- Pro-Russian separatists say 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war have been killed in Ukraine’s attack on Donetsk.
- The British Ministry of Defence said the Russian private military company Wagner Group could be assigned tasks in specific areas of the frontline in eastern Ukraine.
- Five people were killed and 25 injured after a Russian missile attacked a local flying school, according to the head of the central Ukrainian city of Kropivnetsky.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he planned to hold talks with U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken “if time permits”, but stressed that his schedule was full.
- The U.S. State Department said the U.S. and 37 other countries were forming a panel of experts to review the human rights situation in Russia.
Which forces control the different regions of Ukraine?
The governor of the Kyiv region said on Telegram that the missile hit part of the military installations on the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, injuring 15 people. In addition, more than 10 Russian missiles hit Chernihav, nearly 120 kilometers northeast of Kiev (Al Jazeera)
Here are the latest developments since the war entered today:
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Macron, Saudi crown prince to work together to ease fallout of Ukraine war
French President Emmanuel Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman agreed during talks in Paris to work together to ease the effects of the war in Ukraine, the French presidency said.
“The French president and the Saudi crown prince underscore the need to end this conflict and strengthen cooperation to mitigate its impact on Europe, the Middle East and the wider world,” a statement said.
A French presidential aide had said ahead of the talks that Macron planned to urge Saudi Arabia to increase oil production to help lower crude prices.
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German Minister: Bringing the Nord Stream 2 project online is not an option
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said putting the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline into operation was not an option because it would only benefit Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“That’s why, in my opinion, it’s wrong, it’s not an option,” Habeck said in a conversation with a representative of a glass company in Thuringia.
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline was designed to double the flow of Russian gas directly to Germany, but the German government has decided not to use it after Russia’s war on Ukraine broke relations between Germany and Russia. pipeline.
At present, the flow of the “Beixi No. 1” pipeline is suppressed. Russian gas giant Gazprom blamed technical reasons, but many Western countries see it as Russia’s retaliation for Western sanctions.
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Zelensky says Ukraine is ready to deliver food
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine is ready to start shipping food from Black Sea ports and is currently waiting for the United Nations and Turkey to send signals to start food shipments.
Zelensky’s office said the Ukrainian president had visited the Russian-blocked Black Sea port of Chornomorsk and reviewed shipment preparations under a deal signed in Turkey with the United Nations last week.
“We are fully prepared. We have sent all the signals to our partners – the United Nations and Turkey – that our military has ensured the security situation.”
“The infrastructure minister is in direct contact with the Turkish side and the UN, and we are waiting for their signal that we can start at any time.”
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Ukrainian court commutes war crimes verdict against Russian soldier
A Russian soldier has been sentenced to life in prison in his first war crimes trial since Russia launched military operations against Ukraine in February, while an appeals court in Kyiv reduced his sentence to 15 years.
The trial has been closely watched as an initial test of whether Ukraine can hold a fair trial in the ongoing conflict and whether Ukraine’s beleaguered justice system can withstand the daunting task of prosecuting thousands of complex war crimes .
Vadim Shishimarin, a 21-year-old contract soldier, pleaded guilty to killing a civilian and was convicted in May. Critics said the sentence against him was too harsh given his guilty plea, claiming he was simply following orders and expressing remorse.
His defense lawyer Viktor Ovsyannikov had appealed to the court, hoping to reduce the sentence to 10 years. He also said that Shishmarin was highly likely to be sent back to Russia through a prisoner exchange.
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Ukrainian military denies attack on Ukrainian prisoners of war
The Ukrainian military has denied an attack on a prison in a separatist-held area, while the Russian Defense Ministry said the attack killed 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war. The Ukrainian military also believes that the Russian military is responsible.
“The Russian Armed Forces launched shelling on a correctional institution in the Olenivka settlement in Donetsk, where Ukrainian prisoners of war are also being held,” the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff said in a statement.
“In this way the Russian occupiers pursued their criminal goals – accusing Ukraine of ‘war crimes’ while concealing their torture and executions of prisoners…”
Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian interior ministry, said the allegations were false and blamed Russia for the attack.
He tweeted, “All Russian media claims that Ukraine used rockets to attack the Elenovka prison near Donetsk, which houses Ukrainian prisoners of war, mostly from Azov Steel. factory.”
“Obviously, Ukrainian forces would never attack these kinds of targets. This is either completely false news, or another terrible crime committed by Russia.”
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Lavrov says Moscow will propose phone call with Blinken over prisoners
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would soon propose a call with U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who had said he hoped to discuss the exchange of prisoners held in Russian and U.S. prisons.
Blinken said on Wednesday that Washington had made “substantial offers” in exchange for American basketball star Brittney Greener and former Marine Paul Whelan, who are being held in Russia.
As part of the deal, Washington is willing to trade convicted arms dealer Victor Bout who is serving a prison sentence in the United States, sources said.
Lavrov told a news conference that the two sides have been negotiating a prisoner swap since Presidents Putin and Biden held a summit in Geneva last year.
He also said the time for the call with Blinken has not been set and that he will hear from U.S. officials.
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4 killed in Russian attack on bus station in southern Ukraine
Four people were killed and seven wounded in a Russian attack on the heavily bombed city of Nikolayev near Ukraine’s southern front, the regional governor said.
“Today, they opened fire on another area near a mass transit station,” Governor Vitaly King said in a statement on social media. “According to the latest information, four people have been killed and seven injured.”
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Russia: 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war killed in Ukrainian missile attack in Donetsk prison
40 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed and 75 others injured in Ukraine’s attack on a prison in separatist-held territory with U.S.-made “Haimas” rockets, the Russian Defense Ministry said, according to Russian news agencies.
In its daily briefing, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that “the U.S.-made Haimas multiple-launch rocket launcher system launched a missile attack on a pretrial detention center in the Olenivka settlement area, where prisoners including the Azov battalion were held. Ukrainian prisoners of war, including armed men.”
The statement also noted that the attack killed “40 Ukrainian prisoners of war and injured another 75”, in addition to wounding eight prison staff.
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Separatists say shelling kills Ukrainian prisoner of war
Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine say at least 40 Ukrainian personnel captured in the Battle of Mariupol have died in Ukrainian shelling.
At least 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed and 130 others injured when Ukraine shelled a prison in the town of Olenevka on the 29th, said Daniel Besonov, spokesman for the Russian-backed Donetsk separatists.
Ukrainian troops were captured after a fierce battle for the Ukrainian port of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov, where they hid for months inside the Azov steel plant.
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UK Defence Secretary: Russia has failed in many areas of Ukraine war
British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said Russia had failed in “many areas” of the war in Ukraine, and President Vladimir Putin may once again seek to change tack.
Wallace told Sky News, “Russia is failing in many areas at the moment… Putin’s plans A, B, C have failed, and he may consider plan D.”
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Russia’s Sakhalin Energy asks LNG buyers to complete payments through Moscow banks
Russia’s Sakhalin Energy Investment Co has asked its liquefied natural gas (LNG) customers to make payments through the Moscow subsidiary of a European bank and is in talks to change the payment currency from US dollars for other currencies.
Prior to this, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the establishment of a new company on June 30 this year to take over all rights and obligations of Sakhalin Energy.
The anonymous source added that some buyers have made payments through designated banks, but those payments are still made in U.S. dollars.
Alternative payment currencies under discussion include the Chinese yuan, Japanese yen and South Korean won, one of the sources said.
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UK says Wagner Group held accountable to Ukrainian front
The British Ministry of Defence has pointed out in a new intelligence that the Russian private military company Wagner Group may be assigned to a specific area of the front line in eastern Ukraine.
In a regular intelligence briefing posted on Twitter on the 29th, the United Kingdom pointed out that “this is a significant change from the employment situation of the organization since 2015, which in the past has often been used to carry out some different Russia’s public large-scale conventional military activities.”
The report also notes that Wagner’s forces are unlikely to have a significant impact on the trajectory of Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Click here to read all the July 28 updates.