Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 07-10-2024

Partisans claim the factory is facing critical problems trying to produce turbojet and turbofan engines as replacements for Western aircraft powerplants, along with rocket motors for missiles.

The Atesh partisan movement reported on Telegram that one of its agents had carried out reconnaissance of the Russian Tyumen Engine Plant, a key enterprise in the Russian military aviation industry.

“Our agent has collected information about the plant, which is involved in the development and production of military helicopters and aircraft, including fighters, bombers, and transport aircraft,” read the caption to the photos released in the report.

Aramco reported record profits in 2022 – after Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent oil prices soaring, allowing Saudi Arabia to record its first budget surplus in nearly a decade.

Saudi Aramco netted $12.35 billion, $1 billion more than expected, from a secondary share sale after exercising an over-allotment option, the deal's stabilizing manager said on Wednesday.

An additional 154.5 million shares were issued in response to demand from investors, Merrill Lynch Kingdom of Saudi Arabia said, taking the total number to nearly 1.7 billion.

The Norwegian government has announced additional funding to allow NAMMO to increase the production of 155mm artillery and 120mm tank ammunition as well as AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles.

The Norwegian Defense Materiel Agency announced on Tuesday, July 9 that it had signed an agreement worth more than NOK1 billion ($94 million) with the Nammo aerospace and defense company intended to significantly expand production of artillery ammunition.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said: “Ukraine has an enormous and urgent need for ammunition and weapons… This agreement will make it possible for Nammo to expand production of highly sought-after military equipment. This is of great importance for Ukraine, for Allied security and for our own national preparedness.”

Riyadh denied the Bloomberg report, saying it did not threaten to sell euro and French bonds as a way to influence the G7 into not seizing $280 billion of Russia’s frozen assets.

Saudi Arabia may have influenced the G7’s reluctance to seize $280 billion of Russia’s frozen assets directly.

According to Bloomberg sources, the Saudis hinted they could sell some Eurobonds and French bonds if the G7 tried to punish Russia for its Ukraine invasion by making all of Russia's frozen foreign assets available for Ukraine's defense and reconstruction.

A year before the full-scale invasion, Russia produced only 56 Kh-101 missiles, since then the Kremlin has forced factories to work around the clock, increasing production eightfold.

The Kh-101 is one of Russia's most advanced cruise missiles. Moscow used it to strike the Ohmatdyt children's Hospital in Kyiv on Monday, July 8.

Now Russia is producing almost eight times more Kh-101 long-range cruise missiles as it was at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Financial Times reported.

Investigative journalists constructed a 3D model of the rocket and thoroughly analyzed photographs of the wreckage of the Kyiv children’s hospital.

Bellingcat has verified that a Russian X-101 missile struck the Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv on Monday, July 8. Journalists from the investigative group used open-source data, including video footage and photographs of debris from the scene, to make their conclusion.

The strike on the Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital killed at least two hospital workers and injured 16 others, including at least three children. However, the complete number of casualties remains uncertain.

“Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum,” ancient Roman historian Cornelius Nepotus was said to have summed up an idea of Plato’s. Nothing could be more timely for NATO.

The shadow of the Big War has fallen on the world again. If until now it was only a frightening sensation, the result of the Peace Summit, which Ukraine held in Switzerland on June 15-16, 2024, made a final diagnosis: the world is again divided. There is a war between the bloc of Western democracies and the alliance of Eastern tyrannies. The Global South has taken a neutral position and is waiting to see who will win in this coming battle. However, as it has always done before. With periodic attempts to bargain their position between the blocs.

At the same time, the new Axis of Evil – China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, as well as the wavering countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, consider Ukraine to be part of this Western bloc and a de facto member of NATO, even though our partners are delaying this recognition. The war that Russia has unleashed in Ukraine is not a regional conflict. It is a war on the territory of Ukraine of democracies against tyrannies, which once again challenged the established world order, the observance of which has been monitored by the US and NATO for more than 30 years.

FX bills cover budget needs

Yield curve of UAH-denominated domestic government bonds placed during past two auctions

The Ministry of Finance increased borrowings yesterday to UAH12.6bn from UAH9.4bn a week before, thanks to the FX-denominated bills offering. Demand for UAH bonds decreased slightly, concentrated in the 14-month paper.

The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed the capture of Yasnobrodivka, a village in the Donetsk Region, on Tuesday. A Ukrainian spokesman flatly denied the claim.

On Tuesday, July 9, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that Russian forces had taken control of Yasnobrodivka, in the Donetsk region, thus improving their tactical position.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) deny the capture of the village about 17 kilometers west of Avdiivka.

Ukraine’s minister of strategic industries said the goal is to “promote joint Ukrainian-US defense projects” and help integrate the country into NATO’s defense industrial base.

Ukroboronprom, Ukraine’s state-owned arms enterprise, opened its first foreign representative office in Washington DC on Tuesday, July 9, at the same time as the NATO Summit was taking place.

“On the sidelines of the #NATOSummit we opened the first foreign office of @ukroboronprom – in Washington, USA. Its main task is to promote joint US-Ukrainian defense projects and enhance our integration into NATO’s defense industrial base,” the Minister of Strategic Industries Alexander Kamyshin announced on social media.

The creation of the new unit was part of a wider security agreement signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk earlier this week.

The Ukrainian military has launched a new initiative to entice fighting-age men living abroad to enlist, as Kyiv desperately tries to replenish its depleted forces on the front lines.

The establishment of the so-called "Ukrainian Legion" comes after more than two years of hard fighting, which has seen heavy casualties drain the military of much-needed manpower to hold off Russia's advancing forces.

The bill is likely influenced by the March 2024 Crocus Hall terrorist attack in Moscow and calls for the expansion of criteria used to deport “undesirable” migrants.

Russia’s State Duma, the lower chamber of the Russian parliament, has voiced its support for a bill that expands the criteria to deport “undesirable” migrants.

The bill was introduced by Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and added 20 more articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses to the expulsion criteria, including, but not limited to, the following:

Serhiy Kolyada: No peace until the Rasszist beast is slain.

The newly appointed UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the policy towards Ukraine remains unchanged and it’s up to Kyiv to decide how to use the long-range weapons the UK has provided.

Sir Keir Starmer, the UK’s new prime minister, said his government’s stance towards Ukraine remains unchanged from its predecessor while traveling to the NATO summit late on Tuesday, July 9. This includes the policy on using British long-range weapons to strike targets inside Russia.

Prompted by a Bloomberg reporter on Ukraine’s use of Storm Shadow cruise missiles, Starmer agreed it was up to Ukraine how it used them “for defensive purposes,” as long as it is done “in accordance with international humanitarian law.”

Russian authorities in 58 regions have erected memorials to over 400 murderers, rapists, drug dealers and armed robbers who died in the war against Ukraine.

The independent Russian news site Verstka published the results of a study it has done into the practice of honoring convicted criminals as “war heroes.” After examining local and national news reports, including figures published by Mediazona and the BBC Russian Service, it has identified 58 regions that have commemorated the memory of 408 former prisoners who were released to fight in President Vladimir Putin’s so-called “special military operation.”

Murderers, rapists, drug dealers, armed robbers and others convicted of violent crimes are remembered in individual memorial plaques placed on schools and residential buildings, school information stands, memory corners and desks dedicated to individual “heroes,” lanes and city streets have been renamed and are decorated with their portraits, museum exhibitions and sports competitions are organized in their honor, trees are planted, and their names are added to memorials erected to the dead from past conflicts including those of the “Great Patriotic War.”

Kicking off three days of events for the 32-nation alliance with a celebration Tuesday evening, Biden announced a new air defense system for Kyiv and urged unity against Vladimir Putin.

NATO leaders meet Wednesday for their 75th anniversary, seeking ways to ramp up support for Ukraine as deadly Russian strikes and political uncertainties in the West stir new concerns.

With the pomp of a summit in Washington, President Joe Biden is aiming to rally the West and also reassure US voters amid intense pre-election scrutiny on whether at 81 -- six years older than the alliance -- he remains fit for the job.

Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky’s partner, Gennady Bogolyubov, allegedly fled the country to avoid potential prosecution in the Privatbank criminal embezzlement case – spokesperson denies this.

Ex-Privatbank owner Gennady Bogolyubov allegedly fled Ukraine to avoid being served a notice of suspicion and potential prosecution in the criminal embezzlement case involving the institution – Bogolyubov’s press service says he left the country legally.

There are two versions of why Bogolyubov left Ukraine: because of the potential notice of suspicion from the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine or because he left the country to see his children abroad, as reported by sources of Ukraine’s leading media outlet Ukrayinska Pravda on Sunday.

The West needs to take specific and concrete steps now to help Ukraine grind the Kremlin’s brutal geopolitical conquest to a halt and prevent a Third World War.

A disturbing combination of troubling geopolitical developments needs to be addressed by the West to prevent the Kremlin being further emboldened in its imperialist quest to progressively endanger our collective security.

These troubling developments include:

The striking summons for the International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors comes amid international outrage over the missile attack on the Okhmatdy paediatric hospital in Kyiv on Monday.

The UN nuclear watchdog will hold a special meeting Friday after Ukraine accused Russia of undermining atomic safety by shattering a radiation-equipped children's hospital, according to a confidential document seen by AFP.

The striking summons for the International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors comes amid international outrage over the missile attack on the Okhmatdy paediatric hospital in Kyiv on Monday.

Russia attacked cities across Ukraine on Monday with a missile barrage that killed more than three dozen people and ripped open the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv.

Rescuers cleared rubble at a children's hospital in Kyiv on Tuesday, a day after a Russian missile strike, as the Ukrainian capital observed a day of mourning.

Like similar attacks in the past, the Ukrainian government and the Kremlin gave conflicting versions of what happened.

This railway is used to transport military equipment and Russian troops to the combat zone in Ukraine.

The Atesh partisan movement reported on Telegram the sabotage of the Rostov-on-Don – Mariupol railway, which the Russians use to transport military equipment and troops to the war in Ukraine.

“Our agent burned a relay cabinet on the Rostov-on-Don – Mariupol railway,” read the caption accompanying the photos and video.

A volunteer says she and several others fell ill after drinking from bottled water brought to the scene of the July 8 missile strike. Police also affected.

A case of apparent poisonings at the location of the partially destroyed Ohmatdyt children’s hospital in Kyiv has sparked speculation on social media.

A volunteer reported late at night on Monday, July 8, that she and two police officers fell ill after drinking from bottled water apparently brought to the scene by unidentified individuals.

Turkish Aerospace Industries reveals several of its weapon systems are equipped with engines made in Ukraine; Kyiv hopes to join Ankara’s fifth generation fighter project and acquire the stealthy jet.

Turkish Aerospace Industries reveals several of its weapon systems are equipped with engines manufactured in Ukraine. Recently, Kyiv’s ambassador said Ukraine also wants to join Ankara’s fifth-generation fighter project, in a consortium with TAI and BAE, to help build and acquire the stealthy jet.

Mehmet Demiroglu, the new CEO of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI / TUSAŞ) told the Turkish media outlet gdh TV that Ukrainian-made engines are used in its ATAK-2 attack helicopters, T925 multipurpose helicopters as well as the Anka-3 UAV, which completed its first test flight in December.

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a joint statement on July 9 about strengthening mutually beneficial political, economic, energy, and military-technical cooperation between Russia and India.
• Putin has been intensifying efforts to strengthen Russian relations with non-Western countries through individualized appeals, although he is likely emphasizing Russo-Indian cooperation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and BRICS as part of a wider Russian effort to create an alternative "Eurasian security architecture" leveraging existing Eurasian multilateral organizations.
• Modi tacitly supported the Kremlin's false narrative that Russia is interested in a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the war in Ukraine, likely in exchange for deepening economic, energy, and technological cooperation with Russia.
• Putin may have pledged to return Indian volunteers fighting in Ukraine during a private dinner with Modi in Novo-Ogaryovo, Moscow Oblast on July 8.
• Some unnamed US government officials appear to believe that Ukraine does not need to liberate its occupied lands and people to win the war, despite Russian President Vladimir Putin's recent clear statements that Russia will not accept a negotiated ceasefire on any terms other than Ukrainian capitulation and will not abandon its goals of the total destruction of the entire Ukrainian state--not just the lands it currently occupies.
• Several independent investigations, including one conducted by the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), concluded that a Russian missile struck the Kyiv City Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital on July 8 amid continued official Russian denials and deflections.
• Ukrainian forces conducted a series of drone strikes against Russian energy and military infrastructure in Belgorod, Kursk, Rostov, Astrakhan, and Volgograd oblasts overnight on July 8 to 9.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed new military prosecutors on July 8, likely in support of ongoing, long-term Russian military reforms.
• Newly-elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated Iran's continued willingness to enter a comprehensive strategic partnership with Russia, emphasizing the continuity in Iran's support for Russia even under a new presidential administration.
• The US Department of Justice (DoJ) released affidavits on July 9 for several hundred X (formerly Twitter) accounts and domain names used by Russian state media and security services to operate a bot farm aimed at spreading disinformation in the US and abroad.
• Russian forces recently made confirmed advances southeast of Chasiv Yar, near Avdiivka, and southwest of Donetsk City, and Ukrainian forces recently advanced north of Kharkiv City.
• Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree ordering the reestablishment of the Saratov Higher Artillery Command School on July 8, likely as part of ongoing efforts to build out a cadre of Russian officers.
• Russian authorities continue to deploy Rosgvardia contingents to occupied Ukraine to serve law enforcement functions.