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Russia’s war against Ukraine
Protesters gather in response to a bill passed in Ukraine’s parliament — and later signed into law by President Volodymyr Zelensky — that strips independence from anti-corruption bodies, in Kyiv, Ukraine on July 22, 2025. (Danylo Antoniuk/The Kyiv Independent)
‘Veto the law!’ — Protests held across Ukraine after parliament passes bill weakening anti-corruption institutions. Demonstrators gathered in Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, and Odesa to oppose the legislation, which grants sweeping new powers to the prosecutor general over the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).
Zelensky signs law destroying independence of Ukraine’s key anti-corruption bodies. President Volodymyr Zelensky approved the law on July 22 despite large-scale protests against the law, which critics say undermines years of pro-democracy reforms.
Zelensky appoints delegation for peace talks with Russia in Istanbul, signals new POW swaps. The delegation will be led by National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov and include representatives from Ukraine’s military intelligence, the Foreign Ministry, and the Presidential Office.
Ukrainian drones reportedly attack Samara plant making raw materials for Russian artillery, bombs. The target in Samara was the Novokuybyshevsk Petrochemical Company, a major gas-processing and petrochemical facility that supplies raw materials used in the production of explosives, said Andrii Kovalenko, an official at Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.
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Russia to spend $1.1 trillion preparing for ‘upcoming large-scale war,’ Ukraine’s intel chief says. Moscow has launched its most ambitious weapons program since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine’s military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said.
Russia recruits children into drone programs through games, education incentives, media reports. Russian schoolchildren are recruited into drone development and other military programs through seemingly harmless video games, state-run competitions, and promises of academic and career advancement.
Ukraine loses French-made Mirage 2000 fighter jet to reported technical failure. The pilot safely ejected from the aircraft and is now in stable condition, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. A special commission has been appointed to investigate the incident.
Zelensky signs decree enacting moratorium on business inspections. Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council has imposed a moratorium on business inspections by state authorities, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on July 21, calling the move essential for the country’s economic security.
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Zelensky dismantles anti-corruption infrastructure, brings law enforcement agencies under his thumb
Ukraine faced a watershed moment on July 22 as parliament passed, and the president signed, a bill that effectively eliminates the independence of the country’s anti-corruption institutions.
Photo: Ihor Kuznietsov/Novyny
‘Point of no return’ — Ukraine’s democracy under threat as new bill guts anti-corruption efforts
Many described the legislative changes as gutting a decade of hard-fought reforms and reverting to the era of high corruption under former President Viktor Yanukovych.
Photo: Danylo Antoniuk/The Kyiv Independent
Ukraine war latest: Russian troops enter Pokrovsk, Ukrainian ‘search and destroy’ operation ongoing
Speaking to the Kyiv Independent on condition of anonymity, a member of a Ukrainian drone team working out of Pokrovsk reported that Russian soldiers had made it into the city limits, though it wasn’t clear if they had managed to dig in.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images
Human cost of Russia’s war
Ukrainian military releases footage of Russian troops killing civilian in Donetsk Oblast — and Ukraine’s retaliation. Soldiers of Ukraine’s 63rd Separate Mechanized Brigade recorded the shooting and their subsequent retaliation against the three Russian soldiers involved in the murder.
3 killed, 45 injured in Russian strikes across Ukraine, including child killed in Kramatorsk bomb attack. Russian forces launched 42 Shahed-type attack drones and other drones overnight, primarily from Russia and occupied Crimea, Ukraine’s Air Force said. At least 26 drones were shot down, and seven more were lost or suppressed by electronic warfare systems, according to the statement.
Russia attacks Sumy Oblast with drones, injures 11, including 5-year-old child. Russian forces launched a drone strike on Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy Oblast on July 21, injuring 11 people, including a 5-year-old boy, local officials said.
General Staff: Russia has lost 1,044,250 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24, 2022. The number includes 1,090 casualties that Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Opinions and insights
Editorial: Zelensky just betrayed Ukraine’s democracy — and everyone fighting for it
It’s worth remembering that Ukraine’s anti-corruption infrastructure was set up in the years following the 2013-2014 EuroMaidan Revolution. Over 100 protesters were killed before the revolution prevailed. Now, President Zelensky is seeking to dismantle it to protect his associates and expand his power.
Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images
International response
US NATO ambassador warns China over ‘subsidizing’ Russia’s war in Ukraine. “I think they need to be called out for their subsidizing this killing that is happening on the battlefields in Ukraine,” U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said.
Pope Leo to meet Russian Orthodox Church envoy for the first time. The meeting will be the pope’s first audience with the senior Russian cleric, who represented Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, at Pope Francis’s funeral.
Moldova’s opposition forms pro-Russian bloc ahead of key parliamentary vote. The announcement comes as pro-Western President Maia Sandu, who narrowly secured reelection last year, seeks to preserve her parliamentary majority and advance Moldova’s bid for EU accession.
In other news
Russian Supreme Court chair dies at 71 after illness. Irina Podnosova had headed Russia’s chief judiciary body since April 17, 2024, when she was appointed to the post as the only candidate, being nominated by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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