United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has placed Israel and Russia “on notice” that they could be listed next year among parties “credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of rape or other forms of sexual violence,” according to his annual report to the Security Council on conflict-related sexual violence obtained by Reuters.

The warning stems from “significant concerns regarding patterns of certain forms of sexual violence that have been consistently documented by the United Nations,” Guterres wrote in the report released.

Regarding Russian forces, Guterres said he was “gravely concerned about credible information of violations by Russian armed and security forces and affiliated armed groups” primarily against Ukrainian prisoners of war in 50 official and 22 unofficial detention facilities across Ukraine and Russia.

“These cases comprised a significant number of documented incidents of genital violence, including electrocution, beatings and burns to the genitals, and forced stripping and prolonged nudity, used to humiliate and elicit confessions or information,” the Secretary-General said.

The report notes that Russian authorities have not engaged with Guterres’ special envoy on sexual violence in conflict since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Israel faces similar scrutiny over documented violations in Palestinian detention facilities. Guterres expressed grave concern about “credible information of violations by Israeli armed and security forces” against Palestinians in several prisons, a detention center and a military base.

“Cases documented by the United Nations indicate patterns of sexual violence such as genital violence, prolonged forced nudity and repeated strip searches conducted in an abusive and degrading manner,” the report states.

Russia’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment on the report.

Ukraine’s hydroelectric reservoirs managed by Ukrhydroenergo have reached their lowest water levels in a decade due to poor spring flooding this year, the company’s press service reports.

The state enterprise faces a dual challenge as it not only generates electricity but also ensures water supply to consumers across the country. This requires maintaining stable water levels, which currently stand significantly lower than last year’s figures, according to Ukrhydroenergo.

“We are doing everything possible to accumulate sufficient reserves by autumn,” the company reported. To achieve this goal, water will be used “as rationally as possible” while preparing hydroelectric power plants (HPPs) and pumped-storage power plants (PSPPs) for the winter season.

The company is simultaneously conducting reconstruction work and scheduled repairs of its hydroelectric facilities while restoring and protecting its infrastructure from ongoing damage.

“For hydropower specialists, this is a unique experience ofconducting all these measures and implementing projects simultaneously,” Ukrhydroenergo wrote.

The water shortage coincides with broader energy storage challenges facing Ukraine. As of 5 August, the country had accumulated over 10 billion cubic meters of gas in underground storage facilities, marking the lowest reserves in at least 12 years

Western media buzz with speculation about potential Trump-Putin meetings in Alaska. Moscow sees another bargaining chip. But in Kyiv, military planners work from a different timeline — one measured not in months of negotiations, but years of grinding conflict that Russia still believes it can win through sheer persistence.

Russia doubles down on military solution

On 30 July, as President Trump threatened new tariffs against Moscow, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov delivered a telling response: Russia has developed “certain immunity” to sanctions and no longer fears additional economic restrictions.

However, the real indicator of Russian intentions sits buried in draft legislation submitted to the State Duma. The proposal would replace traditional spring and autumn conscription cycles with year-round conscription — a move opposition Russian media trace directly to a confidential order from Vladimir Putin. This gives the proposal a strong chance of passing as early as this autumn.

The timing exposes Moscow’s calculation.

With Russian battlefield losses surpassing one million soldiers killed, wounded, and missing, the Kremlin needs constant replenishment without formally declaring mobilization.

The apparent goal of the draft law is to increase pressure on conscription-age citizens and push them toward signing contracts with the Russian Armed Forces. Human rights advocates and activists warn that such year-round conscription would allow the state to keep men under constant mobilization surveillance, enabling rapid replenishment of army ranks without formally declaring mobilization.

The numbers behind Russia’s war machine

Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that, as of late June, approximately 695,000 Russian troops, including operational reserves, were engaged in the war against Ukraine. Over the past year alone, over 440,000 contract soldiers have joined Russia’s ranks.

Despite recent Ukrainian advances in the Sumy Oblast— where several settlements were successfully liberated from Russians — the situation in Donetsk Oblast remains critical, mainly due to the overwhelming concentration of Russian forces there.

This systematic expansion suggests Moscow views the conflict as a war of attrition that it can win through numerical superiority.

Ukraine’s strategic calculation for long-term conflict

Therefore, people in Ukraine do not believe in the prospects of lasting peace with Russia soon. On the contrary, Ukrainian authorities indicate that Russia’s main goal for 2025 is to fully capture the remaining parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and by 2026, build on the success east of the Dnipro River, including an attempted occupation of Odesa and Mykolaiv, thereby cutting Ukraine off from the sea entirely.

This timeline explains why Kyiv does not believe in a lasting peace with Russia without security guarantees, nor in the effectiveness of any negotiations about Ukraine conducted without Ukraine.

On 9 August, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine is ready for real steps that could lead to peace, but no agreements “against Ukraine and without Ukraine” can be considered peaceful. At the same time, he stressed that Kyiv, together with international partners, is ready to seek ways to achieve a genuine and lasting peace “that will not collapse due to Moscow’s ambitions.”

Ukraine’s position, particularly regarding the inviolability of international borders, was supported in a joint statement by the leaders of Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. The leaders of the Baltic and Northern European countries also stated that “negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire.”

Ukraine’s asymmetric response strategy

In response, Ukraine’s military and political leadership is actively seeking ways to strengthen national defense. Given that Ukraine’s mobilization reserve is significantly smaller than Russia’s, Kyiv is focusing on military innovation and asymmetric responses to Russian aggression.

In particular, drones’ success on the battlefield led to the creation of the world’s first Unmanned Systems Forces, which use aerial, naval (both surface and underwater), and ground-based drones in combat operations.

This allows citizens to apply directly to specific units or branches of service and choose roles based on their skills and interests.

Despite calls from some international partners to lower Ukraine’s mobilization age from 25 to 18 to replenish the ranks with younger personnel, Kyiv has chosen a different approach. Young people aged 18 to 24 can voluntarily join the Defense Forces through a special contract program, gaining financial and social benefits in exchange for one year of military service, which includes mandatory combat deployment. At the same time, enlistment is only possible in specific units and for certain specialties.

As of 30 July, this “18-24” contract program has been expanded to include specialists in unmanned systems — not just aerial drone operators, but also technicians working with ground-based robotic platforms. This version of the contract entails 24 months of service, with at least 12 months of direct combat involvement.

Financial commitment to extended warfare

At the same time, Ukraine continues efforts to improve mobilization efforts and increase voluntary enlistment in the face of Russia’s ongoing summer offensive.

On 31 July, the Ukrainian government announced an additional ₴412.4 billion (about $10 billion USD) in defense and national security funding. Of this, ₴115 billion ($2.7 billion) is earmarked for military personnel salaries, while ₴216 billion ($5.1 billion) will fund the procurement and production of weapons, military equipment, drones, etc.

In fact, Ukraine has been running a program for the decentralized procurement of drones and other important battlefield equipment since last year, and thanks to its implementation, the effectiveness of striking the enemy has increased by 40%. In addition, a decision was made to increase vacation time for service members — an initiative personally proposed by President Zelenskyy, according to Deputy Head of the Presidential Office, Colonel Pavlo Palisa.

What this means for Western policy

The gap between Western diplomatic timelines and Ukrainian military planning creates a fundamental policy challenge. While international partners hope for a negotiated resolution, both Moscow and Kyiv prepare for an extended conflict.

Despite some hopes for diplomatic success, the daily missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, the deaths of civilians, and the situation on the front lines show that Moscow is not interested in peace and is betting on victory by force.

The only effective response to Russian aggression remains strengthening defense capabilities through enhancing the capacities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, developing modern technologies, and the determination and unity of the international community, understanding that Russia responds only to the language of force.

Key takeaways for international partners:

• Peace talks must be based on respect for international law and Ukraine’s territorial integrity
• Russian “immunity” to sanctions requires more creative economic pressure
• Ukraine’s long-term defense investment needs sustained Western support
• Quick negotiated solutions remain unlikely while Russia believes in military victory

Editor’s note. The opinions expressed in our Opinion section belong to their authors. Euromaidan Press’ editorial team may or may not share them.

Submit an opinion to Euromaidan Press

The Institute for the Study of War reported 8 August that surrendering remaining territories in Donetsk Oblast as a ceasefire prerequisite without securing a final peace agreement would grant Russian forces tactical advantages for future military operations.

“The surrender of the rest of Donetsk Oblast as the prerequisite of a ceasefire with no commitment to a final peace settlement ending the war would position Russian forces extremely well to renew their attacks on much more favorable terms, having avoided a long and bloody struggle for the ground,” the ISW analysed.

Such concessions would compel Ukraine to abandon what the institute terms its “fortress belt” — the primary fortified defensive line established in Donetsk Oblast in 2014. The ISW emphasizes that “conceding such a demand would force Ukraine to abandon its ‘fortress belt,’ the main fortified defensive line in Donetsk Oblast since 2014 — with no guarantee that fighting will not resume.”

The fortress belt consists of four major cities and multiple smaller settlements positioned along the H-20 Kostyantynivka-Sloviansk highway. The defensive line stretches 50 kilometers from north to south — approximately the distance between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland — and housed over 380,537 residents before the current war.

Sloviansk and Kramatorsk anchor the northern section of this defensive network, functioning as logistics hubs for Ukrainian military operations throughout Donetsk Oblast. Kramatorsk currently serves as the oblast’s provisional administrative center, replacing Donetsk City, which remains under Russian occupation. The southern portion of the fortress belt includes Druzhkivka, Oleksiyevo-Druzhkivka, and Kostyantynivka.

The defensive infrastructure originated following Ukraine’s 2014 military operations against pro-Russian proxy forces. These forces initially captured Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, and Kostyantynivka in April 2014, but Ukrainian troops regained control by July of that year.

The ISW reports that Ukraine has invested 11 years in strengthening these positions, building “significant defense industrial and defensive infrastructure in and around these cities.” This sustained development effort represents substantial financial and strategic commitments that would be lost under any territorial concession scenario.

The analysis suggests that Russian forces would gain considerable operational advantages by securing these positions without conducting costly urban warfare operations. The fortress belt has served as what the ISW describes as “a major obstacle to the Kremlin’s territorial ambitions in Ukraine over the last 11 years.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on the evening of 13 August that Ukrainian forces will not voluntarily withdraw from territories in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts currently under their control, speaking to journalists three days before a scheduled Alaska meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.

“We will not leave Donbas – we cannot do this. Everyone forgets the first part – our territories are illegally occupied. For the Russians, Donbas is a bridgehead for a future new offensive. If we leave Donbas of our own free will or under pressure – we will open a third war,” Zelenskyy said, according to Radio Liberty.

The Ukrainian leader challenged potential American positioning on territorial concessions. “Of course, I would like to see America’s position given how it all started – our territory was occupied, Ukrainians are being killed, and after that they tell me: ‘Listen, do you want to stop being killed? You need to leave.’ And what security guarantees? Leave Donetsk oblast?” Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy said earlier that Kyiv would not recognize any Ukraine-related decisions made at the US-Russia Alaska summit. The Ukrainian president characterized the Trump-Putin meeting as potentially significant only for bilateral US-Russia relations, calling the very fact of the meeting Putin’s “personal victory.”

“It is impossible to talk about Ukraine without Ukraine, and no one will accept this. Therefore, the conversation may be important for their bilateral track, but they cannot decide anything about Ukraine without us. I hope that the US president understands and takes this into account,” Zelenskyy said at the “Youth Here” forum.

In domestic policy developments, Zelenskyy announced he has instructed the government and army to work on lifting travel restrictions for men under 22 years old. “This is a positive, correct story that will help many Ukrainians maintain ties with Ukraine and pursue education in Ukraine,” the president said.

Since Russia’s invasion, Ukraine has maintained martial law and general mobilization. Men aged 18 to 65 cannot leave the country’s territory. Men aged 25 to 60 are subject to mobilization, while men aged 18 to 24 can be called for basic military service, which during martial law lasts three months.

Germany’s largest defense contractor Rheinmetall will double its planned ammunition production capacity at its new Ukrainian facility to 300,000 artillery shells annually, CEO Armin Papperger announced during the company’s Q2 2025 conference call on 7 August.

The expanded capacity represents a significant increase from the original target of 150,000 shells per year. “Ukrainian officials want to double the planned production capacities,” Papperger said in response to questions during the conference call, according to German Aid to Ukraine.

Production at the Ukrainian plant is scheduled to begin in 2026, following what Papperger described as a typical one to two-year ramp-up period to reach full capacity. The facility will manufacture 155mm artillery ammunition, addressing Ukraine’s heavy reliance on shell deliveries from partner nations.

However, further expansion beyond 300,000 shells appears unlikely in the near term due to financial constraints. Papperger indicated that the Ukrainian government “simply doesn’t have the money” for higher production figures.

The project has faced delays attributed to bureaucratic hurdles. Papperger expressed frustration with the pace of progress, saying that “bureaucracy in Ukraine is unfortunately very, very high.” He compared the Ukrainian project to a similar facility in Unterlüß, Germany, noting that construction began almost simultaneously at both locations, but the German plant is now completed while the Ukrainian facility remains unfinished.

This marks the second time Papperger has publicly criticized Ukrainian administrative processes. He previously raised similar concerns in a February 2025 interview with Deutsche Welle on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

A representative from another German defense company, speaking anonymously to German Aid to Ukraine, confirmed experiencing bureaucratic challenges in Ukraine but could not verify whether establishing operations would be easier in Germany, as Papperger has suggested.

Despite these administrative challenges, there are no indications that the factory completion will be significantly delayed. The facility is expected to begin operations as originally announced, with production starting next year.

The expansion will enhance Ukraine’s domestic ammunition production capabilities, reducing dependence on international deliveries for its military operations. Currently, Ukraine relies almost exclusively on shell supplies from allied nations to meet its artillery needs.

These questions — painful and inherently political — are crucial to understanding Ukraine’s situation in the third year of war.

The answer lies in broken expectations, a faltering strategy, dysfunctional command structures, and a society unprepared for a long war.

Euphoria

I remember September 2022. Ukrainian forces were tearing through Kharkiv Oblast. Every day brought news of liberated settlements: Izium, Kupiansk, Balakliia. Russian troops weren’t fighting — they were running. I thought: keep them running. Push them until victory — so graspingly near — is achieved.

Many around the world thought the same. I remember talking with friends in different European countries — some political analysts, one a veteran of several wars — and the consensus was clear: if Ukraine could keep up the pressure, it would be over quickly.

Then came November. Kherson was liberated. Everyone remembers the cheerful photos of people greeting Ukrainian troops with flags, flowers, and tears.

Victory was near. Or so it seemed.

That moment — that brief illusion of victory just around the corner — explains more than any think tank report could. It explains why, now in the third year of war, so many Ukrainian men do not want to fight.

Because no one ever prepared them to.

Shattered expectations

Cracks in Ukraine’s ad-hoc mobilization began showing as Russians tidied up their ranks, built a functioning recruitment system, and applied pressure on a Ukrainian frontline now stretched thin and underequipped.

By late summer 2023, when the promised counterattack failed and the public realized this war could last for years, the government should have rolled out a feasible mobilization plan.

But that didn’t happen.

Not just because of disorganization, but because the political cost was deemed too high. Unlike Russia, which sustains its war effort with voluntary contracts and where even the word “mobilization” sparks Kremlin panic, Ukraine was forced into the deeply unpopular route of compulsory service.

The leadership knew the risks: forced mobilization in a democracy is always precarious. But with no money and no surplus of volunteers, there were no other options.

What followed was a creeping mobilization without any openly stated clear goal and structure.

The mobilization system, which isn’t

Becoming Israel?

If this war is here to stay — and it may be — Ukraine faces a challenge: how to distribute defense burden fairly and sustainably while the rest of the country leads more or less ordinary lives.

If so, there will be no alternative to conscription. The reality on the front shows that forcibly mobilized soldiers often become competent and committed — not because they were ready, but because they rose to the challenge. Avoiding this truth only delays the reckoning.

Including Israel in the discussion automatically includes men and women. Several initiatives and pilot programs have been launched to train and involve more women in defense roles, from combat training to logistics to cybersecurity.

More Ukrainians are asking: why is one-half of the population trapped inside the country while the other half is free to travel at will?

But becoming like Israel would require more than slogans. It would demand an end to illusions, a reshaping of the social contract, and a reckoning with what the war truly demands — and from whom.
Because someone always pays. In Ukraine, it’s the same exhausted battalions who have held the line since Bucha, since Bakhmut, since Berdiansk.

And they are running out — of men, of time. And if this continues — eventually, of ground.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff has confirmed that Ukrainian drones struck the Saratov oil refinery in Russia during a nighttime operation, the military command announced.

“Tonight, the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in cooperation with other components of the Defense Forces, struck the Saratov oil refinery (Saratov Oblast, Russia),” the General Staff reported.

According to military officials, the drone strikes resulted in explosions and fire at the facility. The Saratov refinery processes up to 7 million tons of oil annually and serves as a key fuel infrastructure facility supplying petroleum products to occupying forces.

The General Staff said that Ukrainian defense forces continue operations aimed at reducing Russia’s military-economic potential to force an end to its aggression against Ukraine.

“Every targeted facility on the territory of the Russian Federation involved in supporting its criminal war against Ukraine brings us closer to a just peace,” the military command stated.

The attack occurred on the night of 10 August, when drones targeted the refinery in the Russian city of Saratov, triggering a large-scale fire at the facility.

Ukraine’s defence forces have liberated the village of Bezsalivka in Sumy Oblast from Russian occupying forces, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported on 10 August.

The operation involved units from the 33rd Assault Regiment and 24th Assault Battalion, according to the General Staff’s statement. Ukrainian forces eliminated 18 Russian soldiers during the fighting, though this claim could not be independently verified.

Bezsalivka, a village of 91 residents located on the Volfa River at the border with Russia, sits within the Bilopillia territorial community. The village’s position places it approximately 30 kilometers west of heavier fighting elsewhere in Sumy Oblast, where Russian troops have advanced to within 30 kilometers of the regional capital.

According to Yurii Zark, head of the Bilopillia community, several residents remained in Bezsalivka as of early July despite refusing evacuation offers.

The liberation represents part of Ukraine’s recent counteroffensive efforts in the border oblast. Ukrainian forces pushed Russian forces out of several small villages at the end of July, following a period when Ukraine’s defence of the area stabilized over June.

The fighting intensifies more than two months after Russia opened this northeastern front. Russian forces made significant gains on Ukraine’s side of Sumy Oblast over May and June, shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the military to begin creating a “security buffer zone” along the border with Ukraine.

The current operations follow Ukraine’s earlier successes in the oblast. On 25 July, the 225th Assault Regiment completed clearing and securing the village of Kindrativka in Sumy Oblast. In June, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that defence forces had succeeded in pushing Russian troops from Sumy Oblast’s border areas, including the liberation of Andriivka.

The border areas have experienced increased fighting after Ukrainian forces withdrew from territory held in Russia’s neighboring Kursk Oblast, which was taken during Ukraine’s cross-border incursion in summer 2024.

Washington and Moscow are negotiating an agreement that would formalize Russia’s control over Ukrainian territories seized during the invasion, Bloomberg reported on 8 August, citing sources familiar with the talks.

US and Russian officials reportedly are finalizing terms for a Trump-Putin summit as early as next week, according to sources, cited by Bloomberg. The US is seeking Ukrainian and European approval for the deal, though success remains uncertain.

Putin demands Ukraine cede the entire eastern Donbas and Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014. This would require President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to withdraw troops from parts of Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts still under Kyiv’s control, handing Russia a victory that its army couldn’t achieve militarily since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Under proposed terms, Russia would halt offensives in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts along current battle lines. Sources cautioned that “the terms and plans of the accord were still in flux and could still change.” Whether Moscow would relinquish any occupied territory, including the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, remains unclear.

The agreement aims to “essentially freeze the war and pave the way for a ceasefire and technical talks on a definitive peace settlement,” sources said. This shifts from Washington’s earlier demand for Russia to first agree to unconditional ceasefire.

After his 6 August meeting with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, Putin briefed leaders from China, India, South Africa, and other nations on the discussions, the Kremlin reported.

Trump, who promised rapid conflict resolution, has grown frustrated with Putin’s ceasefire refusal. The leaders held six phone calls since February while Witkoff met Putin five times in Moscow.

“I don’t like long waits,” Trump told reporters on 7 August. “They would like to meet with me and I will do whatever I can to stop the killing.”

The deal would represent “a major win for Putin,” who sought direct US negotiations while sidelining Ukraine and European allies. Zelenskyy risks facing “a take-it-or-leave-it deal to accept the loss of Ukrainian territory, while Europe fears it would be left to monitor a ceasefire as Putin rebuilds his forces,” Bloomberg reported.

Multiple US officials expressed skepticism about Putin’s genuine peace interest, particularly regarding deals falling short of his stated war goals: Ukrainian neutrality, abandoning NATO aspirations, and recognizing Russian control over five Ukrainian oblasts.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said officials are “finalizing details for a meeting within the next few days” at an agreed but unnamed venue.

Whether Putin would join trilateral talks with Trump and Zelenskyy remains unclear. Putin said on 7 August he didn’t object to meeting Zelenskyy “under the right conditions, though he said they don’t exist now.”

Ukraine cannot constitutionally cede territory and maintains it won’t recognize Russian occupation of its land.

Ukrainian military intelligence carried out a sabotage operation against Russia’s 90th anti-aircraft missile brigade in Afipsky settlement, Krasnodar Krai, on the morning of 8 August, resulting in the deaths of at least 12 Russian servicemen and dozens of injured, according to sources in Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR).

“Two explosions occurred near the checkpoint of the military unit,” sources told Hromadske. The attack destroyed equipment and prompted a massive emergency response, with ambulances and special service vehicles converging on the scene.

Local Russian media and social media channels confirmed the explosions in Afipsky, while local security services cordoned off the area and declared an “anti-terrorist operation” regime. Russian authorities attempted to cover up the incident by attributing the explosions to malfunctioning gas cylinder equipment in a vehicle, according to intelligence sources.

“Russian authorities are trying to conceal the fact of sabotage on the territory of the military unit,” a HUR source said. The Federal Security Service has been working to remove mentions of the incident from Russian media.

The 90th anti-aircraft missile brigade targeted in the operation has been participating in Russia’s war against Ukraine on the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia fronts, the intelligence directorate added.

The attack came amid broader Ukrainian operations against Russian infrastructure, with drone strikes also hitting the Afipsky oil refinery in the same oblast, causing significant fires at gas condensate processing facilities.

A previous version of this article mistakenly said GRU (the Russian military intelligence) instead of HUR.

Russia may attempt to recapture Kherson. Moscow forces are relentlessly shelling Kherson, while Western media warn that Moscow may be preparing an airborne assault on the liberated city within weeks, in a move to reverse its 2022 liberation.

On 2 August, Russians launched a powerful strike on a strategically important bridge connecting the island district of Korabel to the main part of Kherson city. The strike also damaged three private homes and an apartment building. The invaders had previously targeted the bridge, forcing about 1,800 residents to leave their homes.

Civilians injured as Russia strikes Kherson again

On 8 August, Russian troops launched artillery strikes on central Kherson, critically wounding an elderly woman. She suffered a concussion, multiple shrapnel injuries, and lost an arm. Doctors say her condition is life-threatening, the regional administration reports.

The same day in Antonivka, a suburb of Kherson, Russian drones dropped explosives on two men, aged 33 and 36. Both suffered blast injuries, says the Kherson City Council. 

One of the most shocking attacks involved a 13-year-old boy who was struck by a drone while walking down the street, according to regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin. 

“He sustained a blast injury and shrapnel wounds to his arm and leg,” he said. 

The child was hospitalized and is receiving medical care.

Also in the district suffering the most from attacks, Korabel, due to Russia’s attack on the power grid, water supply will be provided for only two hours per day. 

CNN: Russia could launch an airborne operation in Kherson

According to the report, the Kremlin may be preparing to land troops in Kherson in the coming weeks to reclaim the city that Ukraine liberated in 2022.

Roughly 72% of Kherson Oblast remains under Russian occupation, mostly the left bank of the Dnipro River. The Ukrainian-controlled right bank includes the city of Kherson itself. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military analysts say a Russian amphibious operation in Kherson would be highly risky and unlikely to succeed.

Exclusive

• How a NATO country flipped toward Russia—according to its former defense minister

Military

“Victory cannot be achieved in defence”: Syrskyi confirmed that there are plans for offensive. Ukraine’s strategy for victory requires offensive action rather than defensive positioning, Commander-in-Chief said, revealing that military command developed operational plans.

Ukraine’s drones found the guns. Artillery finished the job — four Russian howitzers gone (video). Three D-20s and one D-30 were destroyed in a confirmed artillery strike.

ISW: Russia likely takes two villages near Kupiansk — now it’s eyeing the town’s lifeline highway

. Russian troops may envelop the city from the west instead of attacking frontally, according to the ISW.

Russia rigged the bridge with mines — Ukraine’s drone turned it into dust. The FPV drone strike didn’t just target the bridge. It used Russian explosives against them.

Kherson withstood occupation once—now Moscow wants it back, but Ukraine says invaders will drown before it happens. Moscow’s forces hit Korabel’s only link to the mainland, aiming to carve out a foothold. But Ukrainian defenders are turning the Dnipro Delta into a trap.

Intelligence and technology

Expert: War’s deadly pulse shows no sign of slowing—no matter what results Witkoff-Putin meeting brings. With hundreds of drone strikes hitting Crimea and the Donbas every week, the expert say peace is still far out of reach.

Russia may prepare to launch “flying Chornobyl” again—but only thing it has ever hit is its own scientists. Experts say it’s more theater than threat amid the US-Russian peace talks over Ukraine.

Ukraine’s AI Factory sets course for global top 3 by 2030

. With battlefield-born digital expertise, Kyiv now eyes global leadership in the next great technological race.

International

Zelenskyy reveals high-level security meeting following Trump envoy’s Moscow visit. Ukraine and its Western partners scheduled follow-up security talks for 8 August after Trump envoy Steve Witkoff briefed allies on his Putin meeting

“Peace as trap”: Ukraine may face pressure from US and Russia to accept Kremlin’s demands, says diplomat. Former ambassador Chaly says Moscow’s demands haven’t changed.

Witkoff to brief Ukrainian and NATO officials on meeting with Putin – media reports. Trump’s call with Zelenskyy after Witkoff’s Kremlin visit left Kyiv and EU capitals confused about whether US policy was shifting or sanctions would proceed as planned on 8 Aug.

Putin names UAE suitable location for planned meeting with Trump.

White House sets Zelenskyy meeting as condition for Trump-Putin summit

. White House officials have made Putin’s agreement to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a prerequisite for any Trump-Putin summit, despite Moscow’s claims that a bilateral meeting was already arranged in principle.

Bloomberg: Trump suggests Putin would be open to peace talks in exchange for territory. The developments follow a meeting between Putin and Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on 6 August, which Trump characterized as achieving “great progress.”

ISW: Ahead of Trump’s 8 August deadline, Russian propagandists fuel White House division to avoid sanctions. Meanwhile, Russian officials still claim economic strength despite falling oil revenues and slowing household consumption.

Ukraine EU poll 2025: Confidence in quick membership hits lowest point since invasion. Ukrainian confidence in EU membership within 10 years drops to 52% – down 21 points from 73% in 2022-2023, new Gallup poll shows.

Humanitarian and social impact

Russia opens “slave market” of stolen Ukrainian children — users can choose them by color of eyes. Since 2014, nearly 20,000 children have been taken from occupied territories, and now Moscow is cataloging them online like items in a store.

“We’ll cut it off and rape you”: Ukrainian prisoner threatened with castration during interrogation in Russian captivity

. Anatoliy Tutov survived four rounds of beatings and sexual torture, and released with broken ribs, internal bruises, and fractured bones.

Ukraine reveals name of main torturer of journalist Roshchyna, who was killed in Russian detention center. Alexander Shtuda, the Russian detention chief, is now charged with overseeing the savage abuse that led to Victoria Roshchyna’s death.

Political and legal developments

Ukrainian draft employees to be mandated to wear body cameras from 1 September – Defense Minister. Ukraine’s recruitment centers face new transparency measures requiring body cameras and video recording amid escalating tensions around mobilization efforts.

Russia’s energy revenues crash by 19% as war devours civilian budget. With gas exports to Europe halved and oil profits plunging, the Kremlin raids its welfare fund while fueling the front.

Indian refineries stop buying Russian oil again after US tariffs – Bloomberg. Three of India’s largest state-owned oil companies have stopped buying Russian crude in their next purchasing cycle after President Trump slapped 25% tariffs on Indian exports

Capitulation is not peace: Nearly 80% of Ukrainians reject Russia’s demands on ceding territory and disarmament. Putin’s so-called “peace plan” requires surrender, while Ukrainians call it what it is: defeat in disguise.

WP: Trump administration plans to soften criticism of Russia on human rights. Trump’s human rights report on Russia omits the Supreme Court’s LGBTQ+ organization ban and related arrests, which a former State Department official calls a “glaring omission.”

Read our earlier daily review here.

Ukrainian drone interceptor unit Posipaky has successfully shot down two new Russian Shahed-type unmanned aerial vehicles, volunteer Serhiy Sternenko reported, publishing video footage of one of the intercepts.

Ukrainian intelligence officials previously identified these drones as potential reconnaissance assets and decoy targets designed to reveal Ukrainian air defense positions or overload defense systems. The aircraft reportedly can also carry a warhead weighing up to 15 kilograms.

The drone’s fuselage features a delta-wing configuration similar to the Shahed-136 but significantly smaller in dimensions. Most components used in this Russian UAV are of Chinese origin, according to Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate.

“Almost half of them: flight controller with autopilot, navigation modules and antennas, air speed sensor and Pitot tube – from one Chinese company CUAV Technology, which specializes in research, development and production of system modules and applications for UAVs,” according to the intelligence report.

The drone is also equipped with a Chinese copy of the Australian RFD900x data transmission module manufactured by RFDesign. Like the original sample, the Chinese product is designed for long-range data transmission up to 40 kilometers in direct line of sight, depending on the antenna.

This device enables data transmission channels from the drone to its ground station or between UAVs, thereby expanding reconnaissance capabilities. The Shahed-type drone is fitted with a Chinese DLE-60 engine and electronic ignition module.

The intercepts highlight ongoing Ukrainian efforts to counter evolving Russian drone technology that increasingly relies on Chinese-manufactured components for critical flight systems and communication equipment.

In October 2022, CUAV Technology announced restrictions on supplying its products to both Ukraine and Russia to prevent their use in military applications. However, in 2023, Russia presented a vertical takeoff drone as an original development, which turned out to be a CUAV product available on Aliexpress.

Militarnyi notes that DLE engines were previously used by Russian developers in the Gerbera and Parodiia decoy drones. KST servos have appeared in the Shahed-136 drones, V2U, aerial bomb glide kits.

Ukraine’s Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi has confirmed that Ukrainian command has offensive plans, stating that victory cannot be achieved through defensive operations alone.

In an interview with TSN, Syrskyi emphasized the necessity of offensive action for military success.

“We have plans, of course. Victory cannot be achieved in defence – only in offence,” Syrskyi told a journalist, who asked whether he sees room for another bold operation similar to the offensive in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.

The commander outlined Ukraine’s strategic approach to ending the war, explaining that “we must inflict such losses on him [the enemy] that he will go [for it]” not from a position of strength, but on Ukraine’s terms.

The statement comes amid reports of international pressure for offensive action. The Washington Post, citing an anonymous Ukrainian official, reported that during a 4 July phone call, US President Donald Trump told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky that Ukraine needs to go on the offensive to achieve victory.

Kursk operation results

The Defense Forces’ last major offensive operation was the Kursk campaign, which began in August 2024. According to military reports, Ukrainian defenders were forced to withdraw from most of the Russian oblast in spring 2025. Russian forces managed to occupy part of Sumy Oblast on another section of the border.

Syrskyi previously reported strategic gains from the Kursk operation. In June, the commander said that the operation drew nearly 63,000 Russians and approximately 7,000 North Korean soldiers, weakening Russian pressure on other fronts and allowing Ukraine to regroup its forces.

The commander also reported that active Defense Forces operations in another area of Kursk Oblast in April disrupted Russian offensive group reinforcements in occupied territories. Beyond parts of Kursk region, Ukrainian forces maintain presence in Russia’s Belgorod region.

According to Syrskyi, Russia’s total losses during the year-long Kursk operation reached 77,000 military personnel.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on the evening of 7 August that security advisers from Ukraine and its partners held discussions about ending the war.

 

“Our team just reported to me that the security advisers held a fairly long conversation, very detailed. There was a significant composition of participants in the conversation. This is important. Thank you all for your work, for the genuine desire to stop the killings and ensure lasting peace,” Zelenskyy wrote.

According to the president, the advisers agreed during the call to continue their work on 8 August. “There is still a lot of work to be done,” he said. 

American media outlet Axios, citing two informed sources, reported that the video conference included US special envoy Steve Witkoff and officials from Ukraine, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and Britain.

According to the sources, Witkoff conducted the conference to inform partners about his 6 August meeting with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and discuss next steps, including possible negotiations between Trump and Putin. Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne also reported Witkoff’s participation, citing an informed source.

The briefing comes as President Trump has shifted toward discussing a potential summit with Putin after initially moving toward tougher sanctions on Russia. Trump held a call on 6 August with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders, telling them about the possibility of a meeting between him and Putin, followed by a trilateral summit including Zelenskyy.

ABC News, citing an unnamed White House official, reported that a possible meeting between Trump and Putin has not yet been agreed upon, nor has a location for such negotiations been determined, despite earlier claims by the Russian side.

The official noted that for negotiations with Trump to take place, Putin must meet with President Zelenskyy first.

Ukraine’s leader said that Russia fears US sanctions that Trump promised to impose if Russia does not agree to peace with Ukraine by 8 August.

President Donald Trump has set a precondition for any meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, requiring the Russian leader to also meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, New York Post reported on 7 August.

The developments follow a three-hour meeting between Putin and Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on 6 August. Ushakov described it as “useful and constructive,” while Trump subsequently claimed “significant progress” was achieved during that encounter.

“Putin must meet with Zelenskyy for the meeting to occur,” a White House official told The Post. “No location has been set.”

The condition comes after Moscow claimed on 7 August that Russia and the United States had agreed “in principle” to hold a one-on-one meeting between Putin and Trump. Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said that “an agreement was agreed in principle to hold a bilateral summit meeting in the coming days, that is, a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump,” which he said was made “at the suggestion of the American side.”

However, the White House had not confirmed any bilateral meeting. Trump himself expressed skepticism about Putin’s intentions during a Wednesday press conference, noting he has “been disappointed before” by Moscow’s promises of seeking peace.

“He talks nice and then he bombs everybody,” Trump said, referring to Putin’s pattern of private peace pledges followed by aerial attacks on Ukrainian civilians.

Trump indicated he would determine Putin’s seriousness about ending the war “within a matter of weeks, maybe less.” The president expressed concern about hosting a bilateral meeting ahead of a trilateral one, fearing Putin might continue to “tap along” Trump with meaningless talks.

The Kremlin appears resistant to including Zelenskyy in any initial meeting.

“First of all, we propose to focus on the preparation of a bilateral meeting with Trump and we consider the main thing that this meeting should be successful and effective,” Ushakov said.

President Donald Trump has indicated to allies that Russian leader Vladimir Putin may be willing to engage in peace negotiations in exchange for territorial concessions, Bloomberg reported on 7 August, citing multiple sources familiar with the discussions.

Trump has reportedly informed allies he is considering hosting a summit that could include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The US president has also expressed optimism about the possibility of a ceasefire, the sources told Bloomberg.

The developments follow a meeting between Putin and Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on 6 August. Trump characterized the encounter as achieving “great progress.” Following the Moscow discussions, Trump called Zelenskyy to brief him on what was discussed during the Kremlin meeting.

“That road was long, and continues to be long, but there’s a good chance that there will be a meeting very soon,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on 6 August, describing prospects for meeting with Putin.

The Kremlin has moved to build momentum for potential talks. Foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters on 7 August that the US and Russia have agreed on a venue for a meeting between their leaders, with plans to hold talks next week. “We are starting to work on specific issues,” Ushakov said.

However, White House officials cautioned that no meeting would be set unless Putin agrees to meet with Zelenskyy, and no location has been confirmed. Putin told reporters on 7 August he didn’t object to meeting Zelenskyy “under the right conditions, though he said they don’t exist now.”

Zelenskyy has signaled Ukraine’s willingness to participate in multiple meeting formats. The Ukrainian president said he and European allies discussed “various formats” of peace talks with Trump, including “two bilateral and one trilateral” meetings between the three presidents.

During talks with UAE President Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan on on 7 August, Putin suggested the United Arab Emirates could serve as a suitable venue for a summit with Trump.

The diplomatic maneuvering comes as Trump faces a self-imposed deadline, having threatened secondary tariffs on Russian oil purchasers unless Putin agrees to a truce by 8 August. The war, now in its fourth year, has left Russia controlling nearly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.

Current territorial disputes center on Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014, and the eastern and southern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson that Russian forces don’t fully occupy. Ukraine maintains it will not cede any territory and demands Russian troop withdrawal plus reparations for war damage since the February 2022 invasion.

Previous US proposals reportedly included recognizing Crimea as Russian territory while returning parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts to Ukrainian control.

Zelenskyy coordinated positions with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a phone call. Both leaders agreed “the war must be ended as soon as possible with a dignified peace.” National security advisers from Ukraine, the US and Europe are scheduled to hold an online meeting to align positions.

The Trump administration intends to scale back US criticism of Russia and other nations with extensive abuse records, according to leaked State Department human rights report drafts reviewed by The Washington Post.

The draft reports for Russia, Israel and El Salvador are significantly shorter than last year’s Biden administration versions and remove all references to LGBTQ+ individuals or crimes against them. Descriptions of government abuses have been softened throughout the documents.

“The 2024 Human Rights report has been restructured in a way that removes redundancies, increases report readability,” a senior State Department official said on 6 August. The official added that the Trump administration will focus on “core issues.”

The changes follow internal guidance by Trump appointee Samuel Samson instructing diplomats to remove references to violence against LGBTQ+ people and government corruption. Samson reviewed the reports for all three countries.

The draft Israel report shrank from over 100 pages to just 25 pages. Russia’s report contains no mention of the country’s Supreme Court ban on LGBTQ+ organizations or subsequent raids and arrests.

“Secretary Rubio has repeatedly asserted that his State Department has not abandoned human rights, but it is clear this administration only cares about the human rights of some people in some countries, when it’s convenient,” said Keifer Buckingham, former State Department official now at the Council for Global Equality.

The documents show how Trump is rethinking America’s role in global human rights advocacy, according to the WP. Officials point to Trump’s May speech in Saudi Arabia, where he criticized “Western interventionists giving you lectures on how to live or govern your own affairs.”

US diplomats have compiled these reports for nearly 50 years. Their findings are considered the most thorough of their kind and are relied upon by courts worldwide.

The reports are congressionally mandated by February’s end, with public release typically in March or April. The drafts for Russia and El Salvador are marked “finalized,” while Israel’s is under “quality check.”

Day 1260 On 6 August, there is interesting news from the Lyman direction. Here, the Russians decided to attack from another vector and break the Ukrainian deadlock near Torske but were surprised by the latest Ukrainian innovation in drone warfare. By mounting RPG’s on drones, the Ukrainians found a way to make their air assaults even deadlier.

Near Lyman, the Ukrainian 63rd Mechanized Brigade remains firmly in control, effectively anchoring the defense at Torske through innovative defensive measures combined with preventive attacks against advancing Russian forces. This Ukrainian formation not only maintains entrenched positions but also proactively disrupts enemy movements, refusing to allow the Russians a chance to stabilize their positions. A striking footage captures two Ukrainian infantrymen clearing a forest near a settlement, encountering Russian troops hiding in a dugout. After intense close-range combat with grenades and gunfire, the cornered Russians chose to surrender and were taken prisoners of war.

Facing staggering casualties, the Russians recognized the danger of continuing frontal assaults against the fiercely defended Ukrainian positions around Torske. As a result, they attempted a new tactic, intensifying operations southwards across the Zherebets River, hoping to outflank and encircle the Ukrainians from behind. However, previous Russian vulnerabilities remain unchanged: troops must cross exposed terrain under constant Ukrainian drone surveillance, FPV drone strikes, and precise artillery fire. Every movement makes them easily spottable targets that the Ukrainians engage without hesitation.

Aware of their limited infantry numbers, Ukrainian forces increasingly implement the Drone Line initiative to neutralize Russian assault groups before they approach their defenses. Drone operators in this program receive points for eliminating priority targets such as infantry and enemy drone teams, which they can then exchange for large quantities of upgraded equipment, incentivizing aggressive hunting of Russian troops and dramatically boosting effectiveness. Numerous videos from the frontline near Torske illustrate this vividly, showing Russian infantry eliminated by precision grenade drops from Mavic and Vampire drones.

In addition, Ukrainians have recently begun employing RPG equipped drones to devastating effect. While traditional drone-dropped grenades are often spotted and engaged by the Russians, which forces operators into dive-bomb tactics that usually compromise accuracy, grenade-launcher drones offer a solution through stabilized aiming via a crosshair.

One notable video displays a Ukrainian operator identifying several Russian soldiers, firing a precise grenade launcher round from the drone, repositioning swiftly, and firing again from another angle to eliminate the survivors. Such innovations allow even single operators to decisively repel entire Russian assaults even when severely stretched infantry-wise.

Ukrainian soldiers praised the new technology by stating that, logically, a drone equipped with a grenade launcher can fly in, fire, turn around, and reload, making it highly effective. Ukrainian operators emphasized the key tactical advantage that grenade rounds arrive almost instantly, and the enemy can’t dodge them, which means more accurate hits. At the same time, it can strike from farther away and face fewer electronic warfare countermeasures. Another operator explained that infantry is used to drones hovering overhead to drop grenades, so they can time their movement around the drone’s range or shoot it down directly.

But if the drone instead starts shooting at them mid-flight, it drastically shortens the window of opportunity to move out of the way or shoot it down. Effectively, these new drones can disrupt each assault by forcing Russian troops to seek cover immediately upon hearing drone sounds, especially given modern grenade launchers’ variety of potent warheads that can be used, with armor-piercing, thermobaric, and even incendiary ones.

Overall, Ukrainian forces near Lyman continue to adapt rapidly, refining drone warfare tactics to overcome their limited infantry and decisively halt Russian advances. Russia’s attempted shift in strategy at Torske, seeking new vectors of attack, failed dramatically due to relentless Ukrainian drone strikes, precise grenade drops, and innovative grenade-launcher drones. These advanced tactics have not only stabilized the defense line but also ensured Russian offensives remain costly and ultimately ineffective.

‍In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Radio Svoboda journalists have released previously unseen surveillance camera footage documenting the killing of 70-year-old Bucha resident Volodymyr Rubailo by Russian military personnel on Yablunska Street on 4 March 2022.

The video recordings, published by Radio Liberty on 6 August, show Russian soldiers first wounding Volodymyr Rubailo with an initial shot, then executing him with a targeted shot to the head while the civilian man could barely stand on his feet. Shortly after, Russian military personnel began systematically looting a grocery supermarket near Rubailo’s body, which remained on the ground throughout the incident.

“They broke the glass and went inside. They put the stolen goods in baskets and bags and loaded them onto armored vehicles. To take more, some filled shopping carts and wheeled them down the street to the houses of Bucha residents they had just captured,” Radio Svoboda journalists reported.

The publication previously reported that Russian paratroopers from the 234th Airborne Assault Regiment from Pskov may be involved in Rubailo’s murder, specifically a group led by Sergeant Vladimir Borzunov. Radio Svoboda established that his unit was positioned at the location from which, according to Ukrainian ballistics experts, the shots were fired at the Bucha civilian.

In a telephone conversation with a Radio Svoboda correspondent, Sergeant Borzunov confirmed that Russian military personnel killed Rubailo but denied his involvement and that of his subordinates in the civilian’s murder.

On 24 June, law enforcement officials identified three additional Russian military personnel involved in the killings of civilians during the temporary occupation of part of Kyiv Oblast. On 3 July, prosecutors sent the cases of four Russian servicemen accused of shooting civilians in Bucha to court.

Background: Bucha occupation and liberation

Bucha remained under occupation for 33 days. Russian military forces with heavy equipment entered Bucha on the morning of 27 February 2022. That same day, a missile hit a residential building, and mayor Anatoly Fedoruk reported the first casualties.

Russian forces left the city on 31 March 2022. On the evening of 2 April, the Ministry of Defense officially announced that all settlements in Kyiv Oblast had been liberated from Russian military forces.

When journalists and Ukrainian military personnel reached the city after Bucha’s liberation, they discovered evidence of mass killings. Some bodies were found on the streets, others with hands tied behind their backs. Ukraine officially called on the world to join the investigation into the murders of civilians in Bucha. On 14 April 2024, International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan personally visited Bucha.

On 8 April 2022, authorities began exhuming bodies from a mass grave near the Church of St. Andrew the First-Called and All Saints in Bucha to identify the victims and establish the circumstances of their deaths. Private American company Maxar Technologies reported that the first signs of the mass grave near the church were captured in satellite images on 10 March 2022.

Law enforcement officials have documented over 9,000 war crimes committed by the Russian army during the occupation of the Bucha district in Kyiv Oblast. More than 1,700 civilians died. During 2022 alone, law enforcement managed to identify 91 Russian military personnel who committed war crimes. The Armed Forces of Ukraine reported they had eliminated Russian soldiers who tortured civilians in Bucha.

Ukrainian drones struck the Tatsinskaya railway station in Russia’s Rostov Oblast for the second consecutive night, causing a fire near freight tanks, according to Russian Telegram channel Astra.

The attack occurred during the night of 5-6 August. Local residents reported about explosions and subsequent fires at the facility.

“The drone strike was apparently aimed at railway infrastructure,” said Petro Andryushchenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation.

“This is a non-electrified section of the railway and we are not hitting substations. This means we are systematically cutting out the Russians’ railway, including diesel traction with locomotives. For a long time,” he said.

The Tatsinskaya station had already been targeted the previous night, with explosions and fires reported on 4-5 August. That attack also affected the cities of Millerovo and Belaya Kalitva in the same oblast.

The railway attacks represent a shift toward targeting transportation infrastructure that supports both civilian and military logistics. The Tatsinskaya station sits on a key rail line connecting southern Russia with other oblasts.

Separately, the Russian city of Bryansk came under massive drone attack early morning on 6 August. Local witnesses described a column of thick black smoke rising from an oil depot area where drone debris had fallen.

The Bryansk Oblast has faced repeated drone attacks throughout the summer. In late June, Ukrainian drones struck rocket fuel storage facilities and fuel and lubricant warehouses belonging to the Russian army, causing fires at an oil depot. Ukrainian forces also destroyed an Iskander missile system near Bryansk during that period.

Russian authorities have not officially commented on either the railway station attacks or the Bryansk oil depot strike.

Day 1259

On 5 August, the biggest updates come from the Kherson direction.

Here, Ukrainian special forces executed a daring amphibious landing on one of Russia’s most exposed positions in Ukraine. Taking out patrols and destroying critical equipment, this raid has now opened the door to a wide variety of naval, aerial, and further special forces operations across the Black Sea and the Crimean peninsula.

Ukraine’s military intelligence service posted footage of how its operatives carried out a naval landing operation on the Tendrivska spit in eastern Kherson. Operatives moved across the Black Sea in rubber boats mounted with radars, electronic warfare systems, and machine guns, similar to boats used by Nato’s naval special forces teams.  Landing on the beaches, the groups quickly disembarked and moved inland past several unmanned Russian coastal fortifications and bunkers. The groups then waited for the cover of night, turned on their night vision goggles, and moved toward their targets.

Their mission: destroying a Russian Rosa radar system and the Zont electronic warfare station protecting it. As they moved toward the targets, they even launched FPV drones to feed live intelligence to the assault groups, and strike any Russian target too dangerous to engage head-on. Before heading back after the successful destruction, they planted the Ukrainian flag on the position, and left a final message for the Russians in the morning: Glory to Ukraine.

The raid was not a detached victory, but a necessary operation that serves a larger strategic purpose. The Tendrivska spit’s topographical setting allows Russians to position radars and electronic warfare equipment that can cover a wide area over the Black Sea as far as possible. Specifically, this allows Russians to detect and disrupt Ukrainian naval and aerial drone strikes, forcing Ukrainians to avoid the coast and creating a more narrow pocket for other Russian air defense assets to monitor.

However, these emplacements are incredibly vulnerable; as they are only connected to the mainland through narrow strips of land, or not at all, forcing Russians to use boats to supply these exposed outposts.

Ukrainians exploited this masterfully, and in the weeks leading up to the operation, they increasingly targeted these outposts, using FPV drones to strike buildings Russians used as barracks situated along the route the assault group would later take.

Ukrainians also used a Bayraktar drone to destroy Russian boats resupplying the outposts and rotating the troops stationed there.

However, Russians didn’t suspect a thing; they understood that these outposts were vulnerable, and likely wrote these events off as acceptable casualties to hold such exposed positions. Notably, Ukrainians likely conducted a second raid on the small settlement of Pokrovske on the Kinburn further north, with another Ukrainian flag appearing raised above the settlement early in the morning.

The disruption of these outposts mean only one thing: Ukrainians are planning an intensification of their operations along this axis. As mentioned previously, one of the operations could be a targeted strike operation against Russian assets in Crimea, with many air defense systems, radars, logistics, and command posts highly likely targets. Notably, such a threat doesn’t even have to be from Ukrainian missiles, as naval drones could now more stealthily pass along the coastline and simply launch waves of FPV drones into the Russian-controlled peninsula.

In the past, the Ukrainian security service has released tons of videos showing such strikes, with strike drones and FPVs flying low, dodging Russian missiles, and taking out targets worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Alternatively, this amphibious special forces raid could be a part of the broader war in the Black Sea itself; with drilling platforms serving as makeshift castles from where either side can surveil the area, electronically disrupt equipment, lock down airspace with air defense missiles, or launch strikes from. Only recently Ukrainian naval special forces released new footage of a combined assault on one of these platforms, taking out the Russians defending it with FPV drones, and using the new position to fire missiles at Russian fighter jets.

Overall, Ukrainians executed a daring amphibious raid on several vulnerable Russian outposts, launching preparatory strikes for the operations while leaving Russians none the wiser. The successful outcomes of these missions have now opened the door for a wide range of follow-up operations, while Russians are left guessing as to what the next Ukrainian move will be.

In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Tulcea county in Romania declared a 90-minute air alert on the night of 6 August as Russian strike drones targeted southern Odesa Oblast across the Danube River.

The Romanian county sits on the opposite bank of the Danube from Ukraine’s southernmost cities. Romanian residents could clearly observe air defense operations and explosions from Ukrainian territory during the Russian drone attack.

The resulting fire from the shelling caused panic among Romanian civilians, according to the report. Twenty people called emergency services, believing the blaze was occurring near their location.

“Response forces remained in the area to monitor the situation and intervene if necessary. We again call for calm and remind that Russia’s attack targets are not Romanian territory, and we call on citizens to follow safety measures recommended by authorities,” Romanian fire services reported, according to Digi24.

The attack was also visible from Moldovan territory. Readers reported the incident to local publication Nokta.

This comes as Russian forces launched 45 Shahed-type strike drones and decoy drones of various types from the evening of 5 August. Air defense systems destroyed or suppressed 36 Russian drones across northern, southern, and eastern Ukraine.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion began, drone debris from attacks on southern Ukrainian targets has repeatedly fallen in border areas of Moldova and Romania. Some projectiles have penetrated deeper into their territories.

Following initial incidents, Romanian authorities began issuing air alerts along the Danube riverbank when Russian attacks occur nearby.

This summer, at least one Russian Shahed-type drone entered Lithuanian airspace through Belarusian territory.

Two people died and 12 others were injured, including children, when Russian forces struck a recreation base in Zaporizhzhia district in the early hours of 6 August, according to Zaporizhzhia Oblast Governor Ivan Fedorov.

The State Emergency Service later clarified that occupying forces had targeted a recreation base specifically.

At least nine buildings sustained damage in the attack. Emergency services worked at the scene, with rescue workers transporting the wounded and handing them over to emergency medical teams while evacuating other people from the area.

Among the nine hospitalized were two children. “Both are under medical supervision, one is in serious condition,” Fedorov said in a subsequent update.

Emergency responders worked to extinguish fires that broke out in an outbuilding, vehicles, and five separate blazes across open territory. The attack damaged nine single-story holiday cottages at the recreation facility.

The assault formed part of broader overnight Russian attacks across Ukraine. In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Russian occupying forces struck Nikopol and Synelnykivsk districts during the night, damaging an enterprise, residential building, and infrastructure, regional head Serhiy Lysak said.

Ukrainian Air Forces reported that Russia launched 45 Shahed-type strike drones and decoy drones of various types from the evening of 5 August. Air defense systems destroyed or suppressed 36 Russian drones across northern, southern, and eastern Ukraine.

Russian forces launched the drones from the directions of Kursk and Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Russia, and from Cape Chauda in temporarily occupied Crimea. Aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces, electronic warfare units, unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups of Ukraine’s Defense Forces repelled the air attack.

Day 1257

On 3 August, the biggest news comes from Eastern Europe.

Here, a Shahed-type drone flew directly into Lithuanian airspace and passed over the capital, marking a serious escalation in Russia’s aerial provocations against Nato’s eastern flank. Poland’s air force is already on a nightly high alert, and now the rest of the Baltics are joining in, raising what increasingly resembles an iron Curtain in the air.

Recently, a Russian Shahed-like drone crossed into Lithuanian airspace from Belarus and flew over the outskirts of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, close enough for civilians to see and film the device in flight. Initial fears suggested a live munition had entered Nato airspace, as Shaheds are often fitted with fragmentation, thermobaric, incendiary, or delayed-fuse warheads to cause maximum casualties and damage to civilian property.

Fortunately, upon further inspection of the video footage, the object was identified as a Gerbera decoy drone, a visually similar platform Russia uses for both reconnaissance and saturation purposes during their daily strikes on Ukrainian cities.

While unarmed, the drone crossed directly over a Nato capital, far from any logical flight path to Ukraine, making it clear that this was no accident.

Instead, it was a calculated decision to test Nato’s reaction time, radar coverage, and political tolerance for such direct aerial threats and provocations, and critically, Lithuanian forces did not intercept.

Poland, meanwhile, has entered a state of routine high alert, with Polish and Nato forces scrambling jets and raising radar systems every time Russia launches a large-scale assault on Ukraine, which happens every night and now often even during the day as well. Nato partners, including Swedish Gripens, are now joining Poland in maintaining a high alert status during Russia’s large-scale drone and missile attacks on Ukraine, reinforcing joint readiness across the eastern flank. While these alerts are precautionary, they have become the new norm, as the Polish border lies directly behind the approach paths of Russian missiles and drones targeting western Ukrainian cities. This proximity means any technical malfunction or mid-course deviation could result in a direct violation of Polish airspace, as seen in previous incidents, including when debris from Russian missiles entered Polish territory in 2022, or when a Ukrainian air defense missile landed on a Polish field, killing two farmers.

Unlike the calculated provocation over Vilnius, Poland faces a more constant strain of nightly threats, scrambling fighters, activating radar grids, and maintaining alert in civilian areas without knowing whether each launch might cause military objects to cross into its airspace. Across the Baltics, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia have long depended on Nato’s Baltic Air Policing mission, with Hungary, Italy, and Spain being part of the current rotation, maintaining quick-reaction alert status and integrated into Nato’s broader air defense system.

However, the unchallenged drone over Vilnius shows the limits of deterrence alone, and Lithuania is now accelerating the deployments of Ukrainian-developed acoustic drone detection systems, seeking to fill gaps in its early warning networks exposed by the most recent airspace violation.

At the same time, the Baltic states are reinforcing their readiness for both air-to-air and ground-to-air engagements by expanding joint training protocols, adapting quick-reaction procedures, and integrating new detection systems designed to counter the threat of low-flying unmanned platforms.

And across all three states, radar tracking, jamming incidents logs, and drone incursions are now analyzed with a single assumption: that any aerial anomaly could be the opening in a broader conflict. The emerging posture is no longer passive monitoring; with new drone detection systems, joint alert protocols, and revised civilian flight corridors, it is becoming forward-leaning, reinforced, and increasingly closed, an Iron Curtain in the air.

Overall, Russia’s latest airspace violations are increasingly escalating and reshaping Nato’s eastern defenses through repeated, calculated provocations that expose gaps, test thresholds, and force reaction. The incursion over Vilnius is a template for how Moscow may continue to pressure Nato’s eastern flank, trying to provoke member states into triggering an open conflict. As Poland’s nightly alerts become routine and Baltic air defenses are forced to harden, the question is no longer whether Nato will respond, but how far that response will go, and as this pattern deepens, the skies over Eastern Europe are no longer a buffer, they are becoming the front line.

‍

In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war

Russia is establishing drone launch infrastructure at the airport in occupied Donetsk City to reduce Ukrainian air defense reaction time, according to satellite imagery analysis by Ukrainian intelligence sources.

A Ukrainian Telegram channel reported on 2 August that July 2025 satellite images show Russian authorities have “partially cleared the fortifications on the runway and started construction work at the parking lots, possibly in preparation for the installation of fuel tanks” at the northern Donetsk City airport.

Ukrainian open-source intelligence group CyberBoroshno analyzed the imagery and reported that Russian occupation authorities are constructing “closed storage areas near the destroyed airport terminal and are preparing manual drone control points, warhead unloading areas, air surveillance posts, and a runway.”

CyberBoroshno assessed the infrastructure development aims to launch “Shahed-type strike drones, Gerbera-type decoy drones, and possibly Geran (Shahed) jet-powered drones.” The group noted that positioning launch sites closer to the frontline will reduce reaction time for Ukrainian air defenses.

The construction comes as Russia dramatically escalated drone attacks in July 2025. Russian forces fired 6,297 Shahed-type kamikaze drones and Gerbera-type decoy targets at Ukraine during the month, according to OSINT analyst Kyle Glen’s analysis of official Ukrainian Air Force reported. Glen called this figure “an absolute monthly record since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.”

The July numbers represent a 1,378% increase from July 2024, when Russia launched 426 drones. Glen said that July’s attack volume “equals the total number of drones launched over ten months of 2024 — from January through October inclusive.”

July marked the first month with more than 6,000 drones reported by Ukrainian Air Force, following June when more than 5,000 were reported for the first time, according to Glen. The analyst said that “July also had periods of relative calm when Russia held off on major launches (likely due to poor weather).”

Glen attributed the escalation to “Russia’s expansion of drone production facilities in the second half of 2024 and early 2025.” Ukrainian air defense forces now face attack volumes that “constantly increase in complexity due to evolving enemy tactics.”

The Institute for the Study of War reported that Russian forces have installed thermal imaging cameras on some Shahed drones to improve strike accuracy. Previous reports indicated Russia prepares thousands of strikes daily.

Russian forces have used occupied Ukrainian territory for long-range drone launches, and continued occupation will “increasingly threaten Ukraine and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) states,” according to the Ukrainian Telegram channel report.

Russian forces launched a night assault on Ukraine using missiles, drones and guided aerial bombs, according to Air Force data.

Three people were injured in Russian shelling of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, including a 4-month-old infant who remains in critical condition, Dnipro Oblast Governor Serhii Lysak said.

Nikopol, Marhanets, Myrivska, Pokrovska communities were under Russian fire.

According to Lysak, Russian forces shelled the Nikopol area with artillery, attacked with FPV drones and dropped ammunition from UAVs. A transport company in Marhanets was damaged during the assault.

The attacks extended beyond Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. In Kherson Oblast, one person died in Russian artillery fire on Antonivka village.

“From early morning, Russians cut short the life of a Kherson Oblast resident, for a man born in 1979,” Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

 In Odesa, a strike on a radio market sparked fires that destroyed dozens of trading pavilions containing electronics and household appliances, the State Emergency Service reported. A separate fire erupted at an abandoned dormitory.

The Russian military regularly attacks Ukrainian oblasts with various types of weapons, killing civilians and destroying hospitals, schools, kindergartens, energy and water supply facilities.

The Ukrainian authorities and international organisations qualify these strikes as war crimes by the Russian Federation and emphasise that they are of a targeted nature.

Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) drones struck a military airfield storing Iranian-made “Shahed” drones in Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Krasnodar Oblast, during the night of 2 August, the SBU press service reported.

The SBU said that the Primorsko-Akhtarsk military airfield became the first target for long-range UAVs. “Storage and launch sites for Shaheds that attack Ukraine were hit on its territory,” the service announced. Fires broke out in the airfield area following the drone strikes.

A second target was the Elektroprilad plant in Penza city, with the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff confirming the strike. The facility produces equipment for the Russian military-industrial complex, manufacturing gear for digital networks in military command systems, aviation devices, armored vehicles, ships, and spacecraft, according to the SBU.

“SBU drones successfully hit the target, with smoke observed in the explosion area,” the security service reported regarding the Penza strike.

The attacks represent a continuation of Ukrainian strikes on Russian military infrastructure. On 31 July, drones had previously targeted a radio plant in Penza, with the SBU later confirming responsibility for that operation as well.

The coordinated strikes demonstrate Ukraine’s expanding capability to conduct long-range operations against military targets deep within Russian territory, specifically targeting facilities involved in producing or storing weapons used against Ukrainian cities.

Multiple Russian oblasts reported explosions and fires at industrial facilities during overnight drone attacks on 2 August, with air defense systems activated across several areas, according to Russian Telegram channels.

Samara Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev confirmed strikes on Novokuybyshevsk. Social media footage showed a large fire at what appeared to be the Novokuybyshevsk Oil Refinery.

Witnesses reported loud explosions near Dyagilevo airfield in Ryazan Oblast. Another oil refinery in Ryazan city was reportedly struck.

Residents of Lipetsk and Voronezh oblasts also reported UAV attacks and air defense activity during the night.

A group of Ukrainian children has been evacuated from Russian-occupied territories and brought to safety in government-controlled Ukraine, according to organizations Bring Kids Back UA and Save Ukraine.

The children endured systematic persecution for maintaining their Ukrainian identity while living under occupation.

“15-year-old Maria courageously defended her Ukrainian identity – she wore vyshyvanka to Russian school, argued with teachers about Ukraine. For this, classmates called her ‘ukropka,’ bullied and beat her, and teachers wrote denunciations and threatened her mother with deprivation of parental rights,” Bring Kids Back UA reported.

Four-year-old Milana and eight-year-old Sashko lived in occupied territories with their mother and grandmother. The women faced constant threats that children would be taken away if they refused to attend Russian schools. Authorities forced the children’s mother to obtain Russian documents while subjecting the grandmother to polygraph interrogation. Milana, who has a disability requiring medication, suffered as her family struggled to find necessary medicines under occupation.

Another evacuated teenager faced interrogation for online activity. “15-year-old Lina was interrogated for 6 hours straight for a pro-Ukrainian comment on social media, had her phone confiscated and was threatened with arrest by local ‘police.’ After that, the girl was afraid that she was being watched and that one day she would be forcibly sent to a so-called Russian ‘reeducation camp,'” the rescue organization wrote.

Seventeen-year-old Semen fled occupation to avoid conscription into Russian forces. He decided not to wait until adulthood after witnessing classmates forced into Russian military service despite their young age. Military commissariat representatives had already visited Semen’s home, threatening fines and physical violence for failing to appear when summoned.

The evacuation represents part of ongoing efforts to return Ukrainian children from occupied territories, where previous groups have been rescued despite facing pressure while studying online in Ukrainian schools.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham issued a warning to Russia regarding potential escalation, responding to threats made by Dmitry Medvedev against the United States.

Graham wrote on social media platform X that President Donald Trump does not seek conflict but stands ready for decisive action if necessary.

“To my friends in Russia: President Trump seeks peace not conflict. However, please understand that he is not Obama, he is not Biden, and he will not be trifled with. You are overplaying your hand,” Graham wrote.

The US President previously announced on Truth Social that he ordered the deployment of two nuclear submarines to appropriate regions following provocative statements by Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev.

Trump explained that he “was forced to do this” to protect the American people.

Earlier, Medvedev published a post mentioning the Soviet automatic nuclear strike system known as “Dead Hand” and called on Trump to “remember his favorite zombie movies.”

Previously, Medvedev claimed that Trump “is playing a game of ultimatums with Russia.” He added that “every new ultimatum is a threat and a step toward war.”

President Donald Trump has expressed earlier growing frustration with Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine. Trump, who initially adopted a more conciliatory approach toward Moscow while attempting to end the three-year war, has now threatened to impose tariffs and other measures if Russia shows no progress toward ending the war by 8 August.

The United States and NATO are developing a novel financing mechanism that would allow NATO countries to pay for American weapons transfers to Ukraine, Reuters reported on 31 July, citing three sources.

The initiative comes as President Donald Trump has expressed growing frustration with Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine. Trump, who initially adopted a more conciliatory approach toward Moscow while attempting to end the three-year war, has now threatened to impose tariffs and other measures if Russia shows no progress toward ending the war by 8 August.

“The president said last month the US would supply weapons to Ukraine, paid for by European allies, but did not indicate how this would be done,” Reuters reported

The new mechanism centers on the Priority Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a catalog of American weapons systems. Under the proposed structure, Ukraine would prioritize needed weapons in tranches of approximately $500 million each. NATO allies, coordinated by Secretary General Mark Rutte, would then negotiate among themselves to determine funding responsibilities for specific items.

“That is the starting point, and it’s an ambitious target that we’re working towards. We’re currently on that trajectory. We support the ambition. We need that sort of volume,” a European official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The mechanism aims to deliver $10 billion worth of arms to Ukraine, though the timeframe remains unclear. A senior NATO military official described the initiative as “a voluntary effort coordinated by NATO that all allies are encouraged to take part in.”

The system includes a NATO holding account where allies can deposit funds for weapons purchases, subject to approval by NATO’s top military commander. According to a US official, money would be transferred to a US-held account, possibly at the Treasury Department, or to an escrow fund, though the exact structure remains under development.

For NATO countries choosing to donate weapons directly, the mechanism would allow them to bypass lengthy US arms sales procedures when replenishing their own stockpiles, Reuters reports.

The new system would operate alongside existing US efforts under the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which allows the president to transfer weapons from current American stockpiles to assist allies during emergencies.

At least one weapons tranche is currently under negotiation through the new mechanism, according to two sources, though it remains unclear whether any funds have been transferred yet.

Trump’s Republican allies in Congress have introduced the PEACE Act, legislation designed to create a Treasury Department fund where allies could deposit money to pay for replenishing US military equipment donated to Ukraine.

Ukraine’s requirements remain consistent with previous months: air defenses, interceptors, missile systems, rockets, and artillery. The most recent statement of needs came during a 21 July video conference of Ukraine’s allies in the Ramstein group, now led by Britain and Germany.

Russian forces continue their gradual advance against Ukraine and currently control approximately one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.

NATO headquarters in Brussels declined to comment on the mechanism. The White House, Pentagon, and Ukrainian embassy in Washington did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

Russia fired 6,297 Shahed-type kamikaze drones and Gerbera-type decoy targets at Ukraine in July 2025, marking an absolute monthly record since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, according to OSINT analyst Kyle Glen who analyzed official Ukrainian Air Force report.

The July figure represents a 1,378% increase compared to July 2024, when 426 drones were launched. The scale of July attacks equals the total number of drones launched over ten months of 2024 — from January through October inclusive.

July is also the first month to see more than 6,000 drones reported by the Ukrainian Air Force, this follows June when more than 5,000 were reported for the first time, according to Glen.

“July also had periods of relative calm when Russia held off on major launches (likely due to poor weather),” he added.

The data revealed a steady monthly escalation in drone attacks. The analyst attributes this trend to Russia’s expansion of drone production facilities in the second half of 2024 and early 2025. Ukrainian air defense forces now operate under unprecedented attack volumes that constantly increase in complexity due to evolving enemy tactics.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that Russian forces have installed thermal imaging cameras on some Shahed drones to improve strike accuracy.

Previous reports said that Russia prepares thousands of strikes daily.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio revealed that American officials held conversations with high-level Russian representatives earlier this week regarding Ukraine war settlement, but Washington saw no advancement toward peace negotiations, according to his interview with Fox News published by the State Department press service.

“We continue to engage with the Russian side, as early as this week – earlier this week, on Monday or Tuesday.  We had a whole conversation with them as well – not with Putin but with some of Putin’s top people – in hopes of arriving at some understanding on a path forward that would lead to peace, and we’ve not seen any progress on that,” Rubio said.

The Secretary of State said that President Donald Trump has waited over six months and made extensive efforts to establish peace. Rubio said Trump becomes most frustrated with phone calls where Russians claim they want the conflict to end, only for cities to be bombed shortly after.

“What bothers the President the most is he has these great phone calls where everyone sort of claims yeah, we’d like to see this end, if we could find a way forward, and then he turns on the news and another city has been bombed, including those far from the frontlines,” Rubio said.

Rubio added that potential sanctions options available to the President, including secondary sanctions on Russian oil sales and sectoral banking sanctions.

The Secretary claimed that the US remains willing to participate in peace negotiations if the opportunity arises, but warned that Trump “is not going to wait forever.”

Trump recently shortened his ultimatum to Putin from 50 days to 10-12 days for reaching a peace agreement, threatening secondary tariffs on Russian resource buyers otherwise. The following day, the President declared Putin has 10 days to end the war against Ukraine, though Trump believes settling the war will take considerable time.

A senior US diplomat revealed that China has provided cruise missile technology to Russia as part of its support for the country’s military operations, according to statements made during a UN Security Council session.

“North Korea has sent ammunition, missiles, military equipment and approximately 12,000 soldiers to Russia, Iran has provided ballistics, drones and other technologies,” John Kelly, the high-ranking American diplomat, said during the Security Council meeting.

Kelly emphasized China’s particularly crucial role in sustaining Russia’s military capabilities.

“China, as its representatives have noted, does not supply weapons to Russia directly,” he said. “However, China has become a decisive factor contributing to Russia’s military efforts, being the most important supplier to Russia’s military industry.”

According to the diplomat, China has provided Russia with a significant amount of machine tools, microelectronics, optics, drones and cruise missile technology, as well as [a significant amount of] nitrocellulose, which Russia uses to manufacture gunpowder for weapons.

Kelly did not specify which particular cruise missile technology was being referenced in his remarks.

The US official stressed that if China were serious about helping to end the conflict, it would cease supplying these critical components to Russia.

During the same address, the American representative announced that an agreement between Russia and Ukraine must be reached by 8 August, with Washington prepared to take additional measures to ensure peace.

The allegations align with previous Ukrainian intelligence findings from May, which reported discovering over foreign components in Russia’s new “Banderol” cruise missile, including parts from China.

Ukrainian intelligence identified Chinese microchips, what appeared to be a Chinese copy of an Australian telemetry module, a jet engine from China, and an inertial navigation system also possibly from that country.

The Chinese Swiwin engine for model aircraft reportedly is sold through online platforms, with an approximate cost of $16,000 on AliExpress. It remains unclear whether Kelly was referring to the “Banderol” missile or other weaponry.

Lithuania’s Foreign Ministry summoned Russia’s temporary chargé d’affaires on 31 July, following massive strikes on Ukrainian cities including Kyiv, according to a statement from the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Russian representative received a protest note regarding strikes on Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson and other Ukrainian oblasts that killed dozens and wounded hundreds of civilians, the ministry reported.

The statement follows a Russian missiles and drones attack that ripped through Kyiv overnight on 31 July, collapsing apartment buildings and setting fires in several districts of the city. The attack killed at least 15 civilians and injured over 130 people. Russian missile struck an apartment building kin one of the Kyiv’s disctrict, collapsing its entire section.

The Lithinuan FM wrote in the statement after the morning attack that “Russia’s military actions against Ukraine’s civilian population and systematic cruel treatment of prisoners of war are unacceptable and illegal.

Lithuania pledged to continue efforts to ensure those responsible for these and other war crimes face criminal prosecution.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys called for “increased pressure” on Russia and its partners following the deadly strike on the Ukrainian capital.

The Russian attack was also condemned by Finland’s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, whose country currently chairs the OSCE, and her Estonian counterpart Margus Tsahkna.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha called for immediate maximum pressure on Moscow following a deadly overnight strike on Kyiv that killed at least eight people and injured over 120 others.

Russian missiles and drones ripped through Kyiv overnight on 31 July, collapsing apartment buildings and setting fires in several districts of the city. The attack killed at least eight civilians and injured over 120 people.

Russian missile struck an apartment building kin one of the Kyiv’s disctrict, collapsing its entire section.

Ukraine’s FM posted photos of a destroyed nine-story building entrance on his X account, detailing the casualties and damage from the night attacks. Schools and hospitals were among the damaged facilities, with some people still trapped under debris.

“It is probably time to reduce to zero all of the timeframes that had been given to Putin to demonstrate a constructive approach. President Trump has been very generous and very patient with Putin, trying to find a solution,” Sybiha said.

The Foreign Minister emphasized Putin’s deliberate actions, saying the Russian leader “clearly acts as he acts with conscious intent.”

“The entire existence of this war criminal is based on this senseless war, which he cannot win but refuses to end… It’s time to put maximum pressure on Moscow. It is time to synchronise all sanctions steps. It’s time to achieve peace through strength,” Sybiha wrote on X.

The statement comes as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently announced that President Donald Trump is “losing patience” while waiting for concrete steps from Moscow to end the war.

Trump has set a 10-day deadline for Russia to demonstrate progress in ending the Ukraine war, threatening to impose tariffs and other measures against Russia if no advancement is shown.

The overnight shelling represents the latest escalation in the war, with civilian infrastructure continuing to bear the brunt of Russian attacks on the Ukrainian capital.

The Russian night missile and drone attack on 31 July damaged the Kyiv Islamic Cultural Centre at one of the capital’s central mosques, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.

Russian missiles and drones ripped through Kyiv overnight on 31 July, collapsing apartment buildings and setting fires in several districts of the city. The attack killed at least eight civilians and injured over 120 people.

Russian missile struck an apartment building kin one of the Kyiv’s disctrict, collapsing its entire section.

According to Ukraine’s FM, the attack also damaged a cultural center, which served as a gathering place for representatives of various religions and denominations for joint prayers for peace and victory in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war.

“As a result of another brutal Russian strike on Kyiv this night, the Kyiv Islamic Cultural Centre at one of our central mosques was damaged,” Sybiha wrote. “This is another demonstration that Moscow is waging a criminal war against the very foundations of humanity. Russian terror spares no one.”

Ukraine has called on all Islamic countries, international governmental and non-governmental organizations, and Muslim communities worldwide to condemn the attack, Sybiha said. He emphasized that “Russian barbarism must be confronted with the strength and unity of the world.”

“Together we must force Moscow to agree to a ceasefire and put an end to the war and terror,” the foreign minister added.

The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces used reactive drones for the second consecutive night in their strikes against Ukraine.

Ukraine is very close to obtaining its own ballistic missiles, Defense Minister Denis Shmygal said in his first interview since taking the position of Defense Minister, BBC Ukraine reported on 30 July.

“Ukraine’s president has already announced that Ukraine will have its own ballistics. We are very close to this. That’s basically all I can say publicly on this matter,” Shmyhal said during the interview.

The announcement comes after former Deputy Defense Minister Anatoliy Klochko said in June that Ukrainians would soon hear “more concrete statements” about Ukrainian ballistics, as the country had made “serious progress” on the issue.

The production of its own ballistic missiles is crucial for Ukraine to enhance its long-range strike potential, deter Russian aggression, and target deep Russian military infrastructure, thereby strengthening its security and defense amid ongoing war.

In his interview for BBC, Shmygal also outlined his vision for bringing Russia to genuine peace talks, emphasizing the need for dual pressure. “I would very much like our partners to help us create sufficient pressure on the Russian aggressor both on the battlefield and through sanctions, and bring them to the negotiating table,” he said.

The minister demonstrated his approach using two hands: “On one side, we must create pressure on the battlefield. There must be weapons supplies that will give us if not an advantage, then parity in this war. On the other side, there must be counter-pressure – sanctions that will financially bleed the enemy.”

“If these two factors are not present, then negotiations may continue, but more likely they will lead us and our partners in circles around this diplomatic negotiating table,” Shmygal said.

Ukrainian intelligence operatives conducted a major cyberattack against Russian authorities in occupied Crimea, downloading 100 terabytes of classified data before destroying the original files, according to RBK-Ukraine citing sources in Ukrainian intelligence.

The multi-day operation targeted electronic document management systems used by Russian-controlled government institutions across the peninsula, according to the report. Cyber specialists from Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) penetrated digital cabinets of Crimean Russian leadership and gained access to several key systems.

“Dialog” and “Delo” electronic document management systems were compromised, along with accounting systems “1C:Document Flow,” Directum, and “ATLAS,” the report said. The systems handle legally significant electronic document flow for government agencies, budget institutions, state committees, and municipal bodies including the apparatus of the Russian Council of Ministers of Crimea.

The downloaded data included documents marked “secret” containing information about Russian military facilities and logistical supply routes for Russian forces on the peninsula, RBK-Ukraine reported. After copying the information, GUR cyber specialists destroyed all data stored on servers of regional and district government institutions, ministries, and departments of Russian authorities in Crimea.

A DDoS attack reportedly paralyzed information systems and network infrastructure in Crimea during the operation. Russian media made only brief mention of the cyberattack, with the press service of the Russia-controlled Ministry of Information reporting “a massive DDoS attack on major fixed-line communication operators.”

“Some services may be periodically unavailable to subscribers,” the ministry said, without specifying the scale of the problem or the number of affected operators.

Russian State Duma officials expressed concern but provided no details about compromised information.

Ukrainian intelligence sources indicated the obtained data contains significant intelligence value.

“So much data was downloaded there that we will soon learn many sensations about the activities and crimes of Russian occupiers in Ukrainian Crimea,” a Ukrainian intelligence officer told RBK-Ukraine.

The breach also provided access to officials responsible for “patriotic education” and organizing exhibitions and street actions aimed at discrediting Ukraine, according to Armed Forces of Ukraine officer and political scientist Andriy Tkachuk writing for Ukrinform.

“Evidence was obtained of coordination between local administrations and the ‘representation of the Russian Foreign Ministry in Simferopol,’” Tkachuk wrote. “The Russian Foreign Ministry distributes narratives, ‘republican ministries’ transmit them to districts, and schools and universities become retransmitters of Kremlin lies.”

A military expert from Crimea, a former Ukrainian officer and reserve lieutenant colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, told Krym.Realii on condition of anonymi that “Russian authorities in Crimea during the war closely interact with Russian military forces. This means that GUR will have a set of correspondence from which many interesting intelligence data can be ‘extracted,’.”

“All civilian administrations of Crimean districts and cities, as well as ministries and departments, issue secret orders and other documents related to territorial defense and more. This is not just important information, but the most important, like the mentioned logistical supply routes for troops,” he added.

The Kremlin has rejected President Donald Trump’s ultimatum for Russia to negotiate an end to its war in Ukraine within 10 days, with officials reaffirming Moscow’s commitment to continue military operations until achieving its stated objectives.

Trump announced the deadline on 29 July before boarding Air Force One, warning that tariffs would take effect if Russia refused to stop the war. “Ten days from today. And then we’re gonna put on tariffs and stuff,” Trump told reporters, according to audio published by the White House.

The threatened tariffs would target secondary sanctions on countries purchasing Russian oil, gas and other products, including China and India. Trump acknowledged uncertainty about the measure’s impact, stating: “I don’t know if it’s gonna affect Russia, because he (Russian President Vladimir Putin) wants to obviously probably keep the war going, but we’re gonna put tariffs and various things.”

The announcement represents a shortened timeline from Trump’s previous ultimatum delivered 14 July, when he warned of “severe” tariffs up to 100% if Russia failed to agree to a peace deal within 50 days. Trump said on 28 July he was no longer willing to wait that long.

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairperson Dmitry Medvedev responded on his English-language X account, according to the ISW, that Trump cannot dictate negotiation timing. Medvedev said that negotiations will conclude only when Russia achieves all war objectives, likely referring to Moscow’s original aims including regime change in Ukraine, alterations to NATO’s open-door policy, and reducing Ukraine’s military capabilities.

Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov echoed the rejection, claiming Russia will continue its war to protect national interests despite Trump’s revised deadline. 

The Institute for the Study of War assessed Kremlin’s statements as efforts to compel Trump to abandon his deadline in favor of normalized bilateral relations and increased cooperation. ISW reported that the Kremlin remains uninterested in negotiations to end the war, instead seeking to protract the war to secure additional battlefield gains.

Day 1251

On 28 July, there is a lot of news from the Lyman direction.

Here, one Ukrainian brigade found an ingenious use for ancient Roman tactics on the current battlefield, combining them with modern warfare elements and technology to sabotage the Russian advance toward Lyman. This created a zone so lethal that these Ukrainians are eliminating at an insane ration of 66 Russian soldiers for every Ukrainian casualty they take.

In the sector near Lyman, despite holding a substantial bridgehead across the Zherebets River, Russian forces remain critically overstretched. Their goal to establish a direct route towards Lyman, a town they’ve fruitlessly sought to capture for over two years, remains distant. Consequently, Russian commanders have redirected significant effort toward breaching the defensive lines around Torske, hoping to improve their severely limited logistical situation across the Zherebets River.

Become one of our 700+ patrons!

Standing firmly against this intense Russian pressure is Ukraine’s battle-hardened 63rd Mechanized Brigade. Exploiting favorable terrain, the brigade has expertly leveraged local geography for defensive advantage. To the north of Torske, large reservoirs limit Russian maneuverability and prevent effective flanking actions, isolating their frontal assaults. South of Torske, expansive forested areas have allowed Ukrainian forces to establish deep fire control zones, creating lethal chokepoints for attacking Russian infantry and motorbike squads.

The results of this skillful Ukrainian defense have been devastating for the Russians. Despite substantially increased assaults, Russian forces face severe shortages of armor, forcing commanders to resort primarily to infantry assaults on motorcycles and ATVs. In response, the 63rd Brigade has perfected a ruthless, cost-effective defensive strategy that has yielded a stunning kill to death ratio in their favor. The extraordinary figure indicates that for each Ukrainian soldier lost, Russian forces lose around 66 troops, a devastating statistic demonstrating Ukrainian tactical superiority in the area.

Key to Ukraine’s remarkable defensive success here is the innovative revival of ancient Roman warfare tactics, particularly the widespread use of caltrops. Historically, Roman soldiers employed caltrops, metal devices designed with spikes positioned in all directions, as highly effective area-denial tools. Placed on roads, fields, or forest pathways, caltrops punctured enemy horses’ hooves, forced troops into open, vulnerable spaces, and slowed advancing units significantly, enabling Roman forces to saturate their exposed enemies with projectiles.

Now, the Ukrainian 63rd Brigade applies this ancient tactic using drones to disperse modern versions of caltrops across Russian assault paths. Unlike traditional mines, caltrops are inexpensive, safe to deploy remotely, and difficult to detect through drone surveillance.

When Russian motorbike squads inevitably run over these hidden traps, they are flung off their bikes and forced into exposed areas to clear these small but numerous obstacles, instantly becoming easy targets for Ukrainian artillery, small arms fire, and precision drone strikes.

The Ukrainian effectiveness is further strengthened by their approach to active defense. When Russian units temporarily occupy forward positions, the Ukrainians immediately launch aggressive drone strikes before enemy soldiers can consolidate or recover. These rapid, coordinated counterattacks exploit the exhaustion and disorder of freshly arrived Russian troops, further compounding their casualties before they are completely pushed back and eliminated.

The desperation of Russian forces in this area is increasingly evident. Troops are frequently spotted employing thermal cloaks intended to shield them from detection, yet their poor implementation renders them ineffective, making Russian soldiers even more visible to Ukrainian drones equipped with standard or thermal imaging. Consequently, geolocated drone footage frequently shows Russian units easily identified and swiftly eliminated, despite their attempts at concealment.

Recognizing their unfavorable situation, Russian soldiers in this sector are increasingly choosing to surrender. Facing overwhelming tactical and technological inferiority, many Russian personnel clearly understand they will never survive long enough to leverage their numerical superiority and engage directly with Ukrainian positions.

Overall, Ukraine’s creative application of ancient Roman caltrops combined with cutting-edge drone warfare has produced a lethal defensive tactic. The persistent employment of this approach by the 63rd Mechanized Brigade near Torske has devastated Russian infantry assaults, completely undermining the Russian offensive and maintaining relentless battlefield stagnation. The resurrection of ancient warfare techniques, enhanced by current technology, has decisively turned this frontline area into a killing ground that Russian commanders can neither bypass nor penetrate.

In the sector near Lyman, despite holding a substantial bridgehead across the Zherebets River, Russian forces remain critically overstretched. Their goal to establish a direct route towards Lyman, a town they’ve fruitlessly sought to capture for over two years, remains distant. Consequently, Russian commanders have redirected significant effort toward breaching the defensive lines around Torske, hoping to improve their severely limited logistical situation across the Zherebets River.

In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war

European Commissioner for Transport and Tourism Apostolos Tzitzikostas has warned that Europe’s roads, bridges and railways cannot support rapid movement of tanks, troops and military supplies in case of war with Russia, Financial Times reported on 29 July.

“If Nato’s tanks were called to respond to an invasion by Moscow’s forces across the EU’s eastern border, they would get stuck in tunnels, cause bridges to collapse and get snarled up in border protocols,” Tzitzikostas told the publication.

The Greek commissioner outlined plans to spend €17 billion ($20 bn) on overhauling continental infrastructure to boost military mobility.

“We have old bridges that need to be upgraded. We have narrow bridges that need to be widened. And we have nonexistent bridges to be built,” he said.

Current infrastructure poses significant obstacles for military operations. European trucks typically weigh up to 40 tonnes, while tanks reach 70 tonnes. “The reality today is that if we want to move military equipment and troops from the western side of Europe to the eastern side, it takes weeks and in some cases months,” Tzitzikostas added.

The European Union is developing a strategy to ensure troops can move “in a matter of hours, maximum a matter of days” in response to an attack. The plan involves upgrading 500 infrastructure projects along four military corridors across the continent.

These projects, identified in conjunction with NATO and the alliance’s military commanders, remain confidential for security reasons. Brussels also plans to reduce bureaucracy to prevent “tanks being stuck in paperwork” when crossing borders, according to Tzitzikostas.

The strategy, set to be presented later this year, forms part of broader war preparations amid warnings of possible confrontation with Moscow and expected reduction in US military presence in Europe.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte warned in June that Russia could attack alliance members by 2030. German Federal Intelligence Service assessments indicate Russia views itself in systemic conflict with the West and is preparing for major war with NATO.

EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius shared Western intelligence assessments that Russian attack on EU states could occur within the next few years.

A video news agency Viory that launched in Abu Dhabi claiming to represent the “Global South” is actually a rebranded version of Ruptly, the Berlin-based footage supplier that was part of Russia’s state media network RT, according to a new investigation by the Organization for Ukrainian Freedom (OFU).

According to the researchers, the transformation from Ruptly to Viory represents “as Russia’s adaptation to sanctions and isolation, using rebranding techniques to continue propaganda operations under the guise of independent Global South media representation.”

Viory made its debut at the Abu Dhabi Global Media Conference in 2023, presenting itself as an independent company. However, the investigation, conducted by multiple outlets including RND and Tagesspiegel, using facial recognition software and LinkedIn analysis, has identified dozens of former Ruptly employees now working for the new agency.

Ruptly operated as a news agency dealing primarily in footage from its Berlin headquarters, running a global network of freelance video journalists who filmed events worldwide. The footage was sold to major outlets including the BBC, Daily Mail, and Al Jazeera, according to the investigation.

The transformation began after Germany’s Bild investigative team exposed Katerina Mavrenkova, Ruptly’s chief content officer, for requesting a Berlin-based journalist to “penetrate into Charité” hospital where Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny was being treated following his poisoning.

“Mavrenkova, an employee of the Russian state, was asking the journalist to do espionage on the prominent critic of the Russian state,” said in the report.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Ruptly faced a flood of staff resignations and intensified scrutiny from German authorities, necessitating relocation. The agency initially operated under Lensum, which Tagesspiegel identified as “a shell company for Ruptly’s continued operations,” citing an insider source.

According to OFU research, Lensum was initially known as Tocha and was founded by ELA Verwaltungs GMBH, a firm offering “ready-to-go” shelf companies for clients wanting to bypass bureaucratic procedures. The company was owned by Marina Sevciuc, who “has virtually zero online presence” and appears to be a placeholder owner, according to the investigation.

Despite denying connections to Ruptly or the Russian state, Lensum hired a head of human resources whose LinkedIn profile showed work experience at RT Germany.

The investigation identifies several key figures linking Ruptly to Viory. Mavrenkova, despite maintaining “a very low online presence,” signed an agreement on behalf of Viory in Riyadh with the Union of News Agencies of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. She was later listed as “Director of Content of the international media agency Viory” at the 2024 Kazan Forum, a significant conference between the Russian government and the OIC.

Dinara Toktosunova, identified by German publications as the former CEO of Ruptly, also appeared as a panelist at the Kazan Forum in 2023, where she was described as “director of Ruptly.” A Google search anomaly shows her described as “director of international media agency Viory” in relation to the 2024 Kazan Forum, though she did not appear to participate in that year’s panels.

Content analysis reveals Russian fingerprints all over “independent” agency

The investigation found that Viory’s content reveals its Russian state affiliation through several indicators. Videos about Ukraine refuse to use the term “war,” instead labeling content as “Donbas conflict” or “Russia-Ukraine conflict.” Ukrainian cities are spelled using “old, Russified spellings” rather than official transliterations, and Russian-occupied regions are referred to as “DNR” and “LNR” without the “self-proclaimed” qualifier used in pre-invasion content.

Viory’s exclusive content suggests extraordinary access to Russian officials and military operations. The agency published drone footage titled “Might of Moscow” showing Russian military equipment preparing for the 9 May 2024 Victory Day parade. The investigation said that “given the prevalence of small armed drones in the war in Ukraine, one can imagine it takes a high level of security clearance and trust to film such footage.”

The agency has published at least 352 videos under the “80th Victory Day Anniversary” tag and produced six exclusive videos from Putin’s June 2024 visit to North Korea. The investigation questions how “an apparently six-month-old Viory managed to pull this off” when “few international news agencies even have the capability to film in North Korea.”

Analysis of Viory’s coverage reveals “a significant bias in favour of Russia,” including exclusive footage of residents celebrating Russian control of Avdiivka and multiple exclusives from Wagner mercenary group activities. The agency also hosts “an enormous amount of Ruptly’s old content,” with footage matching exact headlines and scripts from Ruptly’s previous output.

The rebranding reflects Russia’s pivot toward the Global South following diplomatic isolation after the Ukraine invasion. EU-wide bans on Russian state media forced the search for new markets, with Viory’s tagline explicitly targeting “the video news agency of the Global South.”

The investigation said that Russia has been “expanding its presence over the last decade” in Africa, with Wagner mercenaries deployed to Russia-aligned states. Russian-linked disinformation campaigns have already been reported across the continent, including content featuring leaders like Ibrahim Traore, who “appears in dozens of videos on the Viory site.”

The investigation concluded that while Viory “evidently did a pitiful job of covering its tracks,” the operation demonstrates “an increasingly decentralized and diffuse Russian state approach to international messaging.” Unlike traditional Russian state media’s “overly incredulous or inflammatory rhetoric,” Viory presents content with “a veneer of objectivity” while maintaining the same pro-Kremlin narratives.

Day 1249

On 25 July, the biggest news comes from Europe.

New sanctions from the United Kingdom and the European Union are tightening the noose around Russia’s shadow fleet, the covert network of tankers that has long helped Moscow dodge oil export restrictions. This time, enforcement is not only more coordinated but also more surgical, and the effects are beginning to show across the broader infrastructure of Russia’s war economy.

Most recently, the United Kingdom unveiled its latest sanctions package, which directly targets dozens of tankers suspected of transporting Russian oil in violation of the G7 price cap, operating under flags of convenience and obscure ownership structures to avoid detection. London has now imposed asset freezes on over 100 shadow fleet vessels and sanctioned several front companies that provide critical insurance, financing, and logistical support, embedded in global maritime hubs. Beyond targeting individual vessels, the UK’s restrictions also prohibit any UK-based companies from interacting with ships or firms linked to sanctioned oil trade, thereby closing off access to a broad range of legal and financial services that have long sustained the shadow fleet.

In parallel, the European Union has adopted its 18^th sanctions package, with new measures aimed at undermining the legal and logistical foundations of shadow fleet operations. The package introduces enhanced penalties for any port offering services to re-flagged or disguised Russian tankers, creates a public blacklist of vessels involved in price cap violations, and extends sanctions to intermediaries that provide false documentation regarding the origin of cargo. Perhaps most importantly, the European Union now authorizes penalties against third-party countries, companies, and organizations that facilitate Russian circumvention efforts.

Become one of our 700+ patrons!

This move places significant pressure on states such as Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates, which have quietly hosted the fleet’s support infrastructure. Taken together, the actions of the United Kingdom and the European Union amount to the most comprehensive assault yet on Russia’s oil export system.

The effects of this crackdown are already being felt in the water. Earlier this year, a Russian-affiliated tanker docked in Belgium, and was only later identified as part of the shadow fleet, triggering internal reviews across European ports and prompting the introduction of stricter inspection protocols. Since that incident, insurance firms have come under increased scrutiny, maritime monitoring has intensified, and cooperation between European customs and naval forces has expanded. This makes it significantly harder for Russian tankers using falsified or re-flagged registrations to access European ports or services, forcing the fleet into riskier, longer, and more expensive trade routes.

These constraints are showing the effect of a deeper financial crisis. Russia is no longer able to rely on stable dollar-denominated transactions and has instead turned to trading with strategic partners, paying Iran 104 million dollars in gold for Shahed drones and offering weapons and industrial components to North Korea in exchange for artillery shells and frontline soldiers. As covered in a previous report, the Kremlin has also resorted to using cryptocurrency and shell companies based outside of Russia to hide the nature of arms deals and payment transfers. These improvisations may help Moscow stay afloat in the short term, but they reflect how their economic system is losing access to hard currency and struggling to sustain even the most basic elements of war finance.

The geographic consequences are just as significant. With the Baltic Sea under increasing surveillance and the Black Sea heavily contested, Russia has shifted some of its shadow fleet activity to Arctic ports such as Murmansk; however, these are a last resort, as they remain ice-free for only seven to eight months of the year. Yet even these fallback routes are becoming less viable, as the United Kingdom and Norway have increased maritime patrols in the Barents and North Seas, regions where they maintain logistical and geographic naval advantages. The result is a tightening noose around the shadow fleet: as evasion options shrink and enforcement improves, Russia’s ability to maintain oil flows and convert the revenues into weapons faces a steadily rising cost curve.

Overall, the clampdown on Russia’s shadow fleet marks a shift from symbolic pressure to systematic disruption. As enforcement expands from financial tools to maritime routes themselves, Moscow faces a narrowing horizon, where every export, workaround, and transaction becomes harder to hide, more expensive to maintain, and less capable of sustaining the war.

In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.

 

European Parliament lawmakers are pushing to accelerate the EU’s ban on Russian gas imports by one year, moving the deadline from January 2028 to January 2027, Reuters reported on 25 July.

The EU vowed to reduce its dependence on Russian gas following the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The bloc cut imports by more than half since 2022 through diversification to other suppliers and increased LNG (liquefied natural gas) purchases.

The recent proposal comes from deputies representing the Parliament’s largest political group, the European People’s Party, and the Greens, who favor a tougher stance than the European Commission’s June proposal. 

Vaidere has also proposed requiring governments to impose penalties on companies that violate the ban, “potentially including by revoking licences for energy trading,” Reuters reported. Niinisto wants a full ban on Russian oil imports from January 2027, which the European Commission did not propose.

The European Parliament will vote in autumn to confirm its negotiating position with EU countries. The final measures require approval from both Parliament and a qualified majority of EU member states. It means that Hungary and Slovakia cannot block the decision despite their continued imports of Russian pipeline gas and opposition to EU-wide bans.

Under the Commission’s original proposal, the EU would begin phasing out Russian gas imports under new and short-term contracts from January 2026, with complete elimination by January 2028.

Russian gas supplied about 19% of Europe’s needs last year through the TurkStream pipeline and LNG shipments, down from roughly 45% before Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. This share is expected to fall to 13% in 2025 as the EU works to end what it calls “decades-old energy relations with Europe’s former top gas supplier.”

A BBC Russian investigation has documented the deaths of at least 245 eighteen-year-old Russian contract soldiers in Ukraine between April 2023 and July 2025.

This followed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s repeated claims that no 18-year-olds would be sent to fight.

The deaths occurred after Russia quietly dropped restrictions in April 2023 that previously required men to complete at least three months of conscript service before signing military contracts. Now any 18-year-old who has finished school can enlist directly as a contract soldier.

The BBC investigation, part of an ongoing project using open sources to count Russia’s war dead, found that most of the 245 identified soldiers joined the armed forces voluntarily, based on published obituaries. The real numbers are likely higher since not every death is publicly reported.

Russia has avoided national mobilization by offering substantial financial incentives to volunteers, particularly attractive to those in poorer regions with limited job prospects. The military recruitment now extends directly into schools and colleges.

Since the full-scale invasion began, teachers have been legally required to hold classes about the “special military operation.” Military recruiters attend career lessons, and a new subject called “The Basics of Safety and Homeland Defence” was introduced in September 2024, teaching students to use Kalashnikov rifles and hand grenades.

The investigation revealed that since the start of the full-scale invasion, at least 2,812 Russian men aged 18-20 have been killed in Ukraine. By late July, the BBC had established names of 120,343 Russian soldiers killed during the war.

Military experts estimate this represents 45-65% of actual deaths, suggesting total Russian military fatalities could range from 185,143 to 267,500.

In Ukraine, the minimum conscription age is 25, five years higher than Russia’s recruitment threshold.

Ukrainian Security Service long-range drones struck the Signal plant in Russian Stavropol on 26 July, targeting one of Russia’s largest radio electronics manufacturers, hromadske reported, citing a source in the Security Forces.

One of the strikes reportedly hit building No. 2 (workshop No. 5), where” expensive imported equipment is located — machine tools based on numerical program control,” the source told hromadske.

The second strike was recorded in building No. 1, which houses workshop No. 17 for radio electronic devices.

The Signal plant specializes in producing various types of electronic warfare systems, radar, radio navigation equipment, and remote control radio equipment for Russia’s military-industrial complex. The facility operates under international sanctions.

The targeted workshops house critical infrastructure for military production: from imported machinery with numerical program control systems to radio electronic devices essential for military communications and navigation systems.

Russia’s Defense Ministry reported intercepting 54 unmanned aircraft overnight on 26 July across five oblasts, as well as over temporarily occupied Crimea and the Azov and Black Seas. By morning, Russian forces claimed to have downed six additional drones over North Ossetia and Moscow Oblast.

The attack represents a significant strike on Russia’s defense manufacturing capabilities, targeting a facility that produces electronic warfare equipment and radar systems used by Russian forces.

Elon Musk ordered the shutdown of Starlink internet coverage near Kherson during Ukraine’s counteroffensive in September 2022, disrupting military operations and preventing Ukrainian forces from surrounding Russian positions, according to three sources familiar with the command, Reuters reported on 25 July.

According to Reuters, when Ukrainian troops attempted to reclaim territory from Russian forces, Musk instructed a senior SpaceX engineer to cut service in the strategic region north of the Black Sea. The order affected at least 100 Starlink terminals and extended to other Russian-occupied areas including parts of Donetsk province.

“We have to do this,” Michael Nicolls, the Starlink engineer, told colleagues upon receiving Musk’s directive, according to one source. Company staff complied with the order, causing hexagon-shaped cells to go dark on internal coverage maps.

The shutdown created immediate battlefield consequences for Ukrainian forces. Troops faced communications blackouts, surveillance drones lost connectivity, and artillery units struggled to target Russian positions without Starlink’s guidance systems. Ukrainian military officials and advisors confirmed the service failures occurred near front lines during the counteroffensive.

“The encirclement stalled entirely,” a Ukrainian military official told Reuters. “It failed.” The source said Ukrainian forces were unable to surround Russian positions in Beryslav, east of Kherson’s administrative center, due to the communications breakdown.

Despite the setback, Ukraine’s counteroffensive ultimately succeeded in reclaiming Beryslav, Kherson city, and additional occupied territory. However, the shutdown represents the first documented instance of Musk actively cutting Starlink coverage over an active battlefield during the war.

The decision “shocked some Starlink employees and effectively reshaped the front line of the fighting, enabling Musk to take ‘the outcome of a war into his own hands,'” according to another source.

Musk’s intervention contradicts his previous public statements about Starlink operations in Ukraine. In March, he wrote on X: “We would never do such a thing.”

This incident differs from a previously reported September 2022 case near the Black Sea, where CNN reported that Musk disabled Starlink near occupied Crimean coastline to prevent Ukrainian attacks on Russian naval forces. 

Neither Musk nor Nicolls responded to Reuters requests for comment. A SpaceX spokesperson called the reporting “inaccurate” and referenced a company post stating “Starlink is fully committed to providing service to Ukraine.” The spokesperson did not specify inaccuracies or answer detailed questions about the incident.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office and the Ministry of Defence did not respond to requests for comment, according to the report.

Musk said, during a clash with Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski on X, that,“No matter how much I disagree with the Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals.” He claimed that without it, Ukraine’s “entire front line would collapse.”