New Russian missile attacks on Ukraine

Kyiv In its efforts to obtain reparations from Russia for the devastating war damage in Ukraine, Kiev sees itself strengthened by the Council of Europe. “It is important that Europe is so united in the interest of an honest peace plan,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his nightly video address on Wednesday.

The 46 states of the Council of Europe had previously passed several resolutions with a signal effect at the end of a summit meeting in Iceland: They adopted a register of war damage in Ukraine, demanded the return of all children deported to Russia and the establishment of a special tribunal.

Zelenski thanks Europe for support

“The Council of Europe has taken an important decision: the final resolution of the Iceland summit supports the Ukrainian peace formula,” Zelenskiy said. He thanked all the heads of state and government of Europe and all member states of the Council of Europe for their position.

The damage caused by the war of aggression, which has been going on for almost 15 months, is to be documented by the Council of Europe so that Russia can be held accountable. In Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, 40 of the 46 states of the organization, which is independent of the European Union, agreed to join the damage register or to do so in the future. Turkey, Hungary, Azerbaijan and Serbia do not want to participate for the time being. The register is seen as the first step towards possible compensation payments to Ukraine.

Zelensky’s peace formula includes, among other things, the demand for a complete withdrawal of all Russian troops from the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea and from the other occupied areas of Ukraine. In addition, it envisages reparations claims against Russia and plans for an international tribunal to try politicians and the military responsible for the war.

New Russian missile attacks on Ukraine

The Russian military again attacked Ukrainian cities with drones and rockets during the night. “In our zone, for which we are responsible, a heavy rocket attack on Odessa was registered in the evening,” spokeswoman for Army Group South Natalya Humenyuk said on television on Thursday. According to them, most of the missiles were intercepted over the sea. “Unfortunately, there are also hits.” One person was killed and two others injured. Anti-aircraft defenses were also deployed over Kiev.

According to the head of the Kiev military administration, Serhiy Popko, all air targets were captured by anti-aircraft defense and shot down. It was the ninth airstrike since early May. “This time the attack was carried out by Tu-95MS and Tu-160 strategic bombers from the Caspian Sea region using Ch-101/555 cruise missiles,” Popko wrote on the Telegram channel of the Kyiv military administration. Rocket debris fell in two districts. A fire broke out in a garage complex. But there were no dead or injured. Mayor Vitali Klitschko confirmed the information.

Kiev has been attacked several times with rockets and drones in recent days. According to Russian information, a US-supplied Patriot air defense system was also destroyed. All that was confirmed in Washington was that the system was “slightly damaged”.

Three dead in Russian shelling of Cherson – Five dead in Donetsk

At least three people were killed in a Russian artillery attack on the Kherson region in southern Ukraine on Wednesday. A five-year-old boy was among the victims, Ukrainian media reported, citing local authorities. Two people were seriously injured in the attack on the village of Zelenivka.

In eastern Ukraine, five people are said to have been killed in Russian-controlled Donbass as a result of shelling by Ukrainian forces. In addition, 23 people were injured in the attacks in the Donetsk region, the Russian state agency TASS reported, citing local authorities. The information about the events in the war zone cannot be verified independently.

Wagner boss Prigozhin sees an advantage for Ukraine in Bakhmut

The head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, confirms an advance by Ukrainian troops in the embattled city of Bakhmut. “Despite the fact that the enemy has only a few percent of the territory in Bakhmut, it doesn’t seem possible to encircle the enemy,” he says in an audio message. “As a result of the enemy’s advance…Russian paratroopers have taken up positions advantageous to the enemy.”

Reuters news agency was unable to verify the situation on the battlefield. “Russian troops lost the initiative on the flanks – our troops cut off those flanks,” Ukrainian military analyst Oleksandr Mussiyenko told NV Radio. The protracted battle commemorates the defeat of Nazi troops by the Soviet Army at Stalingrad in 1943 after five months of heavy fighting.

UN Secretary-General on grain deal: “Good news for the world”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has described the extension of the grain deal between Russia and Ukraine as “good news for the world”. Although some questions are still open, representatives of Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations are trying to find solutions, Guterres said in New York. The agreement is important for global food security – and because it shows that “even in the darkest hour there is always a glimmer of hope and an opportunity to find solutions that help everyone”.

The Turkish government had previously announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed on a two-month extension of the grain agreement. Representatives of both countries confirmed the continuity of the UN-brokered grain corridor until July 18. It allows controlled grain exports from the Black Sea ports of Odessa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyj (Yushny).

Chinese special envoy to talks in Ukraine

China’s special envoy Li Hui has held talks in Ukraine for a peace solution to the war with Russia. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba informed him in detail about the “principles of restoring a lasting and just peace,” the Ukrainian government announced on Wednesday. Kuleba stressed that Ukraine “does not accept proposals that envisage losing its territory or freezing the conflict”.

It was the first time since the war began on February 24, 2022 that China sent a senior diplomat to the country under Russian attack. Li is now expected in Moscow, where President Xi Jinping was received by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin in March. China is accused of being very close to the aggressor Russia and has also met with widespread criticism in the past with an attempt to settle the conflict, because Beijing’s attitude expressed in it was seen as unilaterally pro-Russian.

This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:

Moscow: Patriot battery destroyed near Kiev – USA: Only damaged

The US government denies the Russian account of the alleged destruction of a Patriot air defense system, according to US media reports. The battery defending the capital Kiev was only slightly damaged and can still be used, the reports said, citing anonymous military sources.

The Russian military, on the other hand, reiterated its claim to have destroyed an almost complete Patriot system. As the Ministry of Defense in Moscow confirmed on Wednesday, citing “reliably confirmed data”, the attack on May 16 with a “Kinzhal” (Dagger) type hypersonic missile destroyed not only the battery’s radar guidance system but also five launch ramps. This information could not initially be verified independently.

On Thursday morning, the authorities in Kiev once again informed about intercepted missiles. Three districts on the east bank of the Dnipro were affected. An unoccupied building caught fire from falling debris. For the time being, nothing was known about possible victims.

That will be important on Thursday

Heavy fighting is to be expected again on the fronts in eastern Ukraine.

More: Current news on the development of the Ukraine war can be found in our news blog