Sunday, June 16
Russia’s war against Ukraine
President of the European Commission Ursula von Der Leyen (L) poses with Volodymyr Zelensky (R) prior to a session of Ukraine’s global peace summit in Lucerne, Switzerland, on June 15, 2024. (Alessandro Della Valle / Pool / AFP via Getty Images)
Zelensky: Ukraine to present action plan to Russia at second peace summit. Ukraine will present an action plan to Russia at a second peace summit once a peace formula is decided, President Volodymyr Zelensky said at Ukraine’s global peace summit in Switzerland on June 15.
Reuters: Draft summit declaration urges respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity. “In particular, we reaffirm our commitment to refraining from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,” the document says.
Zelensky: All parts of the world represented at peace summit. “All parts of the world, all continents, different nations, both large and small geographically, and every political pole of our world—Latin America, the Middle East and Asia, Africa, Europe, the Pacific, Australia, North America—are all represented at the summit,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Zelensky meets leaders of Argentina, Kenya on sidelines of global peace summit. President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Argentine President Javier Milei and Kenyan President William Ruto to discuss bilateral cooperation, trade, and food security.
NYT publishes purported draft of Ukraine-Russia peace treaty from 2022. The Wall Street Journal reported on the content of the unpublished 2022 peace terms already back in March, but the NYT published the 17-page draft in full, verified by participants in the talks.
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At least 70 drones used in attack on Russia’s Morozovsk airbase, Budanov confirms. Rostov Oblast Governor Vasily Golubev said the previous day that Russian air defense units faced a “mass attack” of drones, which caused a fire and disruptions to the local power supply.
Russia suffered 4,000 casualties in a month of fighting in Kharkiv offensive, Ukraine says. Russian forces suffered around 4,000 troops killed or injured during their offensive in northern Kharkiv Oblast between May 10 and June 10, Ukraine’s Khortytsia group of forces said on June 14.
Zelensky: Russia launches 3,500 missiles a month on civilian targets, infrastructure. President Volodymyr Zelensky referred to the KAB missiles, Russian precision-guided weapons used to strike front-line settlements. Zelensky said that the missiles are used on civilian targets to force citizens to flee cities and villages in preparation for Russian occupation.
Russian attacks damage energy facilities, causing power deficit, Energy Ministry says. The attacks caused a deficit in the country’s power supply, requiring additional electricity to be diverted from Poland.
Kremlin bots spam internet with fake celebrity quotes against Ukraine. Fake quotes appeared over photos of celebrities such as Scarlett Johansson and Elton John, calling to end aid to Ukraine and describing European collapse.
Read our exclusives
Ukraine-US 10-year security deal: 5 key takeaways
Less than a month ahead of NATO’s Washington summit, President Volodymyr Zelensky and his American counterpart Joe Biden signed a long-awaited bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy.
Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFP via Getty Images
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Human cost of war
Russian cluster munition strike on Donetsk Oblast village kills 3, injures 5. Russia reportedly hit the settlement with cluster munition launched from a Smerch rocket launcher at around 9 a.m. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of using cluster munitions in attacks against civilian areas.
International response
US announces $1.5 billion in aid for Ukraine, including support for energy infrastructure. The U.S. will provide Ukraine with $1.5 billion in aid to support the country’s energy infrastructure, address urgent humanitarian needs, and bolster civilian security, including the protection of the border, Vice President Kamala Harris said on June 15.
Finnish president: Ukraine in a ‘position of strength’ for path to peace. Finnish President Alexander Stubb noted that this week has favored Ukraine. He highlighted the G7 summit, the start of EU negotiations, NATO support, and Ukraine’s summit, which gathered over 100 representatives. “(Ukraine is) much stronger than what it was three weeks ago, let alone three months ago,” he said.
China calls on Ukraine, Russia to start peace talks ‘as soon as possible’. Geng Shuang, China’s deputy representative to the United Nations, called on Ukraine and Russia to “demonstrate political will” to end the war.
Swiss president: Peace process without Russia is ‘inconceivable.’ Russia must be involved in the peace process with Ukraine, Swiss President Viola Amherd said at Ukraine’s global peace summit in Switzerland on June 15.
Peace summit would yield more results with Russia present, Turkish FM says. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan called the talks “a glimmer of hope to start with” but said they “could have been more result-oriented” if Russia had attended.
EU states won’t be directly involved in $50 billion loan for Ukraine, Italian PM says. EU members will not be for now directly involved in the $50 billion loan for Ukraine, as they will instead focus on developing the guarantee mechanism, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on June 15.
In other news
United Russia party secretary resigns. The move is regarded as a demotion initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who appointed Andrei Turchak earlier this month to serve as governor of the Altai Republic in southern Siberia.
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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Alexander Khrebet, Toma Istomina, Oleksiy Sorokin, Dominic Culverwell, Abbey Fenbert, Martin Fornusek, Liliane Bivings, and Nate Ostiller.
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