11 July 2023
NATO
NATO has published the Vilnius Summit communiqué which condemns Russia's invasion, warns China against cooperation with Russia, and expresses support for Ukraine, but does not set specific deadlines for its adoption.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has announced that the first inaugural meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council is scheduled for 12 July. He noted that Ukraine's defence would be discussed on the second day of the NATO summit.
Zelenskyy addressed a crowded rally in support of Ukraine in Vilnius. The rally in central Vilnius was planned as the culmination of a public campaign in support of Ukraine's accession to NATO as the 33rd member.
Security guarantees
The EU wants to commit itself to defending Ukraine for the long haul. The European External Action Service has drafted a plan, obtained by Politico, that recommends the bloc make a full slate of “security commitments to Ukraine” for years to come as it fends off Russia’s onslaught.
International assistance
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius confirmed that Ukraine would not receive long-range Taurus cruise missiles. "If individual partners do this, it is their sovereign decision. We do not intend to change our position," Pistorius said, according to Tagesspiegel.
Germany brought a military package for Ukraine worth almost 700 million euros to the NATO summit in Vilnius, according to Sueddeutsche Zeitung. The package includes two Patriot launchers from the Bundeswehr warehouses, 25 Leopard1A5 main battle tanks, 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, and 20,000 pieces of artillery ammunition.
France will start supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles, President Emmanuel Macron said on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius, as reported by The New York Times. The Ukrainian embassy in France clarified that Ukraine would be supplied with Scalp missiles. These missiles are also known as Storm Shadow, and they are already being supplied to Ukraine by the UK.
In Poland, the French military has trained 1,600 Ukrainian soldiers, Le Parisien reported. The exercise involved 200 French army soldiers, including 120 instructors, who have been training since February. The training lasted 4-5 weeks, taking into account the needs of Ukrainian troops.
War
Twelve houses in Kyiv Region were damaged by the debris of kamikaze attack drones launched by Russia in the early hours of 11 July, according to the regional authorities.
Russia launched a total of 28 kamikaze drones, the Ukrainian Air Force said, adding that 26 attack UAVs and one Zala reconnaissance drone were destroyed.
Two drones hit an administrative office of a port facility in Odesa Region.
Over the past week, special forces of the Security Service of Ukraine's (SBU) Cyber Security Department used kamikaze drones to destroy three Russian video surveillance systems of the Murom and Keever modifications. "The occupiers used them to monitor Ukrainian territory, the movement of our military and adjust their artillery around the clock," the SBU said.
Russians continue to focus their main efforts on the Kupyansk, Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiyivka and Maryinka sectors, where 17 combat engagements took place over the last day, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in its evening update.
The Russians also attacked Ukraine with 28 Iranian-made attack drones over the past day. Ukrainian air defence destroyed 26 UAVs and two Zala reconnaissance drones. The enemy also carried out 54 air strikes and fired 38 times from multiple launch rocket systems.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's aviation carried out 14 strikes on the clusters of Russian personnel, weapons and military equipment and three on anti-aircraft missile systems. Missile and artillery units struck three command posts, 10 artillery pieces at firing positions, an air defence facility and an electronic warfare station.
F-16
Ukraine's Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov has announced the formation of a coalition to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets. The coalition includes 11 countries and Ukraine. They signed a memorandum setting out all the conditions of the training process. The training will start in Denmark in August.
Poland will contribute to the F-16 training of Ukrainian pilots by providing infrastructure and courses.
Ukraine's Delta combat control and information processing system has successfully passed NATO tests, including interoperability with F-16 fighter jets, according to Deputy Prime Minister Mykhaylo Fedorov.
Sergeant rebels against superiors
Chief Master Sergeant of the 47th Separate Mechanised Brigade Valeriy Markus, who is also a well-known Facebook blogger and writer, tendered an application for transfer to a lower position in the brigade. According to his post, he "categorically disagrees with the decisions on the use and development of the 47th Brigade". He accused the superiors of humiliation, lack of competence and sabotage of brigade traditions.
Reshuffle
Ukrainian diplomat Andriy Melnyk has been dismissed from the post of deputy foreign minister, according to Taras Melnychuk, a representative of the Cabinet of Ministers in parliament. Melnyk, who was Ukraine's ambassador to Germany, was granted agreement for his appointment as ambassador to Brazil on 11 May.
Naftogaz
Naftogaz of Ukraine reported a net profit of UAH 7.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, as opposed to a net loss of UAH 24.6 billion in the same period last year. The positive result was attributed to the improved financial performance of the company's key enterprises, according to CEO Oleksiy Chernyshev.
Crime
The Special Anticorruption Prosecutor's Office and the National Anticorruption Bureau of Ukraine served a notice of suspicion of influence peddling to a Ukrainian MP and her assistant. The suspects helped a man leave the country under the guise of a volunteer for a reward. According to social media reports, the MP in question is Lyudmyla Marchenko.
Russia
Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, told Reuters that many in the Russian military sided with Prigozhin. "There are so many commanders who sympathise with Wagner and don't want to follow Putin," he said, adding that he knew of 14 Russian generals who supported Prigozhin.
The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry has released details of the murder of the captain of a Russian submarine from which missiles were fired at Ukrainian cities. The former commander of the Krasnodar submarine, Rzhitsky, was killed in Krasnodar with seven shots while jogging in the 30th anniversary of the Victory Park.