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Russia’s war against Ukraine

A firefighter extinguishes fire after a Russian drone attack in the Moldovanka district of Odesa. Nine people were injured as a result of the attack, and seven were hospitalized, Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper said. Windows of homes were damaged and service station, cars damaged by debris. (Viacheslav Onyshchenko/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Ukraine’s HUR destroys Russian command post in occupied Melitopol in joint operation with partisans. “As a result of the explosion, a satellite communication hardware station—intended by Russian military leadership to coordinate occupying forces—was also destroyed,” Ukraine’s military intelligence said.
Ukraine behind new pipeline explosion in Siberia that supplies Russian military-industrial complex, source claims. A source in Ukraine’s military intelligence told the Kyiv Independent the attack had destroyed a section of a key pipeline supplying Russian military-industrial facilities in Chelyabinsk, Orenburg, and Sverdlovsk oblasts.
Ukrainian drone strikes reported at Russian MiG plant, other defense industry facilities amid mass attack. Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed its forces downed 155 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 53 over Kursk Oblast and 13 over Tula Oblast.
Ukraine deploying interceptor drones to defend Kyiv amid surge in Russian attacks. During several months of testing, the system intercepted nearly 550 Russian drones over Kyiv Oblast, an official said.
‘Aid shipments have been restored,’ Zelensky says amid halt of US weapons deliveries. “We have received political signals at the highest level — good signals — including from the United States and from our European friends. According to all reports, aid shipments have been restored,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
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Germany, Norway ready to buy 3 Patriots for Ukraine, Zelensky says. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine needs a total of 10 Patriots and voiced hope that other European partners will join the new financing scheme.
Ground drone maker Tencore raises $3.7 million in one of the largest known investments in Ukraine defense tech. The deal is one of the largest publicly disclosed investments in Ukrainian defense technology since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.
Russia confirms brigade commander’s death, allegedly linked to Ukrainian strike in Kursk Oblast. Russian authorities confirmed that Colonel Sergei Ilyin, commander of Russia’s 155th Marine Brigade, has been buried, without disclosing the cause of death.
Ukraine, EU launch $117 million military innovation partnership. Ukraine and the EU will allocate 100 million euro ($117 million) to boost battlefield-driven solutions under the newly-launched BraveTech EU initiative, announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) in Rome on July 11.
Russian troops tasked to create 10-kilometer buffer zone in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine’s spy chief says. According to Ukraine’s military intelligence head Kyrylo Budanov, Russia’s earlier announcement of its entry into Dnipropetrovsk Oblast serves a political goal.

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Ukraine war latest: Kyiv behind new pipeline explosion in Siberia, drone strikes reported at Russian aircraft plant
Ukraine was behind the operation that caused an explosion on a major gas pipeline in the city of Langepas, Russia’s Tyumen Oblast, a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent on July 11.
Photo: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images

‘These were not negotiations’ — Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister on Istanbul talks with Russia in exclusive interview
In an interview with the Kyiv Independent, Kyslytsya argues that the Istanbul meetings, for the most part, couldn’t truly be called negotiations due to Russia’s rigid, ultimatum-like approach.
Photo: Danylo Pavlov / The Kyiv Independent

Russia’s new drone tactic — rolling out mass terror across all of Ukraine
As Russia intensifies its air strikes against Ukraine, its tactics have visibly shifted, with a growing number of missile and drone attacks now targeting western regions once considered relatively safe. Overnight on July 9, cities across Ukraine came under the largest air assault yet, with the western city of Lutsk experiencing what local officials described as the heaviest bombardment to date.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos via Getty Images

Ukrainians grapple with how to memorialize a war still being fought
Every nation-defining event in Ukraine’s nearly 35 years of independence has begun in the main square of Kyiv. There, on what is now called Independence Square, democratic protests sparked three revolutions, each commemorated by several memorials. But none of those memorials are as prominent as the square’s newest addition — a collection of flags, photos, and candles installed since 2022.
Photo: Roman Pilipey/AFP via Getty Images
Human cost of Russia’s war
‘Russia targets life’ — Russian attacks kill 9, injure 42 over past day, damaging maternity hospital in Kharkiv. Regional authorities reported casualties in at least six Ukrainian oblasts over the past day.
Russian drone attack on Odesa injures 11, hits residential areas, horse stable. A Russian attack against the southern city of Odesa injured at least eight people and damaged residential areas, local authorities reported.
General Staff: Russia has lost 1,031,620 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022.
The number includes 1,040 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Over 118,000 Russian military personnel killed in Ukraine identified by media, including 523 foreigners. The media investigation has identified 523 foreign nationals from 28 countries who were killed while serving in the Russian army.
How Ukrainian teens are training for war

International response
US Senate committee backs $500 million in Ukraine aid in 2026 defense budget. The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee approved $500 million in aid for Ukraine as part of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Reuters reported on July 11.
Ukraine secures $200 million from World Bank for reconstruction projects. The World Bank will provide $200 million over the next five years to prepare Ukrainian projects for large-scale reconstruction, the Economy Ministry announced on July 11. The funding will be available under the five-year PREPARE program with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA).
EU transfers $1.2 billion to Ukraine using profits from frozen Russian assets. Ukraine has received more than $18.5 billion from frozen Russian assets this year, directing the money toward swift recovery projects, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
Europe will also benefit from US-Ukraine minerals investment fund, Americans say. The Ukraine-U.S. Reconstruction Investment Fund will provide opportunities not only for U.S. companies but also for other countries, representatives of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation said during a workshop at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome on July 11.
Trump’s envoy Kellogg to visit Ukraine on July 14 amid military aid confusion. U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg will arrive in Kyiv on July 14 for a week-long visit, he told a Novyny Live journalist at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome.
Russia must pay at least 500 billion euros in compensation to Ukraine, Germany’s Merz says. Russian assets frozen by the West should not be released until Moscow pays back at least 500 billion euros (over $580 billion) in compensation to Ukraine, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on July 10 in Rome.
Norway pledges $200 million for Ukraine’s emergency energy support, green recovery. According to the Energy Ministry, the initiative will restore heating and water services to millions of Ukrainians, particularly in front-line communities.
EU considering tougher Russian oil price cap as bloc aims to pass 18th sanctions package, Bloomberg reports. The proposed price cap would be set at 15% below the market rate based on a 10-week average, lowering the threshold to $50 down from the current cap of $60, people familiar with the matter said.
Opinions and insights

Trump administration immigration policies leave Ukrainian refugees in limbo
In summer 2023, Anna arrived in the United States to start a new life in the midwestern state of Illinois. After more than a year of war, she had fled her home in Kyiv to seek shelter abroad from the drone and missile strikes that regularly target the Ukrainian capital. Now, she finally had a safe place to settle for the long term. Or so she thought. Today, Anna is again at risk of losing her home.
Photo: Nancy Lane/Boston Herald via Getty Images
In other news
Ukrainian anti-corruption activist faces charges as his team alleges government pressure. “We consider these searches to be another wave of attack on Vitaliy Shabunin and the Anti-Corruption Action Center for criticizing the Presidential Office and (Presidential Office head) Andrii Yermak personally,” the center said.
Ukraine ex-minister’s home searched in connection with controversial lawmaker’s fraud case. Former Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov denied any connections with controversial lawmaker Yevhenii Shevchenko’s fraud case.
Russia arrests truck driver allegedly transporting drones for Ukraine’s Operation Spiderweb. Mediazona’s source said that Mikhail Ryumin was unaware that his vehicle was carrying Ukrainian drones hidden beneath the roofs of the frame house structures.
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