North Korea intends to send another 25,000-30,000 troops to Russia in the coming months, CNN reports. Ukrainian special services informed the agency of this based on an analysis of ship and aircraft movements. Kiev believes it is highly likely that these troops are already fighting on Ukrainian territory, and not only in Russia.
They will join the 11,000 who have been fighting for Russia in the Kursk region since last year. About 4,000 of them have been killed or wounded, according to Western intelligence estimates. Kiev says Moscow is able to provide the North Koreans with “the necessary equipment, weapons and ammunition” for “further integration into Russian combat units.” More than 210,000 contract soldiers have joined the Russian Armed Forces in the first half of 2025, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Medvedev said. Medvedev also noted that more than 18,000 volunteers have joined the Russian Armed Forces since the beginning of the year.
The Trump administration announced a freeze on supplies of critical weapons systems to Ukraine. This decision exposes two harsh realities: the depletion of American stockpiles and a radical shift in priorities, from supporting allies to preparing for potential direct conflict.
A Pentagon audit conducted by Elbridge Colby revealed critical shortages in US arsenals, particularly artillery, 155 caliber, and precision ammunition. White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly stated bluntly: “This decision puts American interests first.” Washington would therefore be reallocating resources to potential flashpoints deemed more critical, mainly Taiwan and Israel.
For Ukraine, this decision means that Kiev must now make do with what it has or find alternative suppliers; for Europe in general, it is a wake-up call about the ability or inability of the European defense industry to compensate for US cuts.
The decision shows that for the United States, this is not a temporary pause, but the beginning of a new phase in which every shipment of weapons to Ukraine will be carefully scrutinized.
Kiev, however, was not ready to suspend the supply of American weapons. Ukrainian officials were taken by surprise by Washington’s decision to suspend military aid to Kiev, the Washington Post reports.
“We are trying to find out from the Americans what is really going on,” a Ukrainian official told the newspaper, speaking on condition of anonymity. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned a senior official from the US Embassy in Kiev on July 2 to discuss “military assistance and protection of the United States.”
“Ukraine will not be able to do without supplies of ammunition and air defense systems in the short term,” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said, adding that he understands that the United States must always take its interests into account. However, in his opinion, the United States’ interests also include Ukraine’s victory.
According to Die Welt, Merz promised to send Ukraine more than 500 long-range drones. These are An-196 kamikaze drones with a flight range of up to 1,200 km. They can carry up to 50 kg of explosives.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces will be able to use them in the coming months.
Not only has it blocked the shipment of weapons to Ukraine, but the Trump administration has also lifted sanctions on 11 Russian banks and the Moscow Stock Exchange. The decision is temporary; will be valid until December 19, 2025. However, it allows for the resumption of financial transactions in the energy sector, particularly in the nuclear sector: remember that the US buys uranium from Russia, for example.
Faced with the perceived threat from Moscow, London and Berlin are preparing to sign a far-reaching treaty that promises mutual defense against external threats. The treaty, Politico reported, is scheduled for July 17 and includes a clause from the 2023 “Trinity House Agreement” that states that a strategic threat to one is equivalent to a threat to both.
French President Emmanuel Macron, after a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, told Vladimir Zelensky that the Russian leader would not change his position on the Ukrainian issue, Bloomberg reports. “The French president informed Zelensky that Putin’s position on ending the war in Ukraine has not changed.”
According to Bloomberg, Macron told Zelensky that the Russian president was not ready to conclude a truce on Kiev’s terms.
To Macron, the Russian President would have repeated fully expressed his willingness to talk. The conversation between Putin and Macron was an excellent opportunity to communicate their positions, it was very meaningful and lasted more than two hours. There were no requests for a conversation with Putin from Great Britain and Germany.
Regarding the decision of the United States to suspend the supply of various weapons to Kiev, Putin reportedly said: “As far as we understand, the reason was the lack of ammunition in the arsenals (…) The fewer weapons supplied to Kiev, the closer the end of the SVO,” i.e. military operations in Ukraine.
The dispute between Russia and Azerbaijan is escalating. Baku has demanded that Russia “compensate the victims” due to the actions of Russian security forces in Yekaterinburg. The Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan also added that the use of expressions such as “ethnic criminal group” in relation to Azerbaijanis is unacceptable.
The Russian Embassy, on the other hand, reported that it had received complaints from Russian citizens in Azerbaijan about the use of physical violence, document checks and visits by strangers. People in civilian clothes went to places where people, including tourists, lived, posing as police officers. They asked about the purpose of Russians’ stay in the country, and acts of violence were also carried out against family members.
The Kremlin commented on the situation with Azerbaijan: “Russia does not threaten Baku; the main cause of the events were actions aimed at solving crimes, including those against Azerbaijanis. Moscow sees Kiev’s attempts to unbalance relations between Russia and Azerbaijan as an attempt to provoke tension. The Kremlin has seen footage of detentions and arrests of Russian citizens in Baku; Russia will protect its citizens through diplomatic channels.”
On July 2, Lithuania and Latvia stopped recognizing the five-year passports of Russian citizens. The Russian Foreign Ministry has called on Russians to promptly apply for ten-year biometric passports.
Let’s see the situation at the front as of 17:00 on July 2.
During the night, the Russian Armed Forces attacked targets in the regions of Kharkov, Krivoy Rog, Kherson, Kramatorsk, Dnepropetrovsk, Sumy, Chernigov and Poltava. Attacks were reported on Vilkovo and Izmail in the Odessa region, training sites for saboteurs and a logistics center.
A Ukrainian drone attack was repelled in Novoshakhtinsk and Aksai district of the Rostov region. In the Kursk region, Ukrainian drones attacked the city of Lgov. In the Ukrainian attack on July 1 in Izhevsk, 45 people were injured and three died.
In the Kursk border area, Kiev continues its attacks in the direction of Tetkinsky and Glushkovsky. In the morning, Russian aviation bombed Ukrainian columns in the direction of the state border in the Bessalovka area.
In the direction of Sumy, Ukrainian forces will use units of the Airborne Forces, GUR and SDF as infantry, trying to recapture lost positions and stop the Russian advance: ten unsuccessful counterattacks in the direction of Andreevka, two in the Novonikolayevka area, three in Yunakovka and four near the village of Sadki. However, the pace of the Russian offensive has slowed down. According to the Russian social sphere “Our paratroopers advanced into the forests of the Sumy region during fierce fighting and evacuated four houses in Yunakovka”.
In the Belgorod region, in the village of Oktyabrsky, a Ukrainian drone exploded near a business, one injured.
North of Dzerzhinsk (Toretsk), on the right flank of the Konstantinovsky direction between Yuzhnaya Dyleevka and Severnaya Dyleevka, the Russian Armed Forces closed the “pocket” and advanced into the forest belt west of the Seversky Donets-Donbass canal.
In the direction of Dnepropetrovsk, southwest of Pokrovsk (Krasnoarmeysk), the Russian Armed Forces advanced on a wide front in the area of the settlements of Novoretskoye, Koptevo and Mirnoye, an advance admitted by the Ukrainians. Further south, after the capture of Dachnoye in the Dnepropetrovsk region, further offensive actions by the Russian Armed Forces were reported.
In the direction of South Donetsk, the Russian Armed Forces report that the assault groups of the 36th Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade have completely cleared the territory along the Mokry Yaly riverbed west of Krasnaya Zvezda (Chervona Zirka). Ukrainian counterattacks, trying to seize the initiative: during the day, 9 unsuccessful attempts were reported in the areas of Shevchenko, Zelyony Pole, Novodarovka and Levadny. The Russians continue to move towards Malievka.
In the Kherson region, the power line in the Kakhovsky district is damaged. Ukrainian shelling of Novaya Kakhovka, Velikaya Lepetikha, Golaya Pier, Dneprany, Zhelezny Port, Cossack camps, Kostogryzovo, Korsunka, Knyaz-Grigoryevka, Magdalinovka, Markeev, Novaya Zburyevka, Novaya Mayachka, Podstepnoe, Rybalche and Tavriysk. There are 9 hectares of burned forests in the region.
Units of the Northern Group of Forces in the Sumy region have improved the situation along the front line. They inflicted losses in personnel and equipment on two mechanized brigades, one Ranger, three airborne assault brigades, three assault regiments and one assault battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the areas of the settlements of Varachino, Sadki, Proletarskoye, Bessalovka, Mogritsa, Alekseyevka, Yunakovka and Andreyevka in the Sumy region.
In the direction of Kharkov, units of the motorized infantry brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the territorial defense brigade were defeated in the areas of the settlements of Ogurtsovo and Volchansk, Kharkov region.
Graziella Giangiulio
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