, 27, disappeared on 3 August 2023, in occupied Ukrainian territory. The Security Service of Ukraine and later the Russian side confirmed that Russian forces had taken the journalist captive. On 10 October 2024, the Coordination Headquarters confirmed her death in Russia, with an investigation into her death in Russian captivity beginning the following day.

The journalist’s body was returned to Ukraine on 24 April 2025, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office, which reported that numerous signs of torture were found on Roshchyna’s body.

Despite the additional findings, the cause of death remains undetermined.

“At the time of the examination, Roshchyna’s body was in a state of pronounced cadaveric changes with tissue structure disruption, which does not allow establishing the cause of death and linking it to bodily injuries,” said Maryana Hayovska-Kovbasyuk, head of the information policy and communications department of the Prosecutor General’s Office.

Hayovska-Kovbasyuk added that the body was transferred to Ukraine in a state of “deep freezing with signs of mummification and decomposition.”

Results from biological samples previously collected by French experts from Roshchyna’s body are still pending, according to Hayovska-Kovbasyuk. Ukraine is currently conducting another examination – a forensic medical-criminalistic one.

As part of the case regarding the illegal detention and murder of the Ukrainian journalist on Russian territory, the National Police has questioned witnesses about the circumstances of Roshchyna’s stay in places of detention in Russia, including investigative isolator No. 2 in Taganrog, Rostov region, and detention center No. 3 in Kizel, Perm region.

Measures are being taken to identify individuals involved in her torture and murder. The article under which the case was opened – cruel treatment of civilians resulting in death – carries a penalty of life imprisonment.

In December 2024, the Indian company Ideal Detonators Private Limited shipped two batches of octogen, a military-grade explosive, to Russia, totaling over $1.4 million. Recipients included the Russian company Promsintez and High Technology Initiation Systems, Reuters reports.

An SBU official reveals that in April, Ukraine carried out a drone attack on a plant owned by Promsintez.

Octogen is critical to modern missile warheads, torpedoes, explosive shells, and rocket engines. According to the Pentagon, this high-quality explosive is used in Russia’s advanced military systems, and the US government has warned financial institutions not to support octogen sales to Moscow.

Three sanctions lawyers say the US Treasury Department has the authority to impose sanctions on those selling octogen and similar materials to Russia. Octogen is known as a “high-performance explosive,” meaning it detonates quickly and is designed for maximum destruction.

The US State Department says it has repeatedly warned India that companies involved in military business face sanctions risks.

Reuters identified two shipments of octogen sent by India’s Ideal Detonators Private Limited in December, both unloaded in Saint Petersburg, according to Indian customs data. An Indian official familiar with these shipments confirmed their presence.

One batch, valued at $405,200, was purchased by a Russian company, High Technology Initiation Systems. The other batch, worth over $1 million, was bought by Promsintez. Both buyers are located in Samara Oblast, near the Kazakhstan border in southern Russia.

Ideal Detonators, based in Telangana, India, declined to comment.

Under the Trump administration, progress on Russia-related sanctions slowed significantly, and it remains unclear whether the US will take further action against Indian companies doing business with Russia’s defense industry.

Washington has long sought closer ties with India to pull the South Asian country away from China.

Eric Prince, a partner at Washington law firm Akin, said the US government often prefers to raise concerns privately with allies and resorts to punitive measures only as a last resort.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has approved a new draft law aimed at restoring the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption institutions, following days of nationwide protests, international criticism, and revelations of a Russian spy network operating within law enforcement agencies.

The new draft bill, submitted to Parliament on Thursday, is intended to replace the widely criticized Law No. 12414, which shifted control over key anti-corruption bodies—the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO)—to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

“We need real tools, full independence for NABU and SAPO, and zero Russian influence,” Zelenskyy stated.

Although the full text of the bill has yet to be published, the president said it would guarantee the independence of anti-corruption institutions and strengthen Ukraine’s justice system during wartime.

Law No. 12414 sparks backlash

Passed on 22 July and signed into law two days later, Law No. 12414 allows the Prosecutor General to reassign investigations, close high-level cases, and override SAPO’s jurisdiction. Critics say it effectively places independent bodies under executive control, undermining judicial reform and Ukraine’s commitments to the EU.

Even some lawmakers from Zelenskyy’s own Servant of the People party expressed alarm. MP Anastasia Radina, head of the anti-corruption committee, warned the law could “destroy the country’s anti-corruption infrastructure.”

Protests and international alarm

Thousands of Ukrainians took to the streets in Kyiv, Lviv, and Dnipro, demanding the repeal of the law. The European Commission voiced concern, warning the law threatens Ukraine’s progress on transparency and could affect future EU assistance.

“These institutions are vital to fighting corruption and maintaining public trust,” said EU spokesperson Guillaume Mercier.

Spy scandal and high-level raids

The crisis escalated when Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) and State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) uncovered a Russian spy network within anti-corruption and law enforcement bodies.

On 21 July, authorities conducted over 70 raids targeting current and former NABU employees:

• Ruslan Magamedrasulov, a senior detective, was arrested for allegedly leaking classified case materials to Russian intelligence and facilitating illegal exports to Russia.
• Viktor Husarov, a member of NABU’s elite D-2 unit, was charged with treason for allegedly passing sensitive files to Russia’s FSB via former Yanukovych-era official Dmytro Ivantsov. He remains in custody without bail.
• Authorities also issued charges against fugitive ex-MP Fedir Khrystenko, accused of coordinating sabotage efforts within NABU on behalf of the Kremlin.

NABU criticized the raids as excessive and legally questionable, warning that investigators from the SBU and SBI may have accessed confidential materials. Transparency International and G7 ambassadors condemned the actions as pressure on Ukraine’s last independent anti-corruption institution.

Concerns about legitimacy and effectiveness

Despite playing a central role in Ukraine’s reform narrative, anti-corruption bodies have faced longstanding criticism:

• Constitutional challenges: Between 2020 and 2022, the Constitutional Court struck down key provisions related to the formation and leadership of NABU, raising doubts about the legal basis for their operations.
• Limited outcomes: Although these agencies have pursued high-profile investigations, actual convictions—especially of senior officials—remain few.
• Jurisdictional overlap: Conflicts among NABU, SAPO, the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NACP), and other institutions frequently lead to inefficiency and turf battles.
• Political influence: While these bodies are formally independent, their activities often reflect political dynamics—through control over appointments, budgets, and informal coordination by the Presidential Office or government.

These concerns don’t erase the institutions’ achievements but underscore the urgent need for deeper reform and stronger protections from political interference.

Zelenskyy’s course correction

Zelenskyy’s pivot toward a new legislative solution has been welcomed by NABU and SAPO, who pledged to assist in drafting a law that meets rule-of-law standards and reinforces institutional safeguards.

“We support legal solutions that enhance justice and eliminate legal risks,” NABU stated, also thanking civil society and international partners for ongoing support.

What comes next

Parliament is expected to review the new draft in the coming days. Whether it can undo the political fallout from Law No. 12414—and restore public trust—remains uncertain.

With active espionage threats and high stakes for Ukraine’s EU accession path, the independence and resilience of its anti-corruption architecture face a defining test.

The EU regards positively actions of the Ukrainian authorities addressing issues around the new anti-corruption law, UkrInform reports. At the same time, European Commission Spokesperson Stefan de Keersmaecker emphasizes the need for continued efforts in this direction.

Stefan de Keersmaecker says the EU welcomes the fact that Ukrainian authorities are taking measures and will cooperate to ensure the bloc’s concerns are addressed. He did not specify which concrete steps or deadlines are expected from Kyiv for a full resolution.

Editorial: Zelenskyy opens a second front—against his own people

Another European Commission Spokesperson Guillaume Mercier stresses that the further financial assistance and EU membership for Kyiv depends on its progress in transparency, judicial reform, and democratic governance.

He also says that the EU will continue to closely follow the situation, offering support to solve issues.

“We need to be sure that Ukraine has all necessary tools to fight corruption and that their independence is ensured,” Mercier claims.

Meanwhile, the EU says it does not link this issue to the stability of military support for Ukraine.

Before the legislative push, starting 21 July, the SBU security service and Prosecutor General’s Office carried out approximately 80 searches targeting 19 NABU staff across multiple oblasts. Employees were accused of state treason, illicit trade with Russia, and acting on behalf of oligarchs.

A birthday guest got indicted—so Ukraine dismantled a decade of reform

The State Bureau of Investigations simultaneously reopened dormant car crash cases involving NABU staff.

In addition, some sources speculated that the campaign may have been aimed at blocking an imminent indictment against Tymur Mindich, co-owner of Zelenskyy’s former media company Kvartal 95.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the law anyway.

Even as thousands of Ukrainians demonstrated in Kyiv, Lviv, and Dnipro—the first major protests against his government since Russia’s invasion—even as the European Union demanded explanations and G7 ambassadors expressed “serious concerns,” Ukraine’s president destroyed his country’s independent anti-corruption infrastructure with a single signature.

The reason was simple—and it reveals everything wrong with how Ukraine still operates.

Corruption investigators were closing in on Zelenskyy’s inner circle. Two men from his closest orbit faced charges: Oleksiy Chernyshov, the only Cabinet minister invited to Zelenskyy’s COVID birthday party, and Tymur Mindich, his business partner from the Kvartal 95 comedy studio.

Rather than let them face justice, Zelenskyy chose to eliminate the investigators— NABU and SAPO.

This matters because when anti-corruption agencies finally reached the president’s actual family—not just random officials, but his birthday party guests and business partners—Ukraine witnessed its first real test of whether it had outgrown the post-Soviet patronage trap.

The answer came swift and brutal: personal loyalty won, institutional accountability lost.

The family under investigation

Chernyshov wasn’t just any minister. During Ukraine’s strict COVID-19 lockdown in 2021, when gatherings were banned, Zelenskyy invited only a handful of intimates to celebrate his birthday. Chernyshov was the sole government official present. Ukrainska Pravda reported this marked him as part of Zelenskyy’s inner circle, someone beyond typical political appointees.

The relationship runs deeper than professional. Sources indicate close family friendships between the Zelenskyy and Chernyshov families, with connections predating the full-scale invasion. Despite lacking infrastructure experience, Chernyshov has held four high-level positions across six years.

When no suitable position existed, parliament created an entirely new Ministry of National Unity specifically for him.

In June, NABU charged Chernyshov with organizing a massive land scheme, allegedly manipulating state transfers to benefit developers in exchange for apartments worth $346,000 at artificially low prices — costing the state over $24 million.

Tymur Mindich represents Zelenskyy’s pre-political past as co-owner of Kvartal 95, the entertainment company that launched his career. ZN.ua describes him as “one of the main consultants to the head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak” and a “long-time business partner of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.”

Investigators were preparing charges against Mindich himself, according to sources who told Ukrainska Pravda. When the heat intensified, MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak reported that Mindich fled Ukraine and “will likely not return in the near future.”

Here’s what makes this different from typical Ukrainian corruption scandals: these weren’t random officials caught stealing. These were Zelenskyy’s actual inner circle — the people who got him to power and stayed there with him.

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The parliamentary blitzkrieg

When corruption charges reached these core members of Zelenskyy’s circle, the response was swift and systematic. The destruction happened through brazen procedural violations that would have embarrassed even Viktor Yanukovych.

On 21 July, Security Service forces conducted 70 simultaneous raids on anti-corruption officials, claiming to expose “Russian moles” in NABU.

The numbers exposed the theater immediately: 70 searches produced five charges, three involving old traffic accidents from 2021-2023. “Mathematics is an exact science,” observed Andriy Borovyk, director of Transparency International Ukraine: if there was a real reason for them, they should have produced more substantial evidence.

Twenty-four hours later came what MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak called a “blitzkrieg” against anti-corruption institutions. They disguised the attack as humanitarian legislation. MP Maksym Buzhanskyi introduced a bill about missing persons procedures.

MPs had roughly an hour to review amendments that fundamentally transformed Ukraine’s corruption oversight. The atmosphere was celebratory. “After the vote, I heard a phrase from one of them,” Zhelezniak recalled. “It was Maksym Buzhanskyi… This phrase was: ‘This football I like.'”

Parliament voted 263-13 to subordinate NADB and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office to a presidential appointee.

The message was clear: investigate mid-level officials all you want, but the president’s “family” remains off-limits.

The comedy studio government

But this wasn’t just about protecting two friends. The appointments reveal how Zelenskyy systematically recreated the exact loyalty-based system he campaigned against—just with different people.

After Zelenskyy’s presidential victory in 2019, over 30 former Kvartal 95 employees and their associates moved into government positions. Ukrainian analysts call it a “comedy studio government.”

Radio Svoboda documented the network: Serhiy Shefir, Zelenskyy’s co-owner of Kvartal 95, became First Assistant to the President. Andriy Yermak, a film producer who met Zelenskyy in 2011, rose to Head of the Presidential Office — what The Washington Post describes as “arguably the most powerful chief of staff in Ukraine’s history.”

The most catastrophic appointment was Ivan Bakanov, Zelenskyy’s childhood friend from Kryvyi Rih and Kvartal 95’s former lawyer. Despite having zero intelligence experience, Zelenskyy made him head of the Security Service (SBU) in August 2019.

Under Bakanov’s watch, the SBU appointed Oleksandr Kulinich to a critical southern defense position despite Kulinich being legally barred from state service — the man graduated from Moscow’s FSB academy in 1994. When Russia invaded on 24 February 2022, this intelligence breach proved fatal. Russian forces advanced 150 kilometers in march formation, bypassing Ukrainian positions. Kherson fell in exactly seven days.

The Washington Post reported that 651 criminal proceedings were registered regarding treason and collaboration by law enforcement officials, with over 60 from the prosecutor’s office and the SBU working against Ukraine in occupied territories.

This is why loyalty-based governance can’t coexist with institutional accountability. When you staff government based on personal relationships rather than merit, you create a state that can’t tolerate oversight — because accountability exposes the incompetence and corruption that loyalty-first appointments inevitably produce.

What Ukraine lost

NABU and SAPO were created after the 2014 Euromaidan Revolution as Ukraine’s first real separation of powers. Their independence was a requirement for EU membership negotiations, visa-free travel to Europe, and billions in international aid.

Under the new law, the prosecutor general can transfer any NABU investigation to other agencies, issue binding instructions to detectives, close cases at defense request, and delegate SAP’s powers to other prosecutors.

“If the anti-corruption structure is embedded in a politicized law enforcement system, it won’t work,” MP Yaroslav Yurchyshyn explained. “It won’t present suspicions to ministers, advisors, or deputy heads of the President’s Office, or deputies.”

The strategic miscalculation

The destruction provides perfect ammunition for those questioning Ukraine aid. European reactions came swiftly. European Commissioner Marta Kos called the law “a serious step back,” warning that “independent bodies like NABU and SAPO are essential for Ukraine’s EU path.”

European Pravda reported that Brussels had secretly scheduled 18 July to open Ukraine’s first EU negotiating cluster, but abandoned the plan after Ukraine’s anti-corruption crackdown.

The timing wasn’t coincidental. American rule-of-law programs had withdrawn from Ukraine in February and March 2025, and European officials were on summer vacation. Ukrainian authorities misread signals from the Trump administration as permission to attack democratic institutions.

Putin originally justified his invasion partly by claiming Ukraine was establishing anti-corruption institutions with foreign experts. As Kaleniuk pointed out, “Ukrainian MPs are now making Putin’s argument for him.”

MP Zhelezniak recalled Putin’s February 2022 speech: “So he named one of the reasons why he’s starting war—the presence of independent anti-corruption bodies. And we liquidated them today.”

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When Ukrainians said no

But Ukrainian society had other ideas. Mass protests erupted across Ukraine on 22 July — the first major demonstrations against Zelenskyy’s government since Russia’s invasion. The Washington Post reported thousands flooded central Kyiv and massed in cities across the war-torn country, by far the largest demonstrations since Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Protesters chanted “Get your hands off NABU and SAP” and “Veto the law,” while drivers honked in support. Even facing this unprecedented resistance, Zelenskyy signed the law anyway.

The next morning, he scrambled to gather law enforcement and anti-corruption agency heads for emergency meetings. On 23 July, he promised to introduce new legislation preserving anti-corruption independence. Parliament’s summer recess was canceled for an emergency session.

Meanwhile, 48 MPs began preparing a Constitutional Court challenge.

The maturity test

This was Ukraine’s first major test of whether it had outgrown the post-Soviet patronage trap that destroyed every previous government. The entertainment industry veterans who took power in 2019 tried to replicate the same loyalty-first system that had dominated Ukrainian politics for decades. When independent institutions threatened their inner circle, they attempted to destroy those institutions.

But Ukrainian civil society had matured during three decades of independence and intensified during three years of war. The massive protests forced Zelenskyy into damage control, demonstrating that Ukraine’s democratic evolution had outpaced its leaders’ authoritarian instincts.

The president who campaigned against the system of untouchables had created his own version. When Ukrainians recognized the pattern, they took to the streets to defend the institutions he had promised to protect. In that response lies hope that Ukraine’s democratic future remains stronger than its authoritarian past.

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Ukrainians suffer from dehydration and violence. In Donetsk Oblast, residents face catastrophic water shortages, with no supply to homes for up to three days at a time, 24 Channel reports. 

Military expert Roman Svitan explains that water was once pumped from the Khanzhonkivske Reservoir to Donetsk, and from there it was distributed across the region. But Russians destroyed the facility back in 2022. The pumps capable of moving millions of tons of water were completely demolished. This was the water that sustained all of Donbas, all the way to Mariupol. 

Russians also supplied civilians with technical water, primarily used in steel plants. As a result, the region’s main water artery, the Khanzhonkivske Reservoir, has now completely dried up.

As the situation in Donetsk becomes critical, many settlers from Russia are simply returning home. Sadly, Ukrainians who remain in the occupied territories will be forced to continue struggling for survival, Svitan adds.

“Today, genocide is being carried out not only through weapons but also through dehydration. This is a war crime for which Moscow must stand trial at the International Court,” he claims.

These are not the only crimes committed by Russian forces in the region. In one shocking incident in Donetsk, Russian soldier Azat Sufiyanov from Bashkortostan broke into an elderly woman’s home, brutally beat her, and attempted to rape her. The man has a criminal record and had deserted his military unit.

In 2023, Russian forces destroyed the Kakhovka Reservoir, including the dam of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant. This act has been recognized as a terrorist attack and the largest environmental crime to date, triggering a man-made disaster of global scale.

The destruction of the dam released more than 18 cubic kilometers of water, causing massive flooding in dozens of settlements, including the city of Kherson, and leading to the deaths of thousands.

During the latest prisoner swap with Russia, Ukraine brought back the last defender of Zmiinyi or Zmiinyi (Snake) Island. Vitalii Hyrenko returned home after spending more than three years in Russian captivity, the Facebook community of the Defenders of Zmiinyi Island reports. 

“The long-awaited exchange, three years and five months in captivity, for our last defender of Zmiinyi Island has taken place! Border guard of the island of Achilles, Vitalii Hyrenko, is home!!! Free, unbroken in spirit and body, Vitalii is finally back on his native soil,” the post reads.

In a February update, the community shared that Hyrenko’s small son, Dmytro, only knew his father from photos.

“When Vitalii was taken captive, his wife Aliona was seven months pregnant,” it wrote.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War also confirmed that Hyrenko, a soldier of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, had been released from captivity.

Following negotiations in Istanbul, the ninth round of prisoner exchanges with the Russian side took place on 24 July.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that severely wounded and critically ill defenders had returned home. According to him, more than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been freed from Russian captivity across all phases of this exchange.

Ukraine is preparing for a new phase of the war. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul says Kyiv forces will receive secret weapons to “influence” Russia’s territory, Zeit reports.

Wadephul emphasizes that European partners are now working intensively on the weapons delivery for Ukraine. He explains that the issue is not about finances but about the defense industry’s production capacity. 

“Ukraine has the right to defend itself against attacks. It will also have the ability to affect Russian territory, but we will not reveal to Putin what weapon systems we are supplying to Ukraine,” Wadephul states.

He has not mentioned specific names or dates for the deliveries. Separately, Wadephul says he had stopped looking for logic in the Russian terror against Ukrainian civilians.

“He will stop only when he realizes his plan isn’t working,” the German minister concludes.

In July, Germany announced it would supply five Patriot systems, which are to be delivered to Ukraine “soon.” Defense Minister Boris Pistorius confirmed he had reached an agreement with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on the delivery. The Patriots are the only systems Ukraine has that can intercept Russian ballistic missiles.

Berlin also announced plans to supply over 200,000 shells for Gepard systems capable of shooting down Russian drones, and to fund the purchase of Ukrainian long-range drones to strike targets deep in the Russian rear.

A Russian airstrike using guided aerial glide bombs (KABs) struck central Kharkiv, injuring 33 people, including an infant, according to regional officials.

The assault follows a third round of Russia–Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, which ended without major breakthroughs. As diplomatic progress stalls, Russian aerial attacks have intensified, increasingly targeting urban centers with drones and missiles.

Just hours after peace talks in Istanbul yielded little, Russian warplanes bombed central Kharkiv.

33 were injured, including a 10-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy with head wounds. Fires destroyed 15 cars. One woman is in critical condition.

Video: ASTRA pic.twitter.com/nwCg520mkC

— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) July 24, 2025

Bombs land near residential building and civilian site

Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov confirmed that two KABs struck the city center — one near a multi-story residential building, and another at a civilian enterprise. The explosion near the residential block sparked a fire, damaging approximately 15 vehicles.

Injured include children and an infant

Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, confirmed the wounded include a 10-year-old girl, a 17-year-old boy with head injuries, and an infant.

At least five people were hospitalized, including a 33-year-old woman in critical condition.

Damage to vehicles and buildings

The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that the blast shattered windows in nearby residential buildings.

A fire that destroyed seven vehicles was later extinguished. In a separate strike, garages and personal vehicles in a garage cooperative were also damaged.

Ukrainian soldiers have received a new training tool. The Ministry of Defense has approved for use a domestically developed laser training system designed to simulate RPG-7 grenade launcher operations, according to the Main Directorate for Weapons and Military Equipment Lifecycle Support.

The new laser training system imitates real combat conditions. The device, shaped like a training munition, is mounted on the RPG-7 and allows soldiers to fully practice targeting, preparation, and firing, all while following safety procedures.

The simulated target range matches the RPG-7’s actual combat distance. Additionally, the trainer replicates the weapon’s reactive exhaust, enhancing realism during exercises.

This innovative training device can also be integrated with other simulation systems to create full-scale training complexes for RPG crews.

Amid the growing threat from FPV drones, both sides in the war have shifted tactics, using tanks cautiously with camouflage and rapid repositioning rather than direct frontal engagements.

Due to a shortage of trained infantry and heavy battlefield losses, armored vehicles now play a supporting role. Artillery, drones, and assault units have taken on the main burden of offensive operations.

Overall, Russia has lost up to 3,000 tanks and more than 5,000 other armored vehicles in three years of the war.

A Ukrainian drone strike has hit a Lukoil oil depot near Sochi International Airport, killing two civilians and injuring 11 others, including a traffic police officer. The explosion sparked a massive fire and forced the airport to suspend operations, triggering widespread flight delays and chaos across regional hubs.

This marks one of the most severe drone attacks inside Russia this year, underscoring the expanding reach of Ukrainian drone warfare and the growing risks to energy and transportation hubs far from the front lines.

The targeted facility, Lukoil-Yugnefteprodukt, is located on Tavricheskaya Street in the Sirius settlement of Krasnodar Krai. The governor of the region, Veniamin Kondratyev, confirmed the casualties and urged locals to avoid the area due to ongoing emergency response efforts.

Flights delayed, passengers stranded

Nearly 800 passengers bound for Sochi are now stranded in Novosibirsk, Omsk, and Tomsk, according to Russia’s West Siberian Transport Prosecutor’s Office. More than 60 flights were delayed as authorities raced to contain the situation and assess damage to critical infrastructure.

Ukraine hits Sochi — a drone strike blows up a Lukoil oil depot and grounds flights at Russia’s top Black Sea resort.

Oil depot in flames
Flights canceled
Attack deep inside Russian territory

Video: Astra pic.twitter.com/YcznbXQwjV

— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) July 24, 2025

Railway and fuel infrastructure also damaged

Ukrainian sources, including the Telegram channel Exilenova+, reported that drones also struck a railway bridge and additional oil facilities near Adler and Sochi Airport. Eyewitness videos from Sochi and Abkhazia captured massive explosions and thick black smoke rising from the scene.

Strategic strike amid escalation

Russia’s Ministry of Defense said seven drones were intercepted overnight in Krasnodar Krai, but confirmed that debris from one UAV struck Sochi, causing the fatalities and fire.

Overnight Russian attacks struck Odesa’s historic center and residential areas in Cherkasy, damaging UNESCO-listed landmarks, setting fire to one of Europe’s oldest markets, and injuring civilians, including a child.

The assault follows a third round of Russia–Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, which ended without major breakthroughs. As diplomatic progress stalls, Russian aerial attacks have intensified, targeting urban centers with drones and missiles.

Pryvoz market in flames, UNESCO sites damaged

In Odesa, a Russian drone strike ignited a fire at the iconic Pryvoz Market, severely damaging its two-story building and nearby pavilions. The State Emergency Service (SES) released footage showing flames consuming parts of the structure.

“Pryvoz is not just a market. It’s the heart of Odesa,” SES responders said.

The attack also hit several architectural landmarks in the city’s UNESCO-protected historic center. Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov confirmed damage to the famous Primorsky Boulevard, posting images of rubble and broken masonry.

“This is what the world-famous boulevard looks like after the enemy’s attack,” he wrote.

Residential building hit, evacuations ordered

A separate strike hit a nine-story apartment block, setting fire to upper floors and displacing residents from the 5th to 8th floors. Emergency crews warned of a possible structural collapse.

As of Thursday morning, three people were injured in Odesa. Firefighting and recovery operations continue across several sites.

Shrapnel missile attack in Cherkasy injures seven

In Cherkasy, Russian forces launched Iskander-K missiles equipped with shrapnel warheads, wounding seven people, including a nine-year-old girl. The blast damaged at least 15 high-rise buildings, nine two-story apartment blocks, and a local cemetery, according to regional officials.

“The shrapnel had a kill radius of up to a kilometer,” Governor Ihor Taburets told Suspilne. “Two impact zones were recorded, both in residential areas.”

Most injuries were minor. Three victims were hospitalized; none are in critical condition.

“The child was injured by broken glass and doors,” Taburets noted.

Scale of the attack

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that during the night, Russian forces launched a total of 103 drones, the majority of which were Iranian-made Shahed models, along with four missiles. The scale and intensity of the assault reflect a continued escalation, despite parallel diplomatic efforts.

Exclusive

Editorial: Zelenskyy opens a second front—against his own people. Not at the border, but in parliament — where a decade of reforms just collapsed in 72 hours.

Zelenskyy’s scandalous law weakening anti-graft watchdogs takes effect (updated). The President offered only vague claims of “Russian influence” to justify stripping institutional independence.

“I defended Zelenskyy against Trump’s dictatorship accusations. Now I can’t,” says Ukraine’s top corruption fighter. Zelenskyy must reverse course on the legislation targeting corruption prosecutors, or risk proving Putin right about Ukrainian democracy, warns the architect of the system being destroyed.

Ukraine just got 49 new Abrams tanks—but the tank war is already over. The first of up to 49 fresh M-1 Abrams tanks have arrived in Ukraine. What will the Ukrainian military do with the 69-ton, four-person vehicles with their thick armor and 120-mm guns?

Military

Russian power station burns after drone strike—Novocherskassk traffic gridlocked (video). Propaganda calls it “debris damage,” but eyewitnesses describe explosions at infrastructure in Russia’s Rostov Oblast.

Ukraine suffers first Mirage-2000 loss. Pilot ejects and survives. The aircraft failed during an evening mission on 22 July, forcing the pilot to take emergency action.

Intelligence and technology

US approves sale of two military aid packages to Ukraine worth $ 322 mn. Ukraine secured approval to buy $172 million in HAWK Phase III missile system components and $150 million in Bradley infantry fighting vehicle support through two separate Pentagon-announced packages.

It wasn’t just the Skripals—Russia’s covert attacks spanned years and continents, UK intelligence reveals. British findings show how Moscow weaponized disinfo, cyberwar, and assassination at scale.

Intelligence: Russia plans to weaponize crisis emerged after Zelenskyy signs law weakening anti-corruption agencies in Ukraine

. As Ukraine’s President triggers outrage by signing a contentious law, Moscow reportedly prepares provocations to exploit internal discord.

Ukraine’s Bulava middle-strike drone trialed in Donetsk. Results show all targets successfully hit. Each of the five launches struck its target despite camouflage and intense electronic warfare.

International

EU had a secret plan to bypass Orbán. Zelenskyy blew it up instead.. Brussels had quietly crafted an extraordinary workaround to Hungary’s obstruction before Ukraine imploded its own chances.

EU Officials demand Ukraine explain controversial anti-corruption law weakening NABU, SAPO. European Parliament members raised concerns over Ukraine’s adoption of the controversial anti-corruption law and warned that the legislation threatens both EU financial assistance and the country’s accession prospects, with one deputy calling it “a clear breach of trust.”

Ursula von der Leyen demands Zelenskyy explain anti-corruption law that sparked nationwide protests. EU chief called Ukrainian President demanding explanations for a law that subordinates Ukraine’s premier anti-corruption agencies to the prosecutor general, with Brussels warning there can be “no compromise” on rule of law standards for EU candidate countries.

Politico: Trump’s September Ukraine ultimatum gives Putin green light to attack

. Russian analysts say the Kremlin views Trump’s September deadline for a Ukraine ceasefire as a green light to intensify strikes, with current attacks now exceeding 400 missiles and drones per night.

Humanitarian and social impact

Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul for the third time—and agreed on one thing: swapping POWs. The latest round of closed-door talks in Türkiye lasted under an hour and focused on returning captured soldiers and civilians.

21-year-old Ukrainian adopted by Italian family dies fighting Russia. A Ukrainian man who spent nearly a decade in an Italian adoptive family has been killed fighting Russian forces after traveling to Ukraine to find his brother.

9th Ukraine-Russia prisoner swap returns seriously ill and injured defenders. Ukraine and Russia conducted their ninth prisoner exchange under Istanbul agreements, with Ukrainian President confirming that seriously ill and seriously injured defenders have returned home.

Ukraine downs 45 Russian drones overnight—but 26 still strike 14 locations. Russian Shahed drones hit homes, schools, and factories in Sumy and Kryvyi Rih, despite dense air defenses.

Political and legal developments

“We heard the street”: Zelenskyy promises to restore independence of NABU and SAPO, prepares draft law. Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced plans to restore independence to Ukraine’s main anti-corruption agencies through new legislation, responding to public protests that erupted after he signed controversial changes eliminating their autonomy just one day earlier.

Ukrainian Church holds first service in Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra caves since its independence from Moscow Patriarchate. For the first time in history, prayers in Ukrainian echo where Kremlin influence once held sway.

Zelenskyy urgently gathers anti-corruption chiefs amid mass protests, as MPs plan to challenge his new controversial law in court. The battle over Ukraine’s reforms legacy intensifies.

New developments

Reuters: Russian oil revenue drops 37% in July 2025 vs 2024. Russia’s oil and gas revenue fell 37% to 680 billion roubles in July amid sustained defense spending for its Ukraine military operation.

Frontline report: Russia plans to import one million Indian workers as war drains domestic labor pool. The imported laborers are being assigned to keep essential services running—from municipal operations to basic infrastructure—jobs previously filled by Russians now fighting in Ukraine.

Read our earlier daily review here.

Ukrainian and Russian delegations met in Türkiye for the third time this year for peace talks. The negotiations, held behind closed doors in Istanbul, lasted less than an hour and centered on a possible ceasefire, large-scale prisoner exchanges, and the idea of a summit between the two countries’ presidents.

At the opening of the talks, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan reiterated Türkiye’s role as mediator, calling for an end to what he described as a “bloody war.”

“Our goal is to end this bloody war as soon as possible,” said Fidan. “The ultimate objective is a ceasefire that paves the way to peace.”

Ukraine pushes for Presidential meeting and immediate ceasefire

Leading Ukraine’s delegation was Rustem Umerov, now Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council. He proposed a face-to-face meeting between Presidents Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin by the end of August.

“If Russia agrees, it will show the world it’s ready for constructive dialogue,” Umerov said.

Kyiv also reiterated its demand for a full and unconditional ceasefire, including a complete halt to attacks on civilian and energy infrastructure. Umerov emphasized that this is a non-negotiable basis for diplomacy to succeed.

He also stressed that Ukraine had prioritized the humanitarian track, including the release of civilians and children held by Russia.

Russia signals movement on humanitarian issues, but not on core disputes

As in the previous two rounds, Russia was represented by Vladimir Medinsky, a senior aide to President Putin. He confirmed that Moscow and Kyiv are finalizing a 250-for-250 prisoner exchange and preparing a second phase involving 1,200 individuals, including civilians.

“Russia has already returned over 7,000 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers,” Medinsky said. “Another 3,000 are ready for transfer.”

He also revealed that Russia is ready to exchange 30 detained Ukrainian soldiers for Russian civilians held in Ukraine.

Medinsky floated proposals for limited 24–48 hour ceasefires to allow the recovery of the dead and wounded. He also suggested the formation of three online working groups to maintain contact between rounds. Ukraine has agreed to consider the idea.

On more sensitive issues—like the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia—Medinsky claimed that many on Ukraine’s list “were never on Russian territory,” but confirmed that discussions would continue.

However, he acknowledged that Ukraine and Russia remain “far apart” on any settlement agreements.

Delegation makeup and negotiation priorities

The Ukrainian team included 14 high-ranking officials, such as:

• Serhiy Kyslytsia, First Deputy Foreign Minister
• Oleksandr Bevz, presidential advisor
• Yevhen Ostrianskyi, Deputy Chief of the General Staff
• Vadym Skibitskyi, Deputy Head of Intelligence
• Oleksandr Dyakov, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations

A source in the Ukrainian delegation told BBC Ukraine that Kyiv came focused on three main priorities:

1. The return of Ukrainian detainees, especially civilians and children
2. A long-term and complete ceasefire
3. A summit between Zelenskyy and Putin

“Our position is constructive. But peace depends on whether Russia abandons the language of ultimatums,” the source said.

Zelenskyy: “Ukraine never wanted this war”

Ahead of the talks, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reaffirmed Ukraine’s willingness to negotiate in good faith and expressed readiness to meet with Putin personally.

“Ukraine never wanted this war. Russia started it, and Russia must end it,” he said.

His office also confirmed that the Ukrainian delegation was acting under a classified directive approved by presidential decree, which defined the negotiating framework.

Global pressure and the “Trump ultimatum”

This round of talks came amid growing international pressure. Former US President Donald Trump recently issued a 50-day ultimatum to Russia to stop hostilities or face renewed sanctions. Trump also pledged additional arms for Ukraine, albeit largely via European partners.

Analysts say the timing is not accidental. According to BBC correspondent Elizaveta Fokht, both sides are eager to demonstrate flexibility to a US audience.

“This is a performance for a single, high-stakes viewer: Donald Trump,” Fokht noted. “Ukraine wants to show it’s willing to talk. Russia wants to show it isn’t sabotaging diplomacy.”

Realistic goals: Focus on humanitarian gains

While no agreement was reached on a ceasefire or summit date, both sides reaffirmed commitment to continue humanitarian exchanges—one of the few areas where tangible progress has been made since talks resumed in May and June.

Those earlier rounds led to the return of over 1,000 prisoners and multiple repatriations of fallen soldiers.

Despite the growing toll of war—including intensified Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent weeks—channels for negotiation remain open.

Whether they lead to a breakthrough or not, a fourth round of talks is now expected in the near future.

The US State Department has approved the sale of two military assistance packages to Ukraine totaling $322 million, the Pentagon announced on 23 July.

The approval covers $172 million in HAWK Phase III missile system support and $150 million for Bradley infantry fighting vehicle restoration services.

According to Pentagon press releases, the Ukrainian government requested the purchase of goods and services for maintaining HAWK missile systems. The $172 million package includes spare parts for HAWK systems, missile complex repairs, testing and auxiliary equipment, storage containers and related spare parts storage equipment, spare parts for MIM-23 HAWK missiles and missile repairs, plus additional logistics and program support elements.

The second package addresses Ukraine’s request for equipment and services to restore Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, along with technical assistance and training for Ukrainian military personnel. This component carries a $150 million price tag, Pentagon officials said.

US officials stated the packages will enhance Ukraine’s capacity to address current and future threats.

“Ukraine will not have difficulties implementing these goods and services into its armed forces,” the Pentagon press service reported.

The approval comes weeks after President Donald Trump confirmed on 14 July that the US will provide Ukraine with weapons worth “billions of dollars.” According to Trump, European NATO allies will purchase and distribute the equipment, including up to 17 Patriot air defense systems currently being prepared for shipment to Ukraine.

Read also:

• 21-year-old Ukrainian adopted by Italian family dies fighting Russia
• Zelenskyy’s anti-corruption crackdown killed EU’s secret plan to bypass Hungary for Ukraine accession—European Pravda
• EU Officials demand Ukraine explain controversial anti-corruption law weakening NABU, SAPO

A 21-year-old Ukrainian man who was adopted by an Italian family as a child has been killed fighting Russian forces after voluntarily joining Ukraine’s army to defend his homeland and reconnect with his brother.

Artiom Naliato died Monday in a missile strike on a training facility near Kyiv where he was stationed with Ukraine’s International Legion of Territorial Defense, according to ANSA and Il Fatto Quotidiano.

Naliato was adopted at age 12 and raised in Tribano, a town in Padua province. In August 2022, he decided to travel to Ukraine to search for his brother. After initially returning to Italy, he made the choice to go back to Ukraine and enlist in the Ukrainian military.

“What brought him to Ukraine was certainly closeness to his brother, but also the desire to make Ukraine free,” Tribano Mayor Massimo Cavazzana told reporters. “Today Tribano loses its son. The emptiness he leaves is deep, but we will remember him for the courage of his choices.”

According to LaPresse, Cavazzana received notification of Naliato’s death the previous day. The young man was reportedly killed when a missile struck the barracks where he was located, likely during lunch time. Il Giornale reports he was taken to a hospital in critical condition but died despite medical efforts.

“He had decided to fight a war to defend a land he had in his heart,” the mayor said. “A difficult, dramatic choice, but driven by a sense of belonging and responsibility that we can only respect.”

Naliato had returned to Tribano several weeks before his final departure for the front on June 1st. A fellow soldier notified his adoptive family of his death via Facebook Messenger.

The mayor described Naliato as intelligent, noting that “although he didn’t finish school, he managed to find work.” The young man was employed as a security guard with Aries Srl, a company based in Vicenza.

“We gather with affection and pain around the family that welcomed and raised him with love,” Cavazzana wrote on Facebook announcing the death.

A vigil in memory of Artiom Naliato will be held Friday at 9 PM in the Duomo of San Lorenzo in Conselve, Padua province.

This marks the second war death of a Ukrainian-origin resident from Padua province. In 2023, Oleh Dozydenko, who had lived in the provincial capital for 15 years, was killed by mortar fire in Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law Tuesday dismantling Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies.

The timing was disastrous: Brussels had secretly scheduled 18 July to open Ukraine’s first EU negotiating cluster, bypassing Hungary entirely, but abandoned the plan after Ukraine’s anti-corruption crackdown, according to European Pravda sources within EU institutions.

Zelenskyy knew about the plan. He’d been personally involved in discussions with Danish officials and EU leadership since late June, European Pravda reported, citing unnamed European officials. But instead of supporting this diplomatic breakthrough, Ukraine systematically undermined its reform credentials by rejecting the Bureau of Economic Security selection results, conducting searches of activist Vitalii Shabunin’s home, and finally signing the law gutting NABU and SAPO independence.

Brussels was ready to break its own rules for Ukraine

The Danish EU presidency and European Commission had crafted something unprecedented: legal measures to sideline Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán, who had systematically blocked Ukraine’s accession, completely.

Bloomberg reported in May that member states pushed the Commission to explore options for opening Ukraine’s first negotiating chapter despite Hungarian objections.

The breakthrough insight: while unanimity is required to start and complete EU accession negotiations, sources told Bloomberg it’s not a legal requirement for opening individual clusters. The Commission informed member states that it intended to send the European Council a first report on starting cluster discussions with Ukraine and Moldova.

After years of Hungarian obstruction, 26 member states were willing to risk institutional precedent.

The “parallel negotiations” mechanism

The mechanism was elegant: conduct “parallel negotiations” where 26 EU states would negotiate with Ukraine while Moldova received formal recognition. When Moldova opened negotiating clusters, the 26 states would issue statements confirming Ukraine had completed the same work and that only Hungary’s veto prevented legal advancement.

• Inter-Governmental Conferences: The Danish presidency was prepared to convene working bodies pivotal to enlargement that don’t require Hungarian consent
• Political weight: Though legally non-binding for Ukraine, these would carry enormous political significance
• Synchronized progress: Ukraine’s advancement would be coordinated with Moldova’s formal recognition

The Danish presidency, which described enlargement as a “geopolitical necessity,” had exhausted diplomatic options with Hungary.

Hungary systematic obstruction

Orbán had forced Brussels into this position through relentless obstruction. After blocking progress during Hungary’s 2024 EU presidency, he staged a “national consultation” where 95% of 2.3 million participants opposed Ukraine membership—though an opposition poll found 58% Hungarian support for Ukraine’s EU bid.

Zelenskyy met with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen during the NATO summit in The Hague. He flew to Denmark on 3 July for private negotiations. Final details were hammered out in Rome on 10 July. Everything was set for the 18 July ceremony in Brussels.

European officials were prepared to risk institutional precedent. Ukraine chose that exact moment to implode its reform credentials.

How Ukraine sabotaged itself

The self-sabotage unfolded in a devastating sequence:

• 9 July: The Ukrainian government rejected the winner of a transparent, EU-supported competition to head the Bureau of Economic Security. The government simply overturned the selection results with no explanation.
• 11 July: Law enforcement raided anti-corruption activist Vitalii Shabunin’s home without a court warrant. They also searched the mother of fallen Hero of Ukraine pilot Andrii “Juice” Pilshchykov simply because Shabunin had briefly stayed there.
• 14 July: Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna announced her resignation as Ukraine’s chief EU negotiator—replacing a negotiator at such a sensitive moment gave Brussels another reason to pause.

Denmark quietly abandoned the 18 July proposal. European Pravda sources reported EU officials asking: “WTF? What is going on?”

Brussels draws the line

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos warned Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka that the anti-corruption law would have “serious consequences for the entire negotiation process.” Some member states now believe “it would have been better not to rush into opening the first cluster.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called Zelenskyy directly to express “strong concerns.” Brussels views this as democratic backsliding comparable to Georgia’s retreat.

Economic consequences mounting

The OECD warned that undermining anti-corruption agencies will hurt:

• Defense investments in Ukraine
• Reconstruction funding from international partners
• Future borrowing capacity as creditors reassess risk

But European officials doubt the Presidential Office takes these warnings seriously—they are accustomed to Brussels making threats without decisive action.

Explore further

Zelenskyy’s scandalous law weakening anti-graft watchdogs takes effect (updated)

Putin wins without trying

Anti-corruption architect Daria Kaleniuk pointed out the bitter irony: Zelenskyy “just gave Putin his best argument.”

Putin’s original justification for war was that Ukraine was “losing sovereignty to foreign partners, establishing anti-corruption institutions with foreign experts.” Ukrainian MPs are now making Putin’s argument for him.

Ukraine will fall behind Moldova in EU accession talks. The “decoupling” Brussels tried to avoid becomes inevitable—not because of Hungarian obstruction, but because of Ukraine own choices. As one European official noted: “Ukraine has done the dirty work instead of Viktor Orbán.”

What the law actually does

The legislation Zelenskyy signed grants the Prosecutor General sweeping authority to:

• Reassign NABU investigations to other agencies
• Issue binding instructions to anti-corruption bodies
• Unilaterally close high-level corruption cases
• Control SAPO operations through mandatory coordination

Transparency International Ukraine called it the dismantling of “prosecutorial independence.”

The timing was particularly damaging. Just as European officials prepared to risk institutional precedent for Ukraine’s benefit, Kyiv chose to demolish its reform credentials.

The European Commission has expressed deep concern over Ukraine’s adoption of legislation subordinating the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) to the Prosecutor General, with top EU officials requesting explanations from Kyiv.

This comes one day after parliament passed law #12414 on 22 July, which eliminated the independence of these anti-corruption institutions. President Zelenskyy signed the law the same day, despite public opposition, who came out to protest and call for the law to be vetoed.

European Commission (EC) spokesperson Guillaume Mercier told Ukrainska Pravda that the EC is “extremely concerned about the adoption of the draft that significantly weakens the powers of Ukrainian anti-corruption institutions.”

“Both institutions, NABU and SAPO, are widely considered cornerstones of the rule of law in Ukraine. They play a key role in Ukraine’s reform agenda and must be independent to fight corruption and maintain public trust,” Mercier said.

“Respect for the rule of law and the fight against corruption are fundamental principles of the EU. Ukraine as a candidate country is expected to fully comply with these standards. There can be no compromises here,” the spokesperson added.

Following the law’s passage, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen contacted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, expressing “strong concerns” and requesting explanations.

European Parliament Deputy Daniel Freund from the Greens party, who was in Kyiv when the law was adopted, called it “a clear breach of trust” and warned that “the Ukrainian government is jeopardizing the EU accession process.”

“The EU very much wants to help Ukraine. But it cannot continue to transfer money if the country is moving in the wrong direction,” Freund told Spiegel, according to European Pravda.

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Valdis Dombrovskis emphasized that financial aid to Kyiv and its progress toward EU membership depend on the independence of anti-corruption institutions.

Ukraine’s response

Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Taras Kachka assured European Commission representative Gert Jan Koopman that reforms necessary for Ukraine’s EU accession “remain an unchanged priority, despite discussions around NABU and SAPO independence.”

Kachka informed about President Zelenskyy’s meeting with all heads of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies. He added that the government “takes issues related to anti-corruption very seriously” and is conducting “active work to collect and analyze opinions and positions of all stakeholders regarding the law.”

Ukraine and Russia have completed the ninth stage of prisoner exchanges under agreements reached during the second round of negotiations in Istanbul on 2 June, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on social media.

According to Zelenskyy, the exchange conducted on 23 July brought home seriously ill and seriously injured defenders.

“We can already talk about the details – through all stages of the latest Istanbul agreements, we managed to return more than 1,000 of our people. For a thousand families, this is the joy of embracing their loved ones again,” Zelenskyy said.

The returned soldiers defended Ukraine on various front directions, according to the president. A significant number reportedly were in captivity for more than three years.

“All will receive the necessary support and medical care. It is important that exchanges continue and our people are returning home,” Zelenskyy said.

The prisoner exchange program stems from agreements made on 2 June in Istanbul, where Ukrainian and Russian representatives agreed to exchanges in a format of 1,000 for 1,000, plus an additional 200 for 200 military prisoners. The sides also agreed on repatriation of 6,000 bodies of fallen soldiers from each side.

The first stage of exchanges under the Istanbul agreements began on 9 June, when Ukraine returned military personnel under 25 years old. Subsequent exchanges occurred on 10, 12, 14, 19, 20, and 26 June, with 4 July, marking the most recent prior exchange before today’s ninth stage.

Between 11-16 June, Ukraine completed the repatriation portion of the Istanbul agreements, receiving 6,057 bodies of fallen Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel. Russia received 27 bodies during the initial June 11 repatriation, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for Treatment of Prisoners of War has not disclosed specific numbers of returned soldiers during ongoing exchange processes for security reasons, stating these figures will be announced upon completion of the exchange program.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced plans to submit a draft law to the Verkhovna Rada that will restore independence to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), according to his evening video address on 23 July.

The announcement comes one day after parliament passed law #12414 on 22 July, which eliminated the independence of these anti-corruption institutions.

The Rada supported the legislation with 263 votes, and Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk signed it the same day, despite calls from NABU chief Semen Kryvonos urging the president not to sign it. Zelenskyy ultimately signed the controversial law the same day as well.

“I held many meetings with government officials, as well as officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Security Service of Ukraine, National Anti-Corruption Bureau, State Bureau of Investigation, Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, National Agency for Corruption Prevention and the Office of the Prosecutor General,” Zelenskyy said in his address.

Zelenskyy revealed that institutional leaders will jointly propose an action plan with concrete steps to strengthen the rule of law in Ukraine.

“Of course, everyone heard what people are saying these days – on social networks, to each other, on the streets. This is all not in vain. We analyzed all concerns, all aspects of what should be changed and what needs to be activated,” the president said.

The promised legislation will serve as “a response that will ensure strength to the law enforcement system,” according to Zelenskyy.

“There will be no Russian influence or interference in the activities of law enforcement agencies. And very importantly: all norms for the independence of anti-corruption institutions will be there,” the president said.

Zelenskyy expects concrete proposals from heads of law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies. He described the upcoming initiative as a presidential draft law that will be implemented “within our state transformation strategy.” The controversial law’s passage sparked protests in major Ukrainian cities.

Against the backdrop of these events, rallies against the adoption of the scandalous law were held in major Ukrainian cities. On 23 July, protests have been announced in at least 17 Ukrainian cities.

In Kyiv, there are at least 2 times more people today as on the first day, 22 July, when Zelenskyy signed the law. Participants of the protest in Kyiv chant “Power to the people!” and “Hands off NABU and SAPO.”