According to CBS, Jared Kushner with the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, Rustem Umerov. Umerov presented President Zelenskyy’s request to Trump to establish a Patriot missile production line in Ukraine.
Also regarding weapons, Poland has definitively refused to hand over its MiG-29s to Ukraine; they will be scrapped, Reuters reports. The Polish MiG-29s, which were supposed to be transferred to Ukraine in exchange for Ukrainian drone technology, will reportedly be gradually phased out.
Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz stated that Kiev initially agreed to the exchange, but later “did not honor the agreement.” “If Ukraine is already capable of selling drones to Kuwait and profiting from them in wartime, then it is also capable of reciprocating with those who supply it with equipment and, sometimes symbolically, sharing its own capabilities,” Kosiniak-Kamysz stated. Asked why Ukraine is not doing so, Kosiniak-Kamysz stated that Kiev is prioritizing its historic disputes with Poland for domestic political reasons.
Ukraine and Germany are discussing, within a joint working group, mechanisms for the repatriation of men of military age who have left for abroad, according to Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Oleksii Makeiev.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, in an interview with the FT, returned to the peace agreement, stating that Ukraine has begun to demonstrate successes in the conflict with Russia, a success also recognized by US President Donald Trump during a meeting with the NATO Secretary General at the White House. However, according to Rutte, this does not mean that the Russian side will “voluntarily participate” in the peace process. According to the FT, over the past 19 months, Russia has carried out 144 drone sorties in European airspace and identified weaknesses in NATO’s air defense system.
Regarding the Russia-Ukraine negotiations, there is pessimism in the Rada: Rada MP Bezugla said, “There will be no peace, no elections, neither in 2026 nor 2027. World War III is only gaining momentum.” And again: “There will be no peace, the war will last at least another four years: Russia plans to fight until 2030.” Rada MP Oleksandr Kachura.
Zelenskyy, on the other hand, threatened Russia: “He will receive a response for the attack on Kiev, that’s for sure; Putin is simply physically afraid of our meeting.”
Further statements by Zelensky: “We support a just peace, a just end to the war. And until that happens, we support just responses. Putin is losing this war. That’s what’s happening. He clearly understands that he can intimidate people and simply destroy civilians with missile strikes. If our partners had kept their promises, we could have saved our homes and our people today; that’s a big problem. To intercept about 70 ballistic missiles, Ukraine needs at least 140 Patriot missiles.”
In Russia, the debate is centered on issues such as elections and fuel shortages. The Russian Central Election Commission has sent invitations to 12 international organizations and 103 countries to observe the State Duma elections, according to Ella Pamfilova, chairwoman of the Central Election Commission.
The Russian New People party has announced the leaders of its list for the State Duma elections. The list was headed by Alexey Nechayev, Vladislav Davankov, and Sardana Avskentieva. A total of 382 candidates from all regions were nominated at the congress. According to party leader Alexey Nechayev, these are people of a new generation, who advocate a policy of trust, not restrictions. All the candidates have worked in the real economy and understand modern life.
Fuel shortages in Russia’s regions have caused delays in food deliveries. According to Fontanka, producers have begun notifying partners that they cannot meet delivery deadlines due to the fuel shortage. In Karelia, market participants are not reporting fuel shortages, but are complaining about queues at gas stations. According to the head of a food company, refueling times have increased from 10 minutes to two hours. Transportation costs are also expected to rise. Carriers have already begun to include the new costs in their service rates, with an increase of approximately 5%.
Russian oil companies have almost completely halted exports of Diesel fuel by sea. According to RBC, citing the Center for Price Indices, supplies were redirected to the domestic market due to unscheduled maintenance at refineries and increased demand. However, there is no formal government ban on fuel exports.
From June 22 to 28, exports of light petroleum products from Russian ports decreased by 40% compared to the previous week, reaching 23,000 tons per day. Shipments were handled only from the port of Ust-Luga, and their volume consisted of naphtha from the NOVATEK export refinery.
Putin supported the request of the governor of the Kaliningrad region for priority delivery of additional fuel to the region and the allocation of funds for discounted airfares for residents, Dmitry Peskov announced. The president also supported the initiative to purchase additional ferries for the region.
Security forces foiled a terrorist attack on a railway line in Pyatigorsk and arrested a citizen of a Central Asian country, a supporter of an international terrorist organization, according to the FSB. The man had taken photographs at the site of the alleged terrorist attack and purchased chemicals for making Molotov cocktails. The detainee’s actions were orchestrated by a Syrian agent. A criminal case has been opened.
General Alexander Dembitsky, former commander of the 44th Army Corps of the Leningrad Military District, has been arrested. He is being held at the Lefortovo pre-trial detention center. According to RBC sources, he is charged in connection with the Yastreb private military company fraud case. A committee with civil defense and security functions is being established in the Leningrad Region, as announced by regional governor Alexander Drozdenko.
The new committee’s primary task is to coordinate systemic activities to ensure the protection of residents, businesses, and critical infrastructure in the region from drone threats, support military and border units stationed in the region, and assist Leningrad soldiers in the Northern Military District.
The Russian Defense Minister inspected the troops and forces of the Black Sea Fleet.
Finally, it should be noted that an official Russian delegation traveled to Tehran for the funeral of Khamenei, his daughter-in-law, and his granddaughter.
And now a look at the frontline, updated at 3:30 PM on July 3. The fire in the Chernobyl exclusion zone has turned into a firestorm. The flames have intensified in recent days, and smoke is increasingly enveloping Kiev. According to Ukrainian sources, Russian forces have advanced near Kostyantynivka and have also become more active in the direction of Slovyansk. The mandatory evacuation zone is being expanded in Kharkiv Oblast, according to the regional administration. It affects several settlements in the districts of Kupyansk, Bohodochiv, and Kharkiv. In some communities, forced evacuations of children are planned.
Late in the evening of July 2, additional drones entered Crimea in two waves; the Ukrainians concentrated their efforts on the peninsula after midnight. Several drones were destroyed as they approached the capital and in the Tula region, while in the Zaporizhia region, a clash with enemy drones occurred.
In the Bryansk region, on the border with Belarus, Ukrainian forces used fixed-wing aircraft to attack a tourist bus traveling from Minsk to Anapa. Two drivers were injured.
In the Sumy region, in the district of Shostka, GV Sever attack aircraft continue to engage in light-weapons fire in Bachivsk. In the Sumy region, Russian forces are engaged in fierce fighting and are advancing. Light-weapons fire continues in Pysarivka, Marine, the village of Nova Sich, and the town of Khotin. In the Krasnopilskyi region, fighting continues in wooded areas.
In the Belgorod region, five people were injured in three separate drone strikes. Ukrainian forces are targeting all types of vehicles and civilian targets.
In the Kharkiv region, the Northern Forces group is engaged in counterattacks in the village of Kozakha Lopan and adjacent wooded areas. In the Vovchansk sector, fighting continues near the cemetery in the village of Losivka, at Zemlyanyi Yar, and in the areas surrounding the village of Bilyi Kolodyaz. In the Velykyi sector, Burluk, clashes are ongoing in the village of Petro-Ivanivka, as well as in wooded areas near the villages of Budarky and Zemlyanky.
From the Kupyansk sector, footage has emerged online of Russian assault groups operating near the southern outskirts of Novoosynove.
Fighting is ongoing in the northern part of Kostyantynivka. Operations by separate Russian groups have been reported online in Oleksiyevo-Druzhkivka, further north.
In Donetsk, Ukrainians attack major roads, leaving two injured.
In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, soldiers of the Eastern Group of Forces advanced, capturing strongholds northwest of Bohodarivka and east of Dobropasove.
In eastern Zaporizhia Oblast, units of the Eastern Group of Forces continued to advance deep into Ukrainian defenses west of Novoselivka, Kopani, Rivne, and Lisne. After capturing Kopani, Russian forces continued to strike at Ukrainian defenses in the west.
Graziella Giangiulio
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