Prepared by Sofia Oliynyk and Maryana Zaviyska
Photo: Chasiv Yar/Zelenskiy Official Telegram channel
Cities under attack.
Kharkiv was shelled from multiple launch rocket systems. 31 people have been injured, including a 16-year-old child and three people were killed. On July 11 Russia launched 7 missiles on Odesa region. Russian airstrikes hit a house, port infrastructure, and some fields, but there were no casualties. According to Ukraine’s Border Guard Service, Russia again shelled Ukrainian border territories in Sumy and Chernihiv with mortars and artillery on July 11. 80 explosions recorded in border territories. On the morning of July 12, the Russian army attacked Mykolaiv again, causing destruction and fires.
Death toll in Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, rises to 33. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service reported that they retrieved the body of another victim, approximately a 9-year-old child, on July 11. This brings the death toll from a Russian missile strike on a five-story residential building in the city of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk Oblast to 33 people. The rescue operation continues.
Resistance.
Persecution of the Russian collaborant authorities continued at the occupied territories. The Russian-appointed administrator of a small town in the Russian-occupied east of Ukraine’s Kharkiv region has been killed by a car bomb presumed to be the work of Ukrainian partisan movement. Also on Monday, occupation authorities in Zaporizhzhia reported that Andrei Siguta, the Russian-installed district head of Melitopol, one of the first towns to fall to Russian forces, had escaped an attempt on his life by a Ukrainian partisan shooting at his house.
Human rights.
Russian President Putin signed a decree on Monday extending a simplified Russian naturalization process, also known as passportisation, to all citizens of Ukraine. This offers a simplified path to Russian citizenship for all Ukrainians, an effort to broaden Moscow’s appeal and solidify its presence in the country and reason for ‘liberation’ of its citizens. Previously, a simplified procedure for acquiring Russian citizenship applied only to residents of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) in eastern Ukraine.
80% of the local population left the Donetsk region. Nevertheless, about 340 000 (or 20.4%) of the local population remains in Donetsk region, all others have already evacuated to safe places.o
In Ukraine, more than 7000 of military personnel are considered missing, most of them are in Russian captivity. ‘We know that they were taken to Russia. First, you need to understand how many people there are. If there are more than a hundred of them, then we understand that practically the entire battalion is in captivity. There is still no contact with them, so they are considered missing. Sooner or later they will be on the exchange list and they will return home. This is the case when we know for sure that the missing persons are alive,’ says Ukraine’s Commissioner for Persons Missing in Special Circumstances.
The annual ‘Children and Armed Conflict; report included Ukraine to the list of countries where war crimes and violence against children has been committed. In addition, U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said last week that as of July 3, 4889 civilians had been killed in Ukraine, including 335 children, stressing that the real figure is likely much higher.
Foreign policy.
Ambassadors of G7 countries to Ukraine reiterated that a timely nomination of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) Head is critically important for strengthening Ukraine’s anti-corruption institutions. The appointment of the head of the SAPO office is one of the key requirements for further European integration.
Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, arrived in Ukraine on a working visit and visited Kyiv and Irpin. The Prime Minister of the Netherlands emphasized the importance of Ukraine obtaining the status of a candidate country for membership in the European Union, says the statement. Also, according to him, an important issue is the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war, which was discussed in detail during the recent Ukraine Recovery Conference in Lugano (Switzerland). In addition, Mark Rutte emphasized the importance of solving the issue of exports of Ukrainian agricultural products ceasing due to Russia’s blockade of the Black Sea ports.
President Zelenskyy submitted to the Verkhovna Rada a draft law ‘On establishing legal and social guarantees for citizens of the Republic of Poland in the territory of Ukraine.’ As a sign of gratitude to the Polish people for their solidarity and support of Ukraine in the face of full-scale armed aggression by Russia and taking into account the principle of reciprocity, the draft law provides for the establishment of rights and guarantees for Polish citizens residing in Ukraine similar to those established in the Law of the Republic of Poland. The submission of the draft law coincides with the commemoration of the Volyn tragedy. The draft law developed at the initiative of the Head of State envisages, in particular, granting Polish citizens and their family members the possibility of legal stay on the territory of Ukraine for 18 months from the date of adoption of the law. Poles will also receive the right to employment, economic activity, study in educational institutions, medical care on the territory of Ukraine and separate social benefits in accordance with Ukrainian legislation.
The next meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group (UDCG) will be held virtually on July 20, discussed by Defense Ministers Lloyd Ausitn and Olkekii Reznikov. Over the phone conversation, the counterparts exchanged views on the future of US and allied assistance to Ukraine in the UDCG format.
Sanctions.
The European Union plans to unveil a new package of sanctions against Russia in the coming weeks, Bloomberg reports. According to the agency, this time the restrictions will affect the import of gold, clarifications will be made to previously imposed sanctions and the lists of individuals and legal entities will be updated. Meanwhile, Lithuania has expanded restrictions on the transit of goods to Kaliningrad through its territory. Cement, alcohol, and a number of other Russian-made products will be prohibited to transport. .
Belarus.
Belarusian President Lukashenko is likely to continue to grant Russian forces access to Belarusian airspace to demonstrate at least nominal support to Russian President Vladimir Putin without risking direct military involvement of Belarusian Armed Forces in operations in Ukraine, reports Institute of the War Studies. Previously Belarus closed its airspace near Ukraine until October 7, which means the threat of the missile attacks, launched from Belarus, will remain rather high. On the night of July 11, a Russian DRLO A-50 aircraft was circling over Belarus, helping fighter jets to identify the targets in Ukraine. Meanwhile, A draft law has been registered in the parliament of Belarus, which proposes to give the country’s KGB the opportunity to limit the right to leave for a period of up to six months, if it ‘contradicts the interests of national security.’
Food security.
Turkish President Erdogan held a phone conversation with Putin calling for a ‘grain corridor.’ After talking to Volodymyr Zelenskyi, Erdogan emphasized that he wants peace to come to Ukraine, and said that Turkey continues to work on the plan developed by the UN to supply Ukrainian grain products to the world market.
Cyber Security.
Russian hackers proceed with their regular attempts of cyber attacks. The Government Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine at the State Special Communications Service warns of the mass distribution of dangerous emails. The letters come from compromised email addresses of state bodies of Ukraine and contain attachments in the form of an XLS document with the title ‘Humanitarian catastrophe of Ukraine since February 24, 2022.xls’. Officials say the opening of the email will lead to computer damage.
Reading corner.
- Can the Future be predicted? Deliberations on a war we cannot afford | Cadmus – Check out an article by Dr. Petra Kunkel, Member of the Executive Committee at International Club of Rome and Founder at Collective Leadership Institute: ‘The rise in violence in communication, literature, movies, games, topped with the popularity of strong men is a pattern that shows a resurgence and reinforcement of androcratic societal dominance structures. These structures are accompanied by institutionalized male toxicity, disdain for women who want to be free and often enough culminating in male leaders of totalitarian regimes.’
- ‘Locals Should Know What to Expect from Russians’: Three Stories of Ukrainians Who Suffered from Aggressive Actions Abroad Because of Their Nationality | Zaborona – Almost 600 anti-Ukrainian crimes have been registered in Germany since the beginning of the war, reports the Federal Ministry of the Interior. Read the stories about aggression against Ukrainians in other countries.
Statistics.
- About 900 companies out of 1 400 have ceased operations in Russia. Many Chinese companies remain in Russia and about 30 from the USA and some from France, Germany, Japan, Italy and other countries. Of the world-famous brands, these are Leroy Merlin, Auchan, and Mary Kay.
- General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced the total estimated losses of the Russian military as of 10 a.m., July 12, 2022: personnel – around 37 470, tanks ‒ 1649, APV ‒ 3829, artillery systems – 838, MLRS – 247, anti-aircraft warfare systems – 109, fixed-wing aircraft – 217, helicopters – 187, operational-tactical level UAV – 676, cruise missiles – 155, boats and light speed boats – 15, soft-skinned vehicles and fuel tankers – 2699, special equipment – 66.
Every action counts, no contribution is too small!
- Support Mykolaiv-based ‘Rebel Volunteers’ who are working with the trauma department and the emergency room of the Emergency Hospital, the Children’s Hospital and some other health care facilities in Mykolaiv. The volunteer group also supports the Mykolaiv zoo and cooperates with animal rights activists.
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