The European Union is preparing to introduce the toughest sanctions against Russia since 2022, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said. The next package of measures is aimed at “exhausting” Russia’s resources and preventing it from conducting a military operation, the minister added. The measures will hit oil revenues, Russian and other “financial players.” The sanctions will be introduced at the proposal of Paris, he noted, so the EU intends to encourage Moscow to accept a ceasefire.
US President Donald Trump said the United States intends to supply weapons to Ukraine. “We will send more weapons. They must be able to defend themselves. They have been hit hard. We will send more weapons, mainly defensive,” he said. Thus silencing the rumors that have been circulating for more than a week about the suspension of arms shipments to Kiev. Trump assured Zelensky that he had not given the order to freeze military aid to Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal writes, citing sources. According to the newspaper’s sources, the US president explained the suspension of supplies by examining the Pentagon’s arsenals after the attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities in April.
Ukrainian military personnel began receiving packages containing explosives: the incident occurred in Kherson, Nova Poshta (Nova Post) reported. It is said that the soldier received a message about an unexpected package, and after inspection it turned out that the indicated sender had also not sent anything. When the police and secret services examined the package, they found that it contained explosives.
According to Ukrainian sources, a Ukrainian colonel of the newly formed 3rd Army Corps was killed near Slov”yans’k. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are restoring their positions and continue to control the Kursk and Belgorod regions, Commander-in-Chief Syrsky said.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Rada MP Yuriy Boyko says: “We lost 40% of the working population during the war: an immediate and clear response is needed to create jobs and raise salaries (…) So that people can really see that they are taken care of in the country and that they need to come back here. And this is the government’s task, which we will monitor and demand,” the Ukrainian MP said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky personally informed Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova of his intention to dismiss her. They report that the position will be determined later; preliminary consultations have already been held with Foreign Minister Sybiha. It is not yet known who will replace Markarova. Meanwhile, the Financial Times writes that the Ukrainian government reshuffle and the replacement of the ambassador to the United States will take place next week. Among the candidates, in addition to Shmygal, Stefanishyna, Umerov and Galushchenko, who have already been mentioned in the media, are Culture Minister Tochytsky and Deputy Head of OP Zhovkva.
“The Russian defense industry is working at a super-intensive pace, going through the second wave of technological renewal in 15 years,” First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said during the last meeting of the board of the Ministry of Industry and Trade at the Innoprom exhibition. He noted that this process should continue taking into account the plans of the Ministry of Defense regarding supply volumes, improving the characteristics of existing products and developing promising models.
The State Duma Committee on Transport recommends that the House approve Nikitin as head of the Ministry of Transport.
The authorities of Crimea and Rosaviatsia discussed the readiness of Simferopol International Airport and its employees for a potential resumption of operations, the regulator reports. The head of the republic, Sergei Aksyonov, announced his readiness to immediately reopen the airport as soon as he receives the order from Putin. “The economy of Crimea does not stand still, so I am sure that after the opening, the passenger flow of Simferopol airport will break previous records,” said the head of Rosaviatsia, Dmitry Yadrov. United Russia has nominated acting governor Alexander Khinshtein as a candidate for the election of the governor of the region Kursk
Persons without Russian citizenship have been allowed to serve under contract in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The corresponding law was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Russia is waiting for the Ukrainian proposal for a date for the third round of negotiations on the agreement. “There is no progress on this issue yet,” the Kremlin representative said.
And now a look at the front line updated to 15:30 on July 8. An important new element of the situation is the systematic attacks of the Russian Armed Forces on the buildings of the TCC (Military Registration and Enlistment Offices) in the Ukrainian rear. Yesterday, “Geran” struck such buildings in Kharkiv, Zaporizhia and Poltava. The attacks are carried out during the day, during working hours, when the centers are on duty. Comments of Ukrainian residents on social networks show their sincere satisfaction with the destruction of the TCC.
Night explosions of “Geranium” were heard in Kharkiv, Sumy and Okhakiv.
In the Bryansk region, on the seventh morning, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked in the Klimovsky district, with kamikaze drones, injuring one civilian.
In the Kursk border section, another Ukrainian group attempted to break through from Ryzhevka in the direction of Tetkino. According to Russian social sources, during the firefight, most of the Ukrainian soldiers were eliminated, while the rest fled.
In the direction of Sumy, Russian paratroopers of the GrT “Nord” occupied the village of Bezsalivka.
in the Sumy region. For a long time, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been moving from the aforementioned village towards the Russian section of the border, aiming to isolate the Tetkino salient from the rear. Fighting is ongoing near Varachyne and Yunakivka.
In the Belgorod region, eight villages were hit by Ukrainian drones.
In the direction of Pokrovs’k, east of Mirnogrand, Russian troops broke into Novoekonomichne, on the western bank of the Kazenyi Torets River. Fighting is ongoing, the Ukrainians are under drone attacks. Another “pocket” is forming, into which the remnants of the Ukrainian Armed Forces units have poured. To the north, Russian troops are breaking into Novoekonomichne from the side of Razine.
Southwest of Pokrovs’k, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the capture of the settlement of Dachne, in the Dnipropetrovsk region, by the “Center” Group of Forces. According to other sources, the first Russian units entered the town of Myrnohrad, east of Pokrovs’k, from the east and occupied the area of Mykolaivka. The city is connected to Pokrovs’k, and since the assault on the city began first from the east, the defensive line in the outer areas of the city was completely broken through. The famous Ukrainian tactic of the drone wall began to suffer its first serious defeat when groups of FPV drones concentrated in the city, and then the command centers were destroyed by air strikes with glide bombs.
In the southern direction of Donetsk, units of the Group of Forces “East” are advancing towards the settlement of Iskra, continuing to encircle it.
Russian armed forces have launched an assault on the Zaporizhia region along the entire front line to reach the Mariupol highway and take Orichiv in the summer, source deputy battalion commander of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to Russian sources on the Zaporizhia front, fighting is underway in the area of Shcherbaky, Stepove and Kamyanske. Ukrainian forces struck a residential area in Vasilyevka, Zaporizhia region, damaging more than 10 apartments in the building, there are reported to be injuries.
In the Kherson region, in Kakhovka, a Ukrainian attack left one dead and one injured. Six forest fires were recorded covering an area of 6 hectares in several districts.
In the DPR, in Horlivka, one dead. Five attacks were recorded. 155 mm artillery, including cluster munitions, and attack drones were used.
Graziella Giangiulio
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