Ukraine’s Destruction of Russian Vessels Causes more than Military Damage

NATO leaders, especially America’s top military command, are certainly scratching their heads wondering why they haven’t yet accepted Ukraine into its Euroatlantic fraternity.

On the other side, Russia, the former second mightiest military force on the planet that is facing defeat if not a questionable victory, is perhaps grateful that Ukraine’s demonstrated military prowess has been kept outside of the alliance.

While Ukraine has forced Russian cutthroats to a standstill on the ground, it is successfully striking Russian vessels with ferocious precision that gives new meaning to the phrase “shooting ducks in a barrel.”

The tactical objective of Ukraine’s drone strikes is “functional destruction.” Utilizing specialized 50-100 kg (110.23 to 220.46 lbs.) warheads, drones systematically disable a vessel’s bridge, steering gear, and communications arrays, before targeting fuel manifests to trigger uncontrollable onboard fires. In response to the scale of these casualties, Russian maritime authorities have been forced to temporarily suspend all commercial navigation through the Don-Azov Canal and the Kerch Strait in mid-July 2026.

According to maritime intelligence, multiple Russian tankers have been left burning, crews have had to be evacuated, and Russia’s domestic ship-repair facilities now lack the capacity to handle dozens of heavily damaged commercial vessels simultaneously. In fact, as of the weekend of July 11-12, Russia has reportedly been forced to completely halt commercial shipping navigation through the Don-Azov Canal and the Kerch Strait due to the severity of Ukraine’s threat.

The situation over the weekend of July 11-12 has escalated dramatically into a massive, highly coordinated campaign targeting Russian maritime logistics. Ukraine’s newly formed Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) – specifically the drone units led by Maj. Robert "Magyar" Brovdi —have launched relentless nightly strikes primarily targeting Russia’s “shadow fleet” in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, an inland body of water considered by Moscow as its domestic lake.

The primary strategist behind this campaign is Maj. Robert Brovdi, widely known by his callsign “Magyar” (a reference to his Hungarian descent and roots in Uzhhorod, Zakarpattia, Ukraine). Brovdi has earned the distinction of being known as the bane of the Kremlin and Russia’s military command. His battlefield strategy, tactics and successes have made him the most feared and hated Ukrainian officer of the war.

Fear of Brovdi's units among Russian forces stems from systematic precision and psychological integration of his campaign:

Pioneering Drone Doctrine: Long before the formal creation of the Unmanned Systems Forces, Brovdi’s unit treated drone warfare as an exact science, mastering custom-built FPV strike drones and large night-bomber octocopters.

Psychological Warfare: Brovdi’s detached, calm narration style over strike videos – utilizing signature catchphrases and physical mapping indicators –has established a potent psychological footprint, lowering adversary morale.

Asymmetric Maritime Shift: The transition from tactical trench operations in the Donbas to sweeping maritime interdictions demonstrates how low-cost, decentralized technology can paralyze traditional naval assets without requiring a conventional navy.

The latest data shows a historic surge in the number of hit vessels, aiming squarely at crippling fuel supplies and isolating occupied Crimea.  

According to official updates from the Ukrainian General Staff and Major Brovdi, this weekend’s strikes added massive numbers to the tally of damaged Russian vessels:

Night of Friday, July 10 – Saturday, July 11: A colossal raid struck 28 Russian vessels in the Sea of Azov. This included 21 oil tankers, 4 tugboats, 2 dry cargo ships, and 1 dredger. Concurrently, the SBU used a Sea Baby naval drone to hit another shadow fleet tanker in the Black Sea.  

Night of Saturday, July 11 – Sunday, July 12: Drone operators struck another 14 vessels overnight, specifically knocking out 10 tankers and 4 crucial ferries.  

Night of Sunday, July 12 – Monday, July 13: The momentum carried straight into this morning, with an overnight strike hitting 15 more vessels (7 tankers, 5 dry cargo ships, 1 ferry, and 2 tugboats).  

The shocking total for the weekend is 57 vessels targeted and a broader eight-day tally of 105 ships. This concentrated offensive, which began in earnest around July 6, represents a major strategic shift toward disrupting Moscow’s maritime fuel supply lines to make up for disrupted land routes. It’s also a 55% drop in active shipping.

While the recent drone blitz has heavily targeted the commercial “shadow fleet” tankers supplying the front line, it represents the second phase of a broader naval strategy. Ukraine has spent the past four years systematically dismantling Russia’s actual navy—the Black Sea Fleet—despite not having a functional navy of its own.

By combining Neptune anti-ship missiles, Storm Shadow cruise missiles, and Magura V5/Sea Baby maritime drones, Ukraine has sunk, destroyed, or heavily damaged roughly one-third of Russia’s Black Sea warships. This campaign has effectively broken the Russian naval blockade and forced Moscow to withdraw its remaining major assets from occupied Crimea to safer ports like Novorossiysk.

Unlike the commercial tankers carrying raw oil and grain, these warships carried the literal teeth of Russia’s maritime campaign:

Kalibr Cruise Missiles: Corvettes like the Tsiklon and the Rostov-na-Donu submarine were high-priority targets precisely because they carried vertical launch cells for Kalibr cruise missiles. These weapons were regularly used to strike Ukraine's energy grid and civilian infrastructure.

Heavy Armor and Logistics: The Ropukha-class landing ships acted as a floating bridge. When the physical Crimean Bridge was damaged, these ships were stuffed with heavy military vehicles, main battle tanks, and tons of artillery ammunition to resupply the southern front lines. When the Novocherkassk was hit in Feodosia, secondary explosions proved it was heavily loaded with ammunition (suspected to be Iranian-made Shahed drones).

Air Defense Systems: The flagship Moskva carried long-range S-300F missile systems meant to lock down the airspace over the entire Black Sea. Losing it left the rest of the fleet highly vulnerable to air attacks, which paved the way for Ukraine to successfully strike subsequent targets.

Ukraine’s warship campaign has completely changed how the naval war is fought. On land, Ukraine’s successful drone warfare has launched a new, historic strategy of fighting the enemy. By utilizing low-cost, explosive-laden robotic boats, Ukraine also proved that massive, multi-million-dollar steel warships can be systematically overwhelmed. This complete loss of naval dominance in the western Black Sea is exactly what forced Russia to rely on the smaller, commercial shadow-fleet vessels in the Sea of Azov – the very ships that are now the target of Ukraine's current drone campaign.

While these warheads are rarely large enough to instantly sink a massive steel hull, the tactics are intentionally designed to achieve functional destruction:  

1. Immobilization: The first drone strikes typically target the bridge/deckhouse to destroy steering equipment, communications, and electronics.  

2. Ignition: Subsequent drones target the main deck near fuel hatches to ignite intense, long-burning fires.  

According to maritime intelligence, multiple tankers have been left burning, crews have had to be evacuated, and Russia's domestic ship-repair facilities lack the capacity to handle dozens of heavily damaged commercial vessels simultaneously. In fact, as of this weekend, Russia has reportedly been forced to completely halt commercial shipping navigation through the Don-Azov Canal and the Kerch Strait due to the severity of the threat.

The primary target of this targeted blitz is Russia’s maritime economic lifeline:

Sanctioned Oil and Fuel: The vast majority of the vessels hit—such as the Chelsea-6, Sanar-1, Sanar-17, Climena, and Penelope—are part of Moscow's international "shadow fleet." These small tankers (averaging about 7,000 tons deadweight) transport crude oil and refined petroleum products with deactivated satellite transponders to evade international sanctions. This fuel directly funds the Russian war budget and keeps military assets moving in the south.  

Military Logistics and Grain: The dry cargo ships hit (including the Donstar and Vladimir Yarygin) are utilized as auxiliary supply links. They transport military vehicles, ammunition, and bulk goods between mainland Russia and occupied ports like Mariupol and Berdiansk. Additionally, these routes are heavily used to export grain out of the Don River basin.  

Kyiv’s campaign has introduced critical friction points into both the Russian war economy and domestic military stability and fear into the hearts and minds of Russians.

Logistical and Refinery Strains: These seaborne tanker strikes occur alongside long-range strikes on domestic Russian infrastructure, such as the Syzran oil refinery. Because Russia relies heavily on its shadow fleet to bypass international sanctions and move petroleum products, the sudden degradation of transport capacity has caused domestic consumer gasoline prices inside Russia to climb steeply.

Network Paralysis: Traffic through the Don-Azov Canal and the Kerch Strait has faced severe restrictions, cutting off primary agricultural and fuel shipping arteries. According to maritime intelligence data, the number of active vessels broadcasting AIS transponders in the Sea of Azov plummeted by 55% within a week, as civilian crews go “dark” or refuse to sail due to the lack of integrated naval air defenses.

Command Panic: Culturally, the Sea of Azov was long treated by Moscow as a secure internal lake. Prominent Russian military bloggers have entered a phase of severe recrimination, openly blaming naval command for failing to field localized defenses against nimble aerial and aquatic drone units. The explicit targeting of control cabins and command bridges sends a stark psychological signal directly to the crews operating the ships.

Ukraine’s NATO and European friends would do well to take into consideration Kyiv’s successes and grant it membership in the Atlantic alliance.

Even 1 Ukrainian Casualty is too much 

Depending on the day, you may get the impression that Russians have taken a break from bombing Ukrainian towns and killing innocent Ukrainian men, women and children.

After all, you’ve pored through the internet and old-fashioned newspapers and you couldn’t find anything more than one or two mentions about a drone attack here or there.

That’s what I thought today, Saturday, July 11. Russian bombing has been relatively quiet. But when I took a moment and counted the episodes of brutality committed by Russians against Ukraine and Ukrainians, a different image emerges.

It has been a heavily coordinated and brutal day of strikes across the Ukraine, with Russia utilizing a mix of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, guided aerial bombs, and massive waves of drones.  

According to reports from Ukraine’s Air Force and regional military administrations, Russia launched a total of 12 missiles (including six high-speed ballistic missiles) and 121 Shahed-type drones overnight and into today. While Ukrainian air defenses managed to intercept 111 drones and several missiles, severe gaps in stopping ballistic weapons resulted in hits across multiple regions.  

The total casualty count reported so far today stands at 6 civilians killed (including one child) and at least 37 wounded. And that doesn’t count the invisible damage such has psychological pain and suffering and environmental contamination of the land, crops and water.

Breakdown of Today's Attacks (July 11, 2026)

Sumy Region (Northeast)

 The Attack: Two Russian aerial glide bombs struck a crowded, civilian area.  

 Casualties: 4 killed (including one child), and 17 wounded.

 Odesa Region (South)

 The Attack: A Russian missile struck a civilian building. Russia's Defense Ministry claimed to be targeting port infrastructure in Chornomorsk and Izmail.  

 Casualties: 2 killed, and 1 wounded by shrapnel.  

 Kyiv (Capital Region)

 The Attack: A combined overnight barrage of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones. Hits and falling debris caused significant fires and explosions across the Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi, and Dniprovskyi districts, striking residential areas, a roadway, and a three-story office/warehouse building.  

 Casualties: 11 wounded (including one child).   

 Kharkiv (East)  

 The Attack: A Russian drone hit a civilian enterprise later in the morning.  

 Casualties: 7 wounded.

Note on Air Defenses: President Zelenskyy noted today that while forces performed incredibly well downing the bulk of the drones, the ballistic missiles largely reached their targets before air raid alerts could even be issued, underscoring an acute and critical shortage of interceptor munitions.

As President Zelenskyy has said to world leaders, including President Trump: Ukraine needs air defense units, Patriot batteries and other weapons to freeze Russian air assaults against Ukraine.

US Senators, Administration Agree To Advance Russia Sanctions Bill; Kyiv Hails Move; Sen. Graham Meets News Media in Kyiv

A bipartisan group of US senators said they had reached an agreement with the Trump administration to advance long-delayed legislation aimed at imposing tougher economic penalties on Russia and countries that continue to support Moscow’s war economy.

The breakthrough, announced Friday, July 10, as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) visited Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, could give President Donald Trump a powerful new tool to pressure Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin as Washington seeks an end to Russia’s war, now in its fifth year.

Graham said the agreement with the White House clears the way for the bill to move forward, arguing that the legislation would allow the United States to punish countries helping Russia evade Western sanctions while creating leverage for negotiations.

“We’ve reached an agreement with the White House on a version of the Russian sanctions bill that they will support. It means it’s going to become law,” Graham told reporters in Kyiv after concluding his 10th wartime visit to Ukraine.

The legislation, known as the Sanctioning Russia Act, has been under negotiation for months by Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, along with Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican Roger Wicker of Mississippi.

In a joint statement, the four senators said they expected to release the updated legislation soon, describing the agreement as a major step toward strengthening pressure on Moscow.

“We are proud to announce that we have reached an agreement with the Trump Administration to move our updated Russia sanctions legislation forward. We are very pleased with this significant progress and expect to roll out the legislation very soon. As Russia intensifies its slaughter of civilians, it is imperative that the legislative and executive branches work together to create tools to exact a heavy price on those who buy Russian oil and natural gas, fueling the Putin war machine,” the statement said.

President Zelenskyy also met with Graham in Kyiv. Zelenskyy thanked the United States for all the support for Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale aggression, including for air defense systems that have saved thousands of lives and for the PURL initiative.

Zelenskyy highlighted the agreements reached during his meeting with President Trump in Ankara that will further strengthen Ukraine’s ability to protect lives. In particular, this includes the political decision to grant Ukraine licenses to produce Patriot systems.

Zelenskyy briefed Graham on Russia’s constant attacks against our cities and the urgent need for additional anti-ballistic missiles. The Senator praised the courage of the Ukrainian people and reaffirmed Congress's continued support for Ukraine. "I'm grateful to Lindsey for recognizing our warriors. The stronger Ukraine is on the battlefield, the greater the chances that diplomacy will ultimately succeed," Zelenskyy said.

The meeting also focused on diplomatic efforts to end the war and increasing sanctions pressure on Russia and everyone backing its war. The Senator briefed the President on work on the relevant bill. According to him, now is the right time to move forward because Ukraine's success on the battlefield must be reinforced by the right pressure.

Zelenskyy thanked the United States for all the support for Ukraine since the start of Russia's full-scale aggression, including for air defense systems that have saved thousands of lives and for the PURL initiative -- The Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) is a NATO-coordinated mechanism where member states and partner countries pool funds to purchase critical US-made weapons and military equipment for Ukraine.

 UN Official Condemns Highest Level of Ukrainian Civilian Casualties

The United Nations said Thursday, July 9, that civilian casualties in Russia’s war against Ukraine climbed to a new high in June 2026, as a senior official urged “meaningful dialogue and negotiations” to put an end to the four-plus-year-long war.

“In the past week alone, three massive waves of Russian aerial strikes targeted Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, further raising the alarming civilian death toll and widening the destruction,” Rosemary DiCarlo, UN under-secretary-general for political and peacebuilding affairs, told the Security Council.

She said the strikes followed a clear pattern, as “they targeted urban centers with large civilian populations and destroyed or severely damaged residential buildings, with devastating consequences for the people living there,” adding, “We condemn these attacks in the strongest terms.”

Citing the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), DiCarlo reported that “civilian casualties in Ukraine, killed and injured, were higher in May than in any other month since the beginning of the conflict.”

“Preliminary figures for June indicate an even higher toll, with at least 265 people killed and 1,816 injured. This concerning trend is seemingly continuing into July,” she said.

On the cumulative toll, she said that since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022, OHCHR “has verified that at least 16,402 civilians, including 802 children, have been killed in Ukraine,” cautioning that “actual figures are likely significantly higher.”

DiCarlo said, “There are no military solutions that could bring about lasting peace,” stressing, “Only inclusive, meaningful dialogue and negotiations can reverse the current dangerous trajectory.”

Echoing those concerns, Indrika Ratwatte, acting assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and deputy emergency relief coordinator at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that “the past week has brought another surge in civilian casualties and suffering,” with “families with children have been killed in their homes, civilians injured on their way to work, and cut off from essential services.”

He said attacks harming aid workers and damaging their assets “have increased by more than 20% compared with the same period last year.”

Ratwatte urged Council members “to use their influence to pursue every practical opportunity to prevent further civilian suffering,” saying, “Whatever the pace of political efforts, civilians cannot wait. Their needs are immediate and growing. They need protection and assistance now.”

As a source of unrelenting suffering, death and evil, Ukrainian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Andrii Melnyk is right in demanding that Russia be expelled from the international body.

Trump Repeats His Baseless Belief about an End to Russia’s War

At the latest NATO Summit in Ankara, Turkey, that was almost thrown into disarray by President Donald J. Trump’s repeated demand that he wants to occupy Greenland, the 34 heads of state and government reasserted their commitment to counter Russia’s threat to Euro-Atlantic Security and their unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was surely satisfied when Trump said at a NATO summit Wednesday, July 8, that the United States will give Ukraine a license to make Patriot air defense systems to counter missile attacks from Russia in their more than four-year war. For Zelenskyy and his team this was regarded as a huge achievement as they have been long requesting the technology.

Allowing foreign manufacture of Patriots, which the White House had resisted, was a turnaround for Trump that mirrored his day at the NATO meeting: Upon arriving, he lashed out at European partners for resisting his efforts to take control of Greenland and for not supporting his war in Iran. But by day’s end, he described a gathering of unity and “tremendous love,” and praised member nations on their progress in increasing their defense spending.

“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said, sitting next to Zelenskyy. “I think they can produce them pretty quickly.”

Patriots are expensive, in high demand and take a long time to produce. Zelenskyy has for years been asking for more of them, and more recently for a license so that Ukraine can manufacture its own. It takes two-two-and-a-half years for Patriot missile systems to be installed in Ukraine. To buy a single, fully functioning Patriot battery, the price tag is a massive $1.1 billion. From the radar computers to the very last interceptor in the launch tube, a single complete Patriot unit represents a $1.1 billion investment. Zelenskyy has highlighted Ukraine’s adaptability and its ability to strike deep inside Russia. He said Ukraine’s armed forces are “eliminating” on average 30,000 Russian troops every month.

Though not of the members’ doing, the proceedings were marred by the latest Russian bombardment of Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities as a remember to the free world that Moscow still hasn’t fulfilled its mission in Ukraine and is not prepared to stand down and evacuate.

Russian drones and missiles reaffirmed Moscow’s aggressive posture vis-a-vis Kyiv, killing four people across Ukraine on Wednesday, July 8, in attacks before dawn and at midday, as Moscow kept up its pressure on Kyiv in the latest phase of the over four-plus-year-old war. Ukraine struck oil refineries in Russia’s Saratov and Tatarstan regions, according Zelenskyy.

In Kyiv, several explosions were heard shortly after midnight, even before authorities could issue an alert to give civilians time to find shelter.

The early morning Russian attacks killed one woman and injured two others in Kyiv, according to city administration head Tymur Tkachenko. The State Emergency Service said the attack damaged several administrative buildings and warehouses, as well as a garage complex and several trams.

Hours later, another Russian drone struck Kyiv’s Desnianskyi district, killing a second person and injuring six others, Tkachenko said. A total of eight people were injured in the attacks on the capital.

In Kharkiv, two people were killed and 20 others were injured in a series of overnight strikes, according to Mayor Ihor Terekhov. In Zaporizhzhia, a Russian guided bomb injured two people Tuesday night, regional head Ivan Fedorov said.

But the tone of Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy was a break from earlier encounters which ended in acrimony like the infamous oral brawl, and American President praised the Ukrainian leader’s willingness to reach a deal on ending the fighting in Ukraine.

“We’ve actually developed a good relationship. It’s hard to believe,” Trump said during a news conference with Zelenskyy, adding that he believed a deal on ending the war was on the horizon and that the U.S. would “work on some kind of security package” to provide to Ukraine.

Trump added that the Ukrainian president has “done an amazing job” and “been very effective” in the war as he pledged to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture the Patriot defense systems.

Trump suggested that he’s career has been based on successful deals. “And that’s what I do, and I do it well. And I know when people want to make a deal. I think he wants to make a deal,” he said, assuring the journalists in attendance that he can convince Putin to make a deal though he offered no proof. A claim Trump repeated a few times in his repartee with journalists.

“And I do feel that President Zelenskyy would like to get back to rebuilding this country, as opposed to having all of this death and destruction. Ukraine has tremendous potential. He understands that. He understands that. We talk about that. He talks about that more than he talks about the war. You know, to me, I think you might find that more exciting than the war. This is brutal,” he continued.

It was interesting to hear Secretary of State Marco Rubio opine about Ukraine’s ability to hit a Russian target at a distance of 1,700 miles. “I think what you’re discussing is the ability of Ukraine to reach deep inside of Russia and conduct strikes. And I think that’s one of the dynamics that’s changed in this war over the last few months — that is that Russians are finding it more difficult to defend their own airspace. And what we hope that means is that it’s going to create the space now to negotiate the end of this war. It’s an escalation, but it’s also an escalation that can help lead to an end,” he said, leaving a positive impression of Ukraine’s battlefield abilities.

Zelenskyy offered his views on the prerequisites for peace, at least Putin’s views. “I don’t know what conditions Putin now wants for this peace. I think that they are changing in any way because at the very beginning of the full-scale war, he was stronger. And now I think he is losing initiative on the battlefield. I think his army — that’s why I think that because of technologies. Because it’s not the question now of number of people. People and our heroic people are very important. But now it’s not the question of only number of people. First of all, people and technologies. People with technologies,” the Ukrainian president said.

Not only is Zelenskyy interested in security guarantees for Ukraine but at the press conference so was a reporter. Trump replied: “You mean in the future? You mean after there’s an agreement? Well, we’re going to work on a security guarantee that… And Russia respects us a lot. And we’re going to work on some kind of a security… If we can make the right deal, we’ll help Europe. I mean, Europe is going to be watching it. But we’re going to be helping them. And we’ll work on some kind of a security package that we’ll make sure.

“I don’t think that’s going to happen. I think that if we make a deal, Russia is going to be very happy. And they’re going to get on with other things. They have… By the way, there’s a country, too. They have tremendous potential. Tremendous land. Valuable land that they can do things with. And they have tremendous potential.

“But I don’t think it’s going to happen. I don’t see… That question is, oh, they’re going to attack again. I don’t see it at all. I think they’ve had it. They’ve had… This has been going on for almost five years, right? Yeah. Who would have thought? I mean, it’s a tribute because it’s a bigger country, strong country. And it’s an amazing tribute.

Pay attention to two segments of Trump’s reply: Russia respects us a lot and they (Russia) won’t attack Ukraine again. The American president should leaf through any book on Ukrainian history.

On Tuesday Zelenskyy made a fresh appeal for Ukraine to be allowed to join the alliance, saying Ukrainian armed forces are highly experienced and would only boost NATO’s defense capabilities. Russia is vehemently opposed to that.

In a declaration following Wednesday’s summit, NATO leaders pledged to provide Ukraine with $80 billion to help meet its defense needs this year and next, noting “the long-term threat Russia poses to Euro-Atlantic security.”

Concern has been mounting among some countries with borders near Russia that Moscow might be preparing a hybrid attack — a combination of conventional warfare with tactics like cyberattacks as well as false flag operations — on the continent as Putin struggles to secure victory in Ukraine.

Before the members departed, they adopted a communique that reinforced NATO’s principles. Among them are:

* To counter the long-term threat Russia poses to Euro-Atlantic security and stability, and the persistent threat of terrorism, Allies are delivering on The Hague defense commitment.  In 2025, European Allies and Canada increased their investments in core defense requirements by more than $139 billion.  Our investments are delivering the capabilities we need while strengthening our industrial base and resilience.  Today in Ankara, we announce more than $50 billion in new procurements and commit to expanding collective manufacturing capacity and working with industry to accelerate innovation.  We will continue our work to eliminate defense trade barriers among Allies and leverage NATO’s partnerships to maximize defense industrial depth and cooperation.

* We are building the future: a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO – a modernized Alliance.  European Allies and Canada, working with the United States, are assuming greater responsibility for the Alliance’s defense.  NATO’s deterrence and defense rest on an appropriate mix of nuclear, conventional, and missile defense capabilities, complemented by space and cyber assets.  We are committed to maintaining our combat advantage.  We are investing in our ability to deploy, enable and sustain our armed forces and deliver our capability targets in all domains, including in deep precision strike, integrated air and missile defense, uncrewed systems, cutting edge technologies, and intelligence capabilities.  We are developing an interoperable transatlantic warfighting cloud and adopting powerful AI models.

* Ukraine contributes to transatlantic security, and Allies stand united in our unwavering support for Ukraine in defending its freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.  European Allies and Canada now finance the vast majority of security assistance to Ukraine through bilateral and multilateral means.  Allies underscore that this support must be equitable, predictable, and sustainable in the long-term.  For 2026, Allies pledge €70 billion ($80 million) in military equipment, assistance and training for Ukraine and affirm their sovereign commitments to sustaining at least equivalent levels in 2027.  To this end, we welcome the European Union’s decision to provide multi-year funding to Ukraine through the Ukraine Support Loan.

In the meantime, with no concrete decision approved regarding NATO’s military plan to help Ukraine eliminate the single deadly nation on earth – Russia, innocent Ukrainian men, women and children will continue to die in their homes and neighborhoods, stores, churches and schools.

Winston Churchill first sounded the alarm on the threat of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis as early as 1933. As Prime Minister, he defined the total war against Nazism in a series of iconic 1940 radio addresses, declaring his goal to “wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime.”

IOC Caves to Russian Cutthroats; Ukraine Condemns Decision

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has caved into Russian pressure and provisionally lifted its suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), clearing a direct path for Russia’s full reintegration and team participation at the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics regardless of the Moscow latest war of aggression against Ukraine and killings of innocent Ukrainians.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) as well as the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine issued a strong statement today condemning the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to provisionally lift the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee. The MFA criticized the move as a “troubling signal for the entire international community” and a step that risks normalizing Russian aggression while the unprovoked war against Ukraine continues.

The statement highlights several key arguments and actions:

• Condemnation of the Ruling: The MFA emphasized that the decision sends a deeply concerning message to the world. They pointed out that while the IOC adjusted its stance based on Russian claims that they will cease sports activities in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories, the reality on the ground has not changed—Ukrainian cities, civilians, and sports infrastructure face ongoing, devastating missile and drone attacks.

· Call to Ban State Symbols: The Ministry urgently called on the governments of nations hosting international sporting events to strictly prohibit the display of Russian state symbols, flags, or anthems within their territories, asserting that “under this flag, Russia continues its unprovoked and illegal war... and symbols of an aggressor state have absolutely no place at international sporting events.”

Pressure on International Federations: Kyiv is urging individual international sports federations to maintain their blanket bans. Because the IOC's new guidance is advisory rather than binding, governing bodies (like World Athletics, which recently chose to uphold its full ban) still hold the ultimate authority to bar Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing.

Ukraine's Ministry of Youth and Sports echoed these sentiments, calling the decision “shameful” and reiterating that the Olympic movement, which is built on peace and human dignity, must not be used to legitimize state aggression.

The IOC Executive Board said it officially terminated its March 2023 mandate requiring International Federations (IFs) to vet Russian competitors as Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN).

Why? The suspension, originally enacted in October 2023 because the ROC hijacked regional sports councils from occupied Ukrainian territories, was deemed legally resolved. The IOC confirmed that the ROC has fully removed those councils and pledged not to conduct any activities within Ukraine's Olympic jurisdiction.

IOC officials, led by Executive Board head Kirsty Coventry, emphasized the historical precedent of political neutrality in sport. Coventry stated that individual athletes should not be held responsible for the military actions of their governing regimes even though the athletes bear allegiance and cheer their malevolent native countries. The decision opens the door to all undesirable countries access to the Olympic Games and other international events.

To manage global skepticism rooted in Russia’s historical state-sponsored doping scandals, all returning Russian athletes must undergo rigid, independent multi-stage doping controls. They must be fully embedded into recognized international testing registries before entering 2028 Olympic qualifiers.

The IOC’s uncalled for reversal has created a highly fragmented landscape across the international sports community:

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov and Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyaryov welcomed the ruling as an important victory. They characterized it as a green light for international sports bodies to restore full athletic rights.

Because individual sports bodies operate autonomously, a fragmented framework has emerged. While bodies like World Aquatics and World Boxing have systematically rolled back their restrictions, others remain defiant. Most notably, World Athletics reaffirmed that its blanket ban on Russian and Belarusian track-and-field athletes remains strictly in effect. Similarly, soccer's governing body, FIFA, indicated it will review the decision with regional stakeholders before adjusting its ongoing bans.

If the IOC and its kindred spirits are concerned about not violating the rights of athletes in Russia and Belarus, then it should encourage righteous Russians and Belarusians to oust Putin from Russia.

You Can’t Wish Away the Russians

Despite President Donald Trump’s unequivocal but empty assurances of an impending end to Russia’s bombings and slaughter of Ukrainians, you really can’t just wish away Russians from Ukraine.

Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and the surrounding towns came under another deadly Russian attack early Monday morning, July 6, killed some 30 people on the eve of a critical NATO summit in Turkey that President Donald Trump plans to attend.

This calculated cruelty comes just days after a Thursday, July 3, strike that killed 31 civilians in Kyiv.

In the capital of Kyiv alone, at least 15 people were killed and 56 others injured (including seven children). The death toll is expected to rise as rescue workers continue digging through the rubble.

In the surrounding Kyiv oblast, another seven people were killed and 29 injured.

The barrage involved a brutal mix of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, hypersonic Zircon anti-ship missiles, and over 350 attack and decoy drones. At least 15 multi-story residential buildings in Kyiv were hit directly. In the historic Podilskyi district, a nine-story apartment block was completely shattered from the fifth floor up, leaving residents trapped under the ruins.

Horrifyingly, Ukrainian military officials noted that due to severe shortages of critical interceptors, none of the 23 ballistic missiles targeting the capital could be shot down.

My colleague and contributing writer to The Ukrainian Quarterly, Tetyana Parkhomchuk of Kyiv observed afterward: “Thank God everything is okay, except for the psychological state. The nerves just can’t take it anymore. Shattered buildings again, a mangled Kyiv. The small town of Vyshneve near Kyiv was also hit very badly. No one is saying it directly, but it’s obvious they bombed our ammunition. It exploded for several hours, and in addition to that, the warheads of the missiles were exploding too. There is nothing to shoot down ballistics and Zircons with.”

She added that 13 hectares of residential buildings were damaged in Vyshneve, according to Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko. “This is the greatest destruction of the housing sector in the entire time of the full-scale invasion.” Parkhomchuk noted.

To give the reader a visual sense of that scale: 13 hectares (or 32 acres) is roughly equivalent to the size of 24 American football fields completely leveled or severely damaged. It is a massive footprint for a residential area.

Russia unleashed waves of missiles and drones at Ukraine in attacks that exposed widening gaps in the country’s air defenses more than four years into Moscow’s full-scale invasion, authorities said.

All of the ballistic missiles launched by Russia struck their targets, underscoring Kyiv’s need for more US-made Patriot interceptor missiles — a point Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will likely emphasize at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, this week.

Russia’s Defense Ministry warned that any increase in the supply of drones, missiles and ammunition produced in the West “will not go unnoticed and will be countered by a corresponding increase in the number and power of retaliatory strikes by the Russian armed forces on Ukrainian territory.”

Ukraine’s Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said Russia is deliberately ramping up ballistic missile attacks on a scale unseen before, exploiting the acute shortage of Patriot interceptors. “Fewer such missiles are produced worldwide each month than the enemy fires at Ukraine in that same period,” he said.

The Ukrainian air force said in posts to Telegram that Russia launched 68 missiles – among them 23 ballistic missiles – and 351 drones into the country overnight. The air force said that 37 missiles and 326 drones were shot down or otherwise suppressed, with impacts of 29 missiles and 18 drones reported across 34 locations.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in an online update that Tuesday had been declared another day of mourning for those killed, saying flags on municipal buildings across the city would be lowered and all entertainment events canceled.

The Ukrainian Air Force said that while air defenses downed 363 drones and cruise missiles, “a serious shortage” of interceptor missiles for Ukraine’s US-made Patriot surface-to-air batteries meant that none of the 29 ballistic missiles fired at Kyiv was stopped.

“The success rate is low, to put it mildly. To shoot down ballistic missiles, you need the assets to do so. We have enough systems, but what we need is a steady supply of missiles. Russia is exploiting the fact that Ukraine – and indeed the world – is facing a serious shortage of PAC-2 and PAC-3 interceptor missiles. That is why it is increasingly focusing on ballistic missile strikes,” said Air Force spokesman Col. Yurii Ihnat.

In a post on X on Monday, Zelenskyy, who will meet Trump in Ankara on the sidelines of the summit Wednesday, called for “strong decisions to support our air defense,” saying that Patriots remaining “in the warehouses of allies” gave a green light for Russia to attack apartment buildings housing ordinary people.

A senior US official said Trump, who spoke separately with Zelenskyy and Putin on the phone on Saturday, was renewing efforts to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict as “a pressing priority.”

“The president feels a real sense of urgency to try to bring this to a stop. Both sides have articulated as recently as yesterday, that President Trump plays a unique role in his ability to try to mediate this,” the official told The Hill.

The Ankara summit is being described behind the scenes as a meeting of “delivery and implementation” rather than new innovations, but the political undercurrents are incredibly tense. Given the horrific overnight strikes on Kyiv, Zelenskyy is pushing hard to ensure this meeting does not become a "hollow exercise."   

Here are the key hints and developments regarding what member-states are prepared to say and do:

1. Air Defenses and a "Stalemate" Focus

While Zelenskyy is publicly demanding massive, decisive upgrades to Ukraine’s air defense capabilities—even advocating for U.S. licenses to manufacture Patriot systems directly in Ukraine—the immediate focus of the alliance’s largest player is shifting.

Trump is scheduled to meet face-to-face with Zelenskyy on Wednesday. White House officials have explicitly stated that Trump is entering this meeting with a sense of urgency to find a path to end the war, viewing the current frontline situation as a "stalemate." Trump is expected to use this meeting to pivot toward diplomacy, with plans to follow up directly with Putin afterward. 

If recent meetings are harbingers of things to come, then this one will also turn out to be a waste of time and money.

2. A €70 Billion Commitment (With a Transatlantic Catch)

According to draft summit declarations, European allies and Canada are preparing to reaffirm long-term military support by pledging €70 billion ($80 million) for 2026, with a commitment to maintain similar levels in 2027. However, this package exposes a deepening transatlantic rift:

The funding is expected to come almost entirely from existing bilateral European commitments and a €60 billion European Union loan facility.

The United States is not expected to contribute to this specific financial package, reflecting Trump's intense pressure on European states to assume the primary burden of their own continent's security.

3. The 5% Defense Spending Push

The primary friction point among member-states will be defense budgets. At last year’s summit in The Hague, allies agreed to a staggering target of spending 5% of their GDP on defense by 2035. European allies will arrive in Ankara eager to prove they are pulling their weight, highlighting that they increased core defense investments by over $139 billion in 2025 alone. Trump, however, is expected to heavily critique members he believes are still "free-riding" on American military might.   

4. Turkey’s Balancing Act

As the host, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has a complex agenda. While Turkey will vocally support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and showcase its own defense industry, Erdoğan is also using the summit for his own strategic leverage. He is expected to press Trump to lift US sanctions on Turkey and restore Ankara's access to the F-35 fighter jet program.   

Ultimately, while the alliance will officially project a message of continued, multi-billion-dollar support for Ukraine’s defense industry, the real story in Ankara will be the intense, behind-the-scenes pressure from Washington to transition from an open-ended conflict into concrete diplomatic negotiations – also a wasteful plot which will only delay an end to the war and prolong Ukrainians’ death and suffering. Any sanctions or political pressure must be painful enough for Russia to return to its homeland without hesitation.

Many seasoned analysts, diplomats, and, most of all, the people who have to live through the reality of Russian aggression every day realize that an end to the fighting is still far off in the distant future. Putin knows he can delay an end until the USA and West raise their arms in frustration. To anyone who has watched Moscow’s pattern of behavior over the decades, the idea that a breakthrough could be achieved simply by sitting down with Putin is a pipedream. Moscow is not doing anything that would signal its intention to end the war. It continues to treat Western entreaties with derision and aerial assaults against innocent Ukrainians.

European leaders have also reacted with intense fury and sharp condemnation, making it clear that this strikes right at the heart of why they are gathered for the NATO summit.   

The condemnation from Europe’s top figures has been swift and direct:

EU Chief Diplomat Kaja Kallas stated bluntly that “words of condemnation alone will not stop attacks on Kyiv. Only sustained military support for Ukraine and increased pressure on Moscow can do that.” She immediately announced a proposal to slap fresh sanctions on more entities feeding Russia's military-industrial complex, adding, “We keep raising the cost until Russia understands it cannot win.”   

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen led the collective outcry, pointing out that the Russian regime “once again blindly attacked civilians from the air.” She explicitly tied the horror of these strikes to the immediate agenda in Turkey, stating, “Ukraine urgently needs more air defense. We will discuss it this week in Ankara at the NATO Summit.”   

France’s Foreign Ministry issued a scathing statement, declaring that the deliberate targeting of civilian residential neighborhoods proves Moscow’s “contempt for international humanitarian law” and entirely exposes their “unwillingness to negotiate in good faith.”   

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna emphasized that the Kremlin’s calculus will only change under forced compulsion, calling for a massive ramp-up of economic, political, and military pressure.   

The overriding message from the Europeans today is one of deep frustration with Western hesitation. They are pushing the narrative that these regular slaughters of civilians are happening precisely because the West is leaving gaps in Ukraine’s skies, and they are trying to use this horrific moment to pressure the alliance – and a skeptical Washington – into dropping restrictions and delivering the hardware needed to actually stop the missiles.

Any expression of hope, any dream, any offer of negotiations or diplomacy will only result in additional deaths of innocent Ukrainians. Europe is fast approaching the point when it must recognize that Russia must encounter the full wrath of the free world.