The essentials in brief:
Croatia opens its ports to exports of Ukrainian grain
President Zelenskyj demands tougher sanctions against Moscow after rocket attacks
FDP defense expert: Counterstrike is not an escalation
US wants to take part in Ukraine conference in Jeddah
Ukrainian youth informs about war in Lisbon
Ukraine can use Croatian ports on the Danube and the Adriatic to export its grain. The two countries had agreed on this, said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba after a meeting with his colleague Gordan Grlic Radman in Kiev. “Now we will work to establish the most efficient routes to these ports.” Kuleba added, “Every contribution to unblocking exports, every door opened is a real, effective contribution to world food security.”
Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman traveled to KievImage: Henry Nicholls/empics/picture alliance
Ukraine currently relies on overland export routes through the European Union and an alternative route via the Danube. The Russian military had attacked infrastructure along the river route earlier this month. Russia recently withdrew from the so-called Black Sea Grains Agreement brokered by the United Nations. In doing so, Moscow deprived Ukraine of an important route to safely export its agricultural products during the war.
After recent rocket attacks: Zelenskyj calls for tougher sanctions
After the heavy rocket attacks on his hometown of Kryvyi Rih, among other things, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has again called for tougher punitive measures against the leadership in Moscow. “The global sanctions pressure against Russia deserves a significant increase,” said Zelenskyj in his evening video address. In particular, loopholes in sanctions that Russia uses to keep arms production running must be closed. In addition, the head of state of Ukraine once again insisted on longer-range missiles for his country. This is necessary “so that we can eliminate this terrorist threat that Russia is creating against our people, against our children,” he said.
Russia attacks southern Ukrainian cities again
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In addition to Kryvyi Rih, Russia had previously attacked the city of Cherson in southern Ukraine. In Kryvyi Rih, two Russian rockets hit a nine-story apartment building and a university building. Most recently, there was talk of six dead and 75 injured, including several children. According to official information, four civilians were killed in Cherson and 17 others were injured.
A residential building in Kryvyi Rih burns after a Russian rocket hitImage: Ukrainian Interior Ministry Press Office/AP/dpa/picture alliance
FDP defense expert: Counterstrike is not an escalation
The defense policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Alexander Müller, has emphasized that Russian President Vladimir Putin alone bears responsibility for the recent drone attacks on Moscow. Although Ukraine has not officially claimed responsibility for the drone attacks, Müller told DW: “This is a reaction to what you provoked.” The FDP politician further explained: “If you hit someone in the face and get a punch back, that’s not an escalation.”
The FDP defense expert Alexander Müller (archive image)Image: DW
Sunday’s drone strikes should be taken as a sign. “It is a sign to the Russian people to say to them: you are not safe and this is not a security operation in a distant country, this is a war between our two countries.” Müller emphasized that the German government had not officially commented on the drone attacks, “but we don’t call it an escalation or something wrong because it was to be expected.” However, German and other Western weapons should not be used in attacks on Russian territory. If these restrictions are violated, “there will be a problem between the West and Ukraine”.
On Sunday, Russia said it shot down three Ukrainian drones in the capital Moscow. Two office buildings were damaged and one airport had to be closed for a short time. “The war is gradually returning to Russia’s territory – to its symbolic centers and military bases,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a visit to the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk. “Ukraine is getting stronger.”
Drone attack on Moscow: A badly damaged high-rise facadeImage: AP Photo/picture alliance
Moscow is around 500 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. The urban area and the surrounding area of the Russian capital had only rarely been targeted since the start of the Ukraine war. Recently, however, there have been several drone attacks on Moscow, for which Russian authorities blamed Ukraine.
US agrees to attend Jeddah conference
The United States will attend a Ukraine peace conference organized by Saudi Arabia. This was announced by a spokesman for the State Department in Washington, without giving details. According to Ukrainian information, representatives of several countries are currently preparing the meeting in Saudi Arabia. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s peace plan, which envisages the withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine, should be at stake, said the head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak. The plan will be discussed in three phases, which will culminate in a meeting of the heads of state and government. The Saudi Arabian conference is scheduled to take place in Jeddah on August 5-6.
Russia’s participation is not planned. The leadership in Moscow has so far been cautious. One must first understand what the goals of the planned talks are and what should be discussed, says Presidential Office spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Ukrainian youth informs about war in Lisbon
Almost 500 young people from Ukraine will also take part in the World Youth Day of the Catholic Church, which begins this Tuesday in Lisbon. Kiev’s Greek-Catholic Archbishop Svyatoslav Shevchuk announced this in a video message. At the event, the Ukrainian youth wanted to tell their peers and the whole world about the suffering caused by the war in their country.
Shevchuk called on world opinion and the Church to listen to Ukrainian youth: “World Youth Day should be the moment when we say ‘no’ to Russian aggression, when we condemn the killing of innocent civilians in Ukraine, when we stand up for the abducted children and praying together to God for a just peace for Ukraine and the world.”
According to the head of the Greek Catholic Church, which is linked to Rome, the burden of the war rests primarily on the shoulders of young people in Ukraine. The youth protect their homeland and take care of the needy in a large voluntary movement. “Sharing the pain will be a moment of healing for our girls and boys,” Shevchuk added.
kle/rb (dpa, afp, rtr, kna)
This article will be continuously updated on the day of its publication. Reports from the combat zones cannot be independently verified.