Thursday, July 27

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Relatives of prisoners of war and missing persons attend a meeting with the Verkhovna Rada’s Human Rights Commissioner, Dmytro Lubinets, in Lviv on July 26.

NYT: Ukraine deploys new forces in counteroffensive’s ‘main thrust’. Ukrainian officials informed Washington that Ukraine will now deploy thousands of Western-trained reinforcements previously held in reserve, the New York Times reported on July 26.

Air Force: Russian forces launch missiles against Khmelnytskyi Oblast. Russian forces launched a missile attack on Khmelnytskyi Oblast’s Starokostiantyniv district, the Air Force’s spokesperson Yuri Ihnat said at around 8 p.m. on July 26.

Zelensky asks parliament to prolong martial law, mobilization. President Volodymyr Zelensky submitted a proposal to the parliament on July 26 to extend martial law and general mobilization for another 90 days.

General Staff: Ukrainian troops make gains in Donetsk Oblast. Ukrainian forces have successfully advanced near the village of Staromaiorske in Donetsk Oblast, the General Staff of Ukraine’s spokesperson Andrii Kovalyov said on July 26.

Zelensky says Ukraine received air defense reinforcements. Ukraine has received reinforcements for its air defense capabilities, which will be deployed where they are most needed, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on July 26.

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Air Force: Ukraine downs 36 Russian missiles. Ukrainian forces shot down 33 Kh-101/Kh-555 and three Kalibr cruise missiles launched against Ukraine on July 26, the Air Force reported.

Ukrainian government allocates $1 billion for drone production. The Ukrainian government has allocated Hr 40 billion ($1.08 billion) this year to invest in the drone industry, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on July 26.

UK Defense Ministry: Russian navy changes posture to blockade Ukrainian ports. Following the collapse of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the Russian Black Sea Fleet “has altered its posture” in preparation to enforce a blockade on Ukraine’s ports, the U.K. Defense Ministry said in its July 26 intelligence update.

Ukraine to open state sanctions register. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law introducing a state register of sanctions, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak reported on July 26.

Russia raises conscription age to increase dwindling forces in Ukraine. The Russian State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, voted on July 25 to raise the maximum age of conscription from 27 to 30, according to the state news agency TASS.

Read our exclusives

As more soldiers go missing, desperate families left in limbo

Sixteen months have passed since Halyna Nikiforova’s husband went missing on Ukraine’s eastern front line. But the 40-year-old Sloviansk native still texts him daily stories about their children.

Photo: Diego Herrera Carcedo / Getty Images

Ukraine war latest: Ukraine to receive F-16 training, additional air defense as Russia continues missile barrage

The U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Ukrainian pilots are going to receive training on F-16 fighter jets in Denmark and Romania, while other locations are being considered as well.

Photo: Al Drago / Getty Images

Opinions and Insights

Nathan Greenfield: Ukraine’s use of cluster munitions to evict Russian troops is both legal and just

“The arguments against Ukraine using cluster munitions betray a naivety, if not a disingenuousness, about the hard truths of military history,” writes Greenfield.

Photo: Serhii Mykhalchuk / Getty Images

Human cost of war

Governor: 2 people killed by Russian attacks in Kherson Oblast. Russia has attacked Kherson Oblast 55 times over the past day, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on Telegram on July 26. Two people have been killed and three others injured, he said.

Governor: Russian attacks kill 2 in Donetsk Oblast. Two civilians were killed and two injured in Russian attacks over the past day in Donetsk Oblast, Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported on July 26.

General Staff: Russia has lost 243,680 troops in Ukraine. According to the report, Russia has also lost 4,177 tanks, 8,136 armored fighting vehicles, 7,211 vehicles and fuel tanks, 4,727 artillery systems, 698 multiple launch rocket systems, 457 air defense systems, 315 airplanes, 311 helicopters, 3,993 drones, and 18 boats.

International response

IOC does not invite Russia, Belarus to 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) did not invite Russia and Belarus to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, the IOC announced on July 26.

White House: Ukrainian pilots to receive F-16 training in Denmark, Romania. Ukrainian pilots are going to receive training on F-16 fighter jets in Denmark and Romania, while other locations are being considered as well, U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on July 26.

NYT: Biden orders US government to hand over Russian war crimes evidence to Hague. U.S. President Joe Biden has ordered the government to hand over evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine to the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague, the New York Times reported on July 26.

Moldova expels 45 Russian diplomats, embassy staff over ‘unfriendly actions’. Moldova asked 22 Russian diplomats and 23 members of the Russian embassy’s technical staff to leave the country by Aug. 15, Deschide reported on July 26, citing Igor Zaharov, an advisor to Moldova’s foreign minister.

African leaders begin arriving in Russia for Africa-Russia summit. African leaders have started to arrive in St. Petersburg ahead of the two-day Africa-Russia summit set to start on July 27, the Russian Embassy in South Africa announced on July 26.

NATO-Ukraine Council meets for second time, addresses Black Sea security. The NATO-Ukraine Council met on July 26 to discuss the security situation in the Black Sea region following Russia’s one-sided termination of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

EU ambassadors to adopt ‘restrictive measures’ against Belarus. Ambassadors from the European Union’s member states agreed on July 26 to adopt “restrictive measures” against Belarus due to its complicity in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Italian Senate recognizes Holodomor as genocide. Italy’s Senate, the upper house of the country’s Parliament, voted to recognize Holodomor as a genocide of the Ukrainian people, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on July 26.

In other news

MP from Zelensky’s party investigated for trip to Maldives. Ukrainian law enforcement agencies said on July 26 they had opened an investigation against Yury Aristov, a member of parliament from President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Servant of the People party.

Parliament committee rejects culture minister’s resignation. The resignation of Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko was not supported by a vote by the Parliamentary Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy on July 26.

Poll: Ukrainians trust military over politicians. An overwhelming majority of Ukrainians — 93% — trust Ukraine’s Armed Forces, while 68% distrust political parties, according to survey results published by the Razumkov Center on July 26.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Lili Bivings, Elsa Court, Oleg Sukhov, Daria Shulzhenko, Martin Fornusek, Teah Pelechaty, Daria Bevziuk, and **Abbey Fenbert. **

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