Erdogan Threatens New NATO Blockade – Russia Bombs Residential Buildings in Odessa

EU paves way for Russia’s Kaliningrad – Erdogan threatens new NATO blockade

+++ 11 PM: The EU has allowed Russia to transport goods to the Kaliningrad exclave. News magazine reports Spiegel. According to the report, the EU Commission agreed in a paper that Russia is allowed to supply smaller quantities. In mid-June, Lithuania banned the transport of goods by rail through Kaliningrad through its own territory. The Kremlin later described it as “illegal”. Now the EU has taken diplomatic action towards Russia.

+++ 10 PM: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has again threatened to block NATO expansion plans. Erdogan said on Thursday evening that if Finland and Sweden did not meet the conditions, he would hold a ratification process in the Turkish parliament. Erdogan had earlier demanded the extradition of 33 “terrorist” suspects from the two countries. Sweden and Finland responded relatively coolly to Turkey’s threat. Sweden’s Justice Minister Morgan Johansson said these were cases of an “independent” judiciary in his country. The Finnish Justice Ministry said there had been no “new” extradition requests from Turkey.

+++ 7.30 PM: According to the British BBC, the fact that Russian armed forces no longer have a base in the northwestern half of the Black Sea is a major victory for Ukraine. However, Kiev is still too far to send grain ships from Odessa.

Ukraine war: Snake island hard to secure, according to CNN

According to the BBC, a possible explanation for Ukraine’s ability to recover Snake Island is that the island is extremely difficult to secure. Every time Russia has tried to bolster its defenses in recent months, the Ukrainians have launched an offensive. According to US broadcaster CNN, they use drones frequently. The BBC continued that Cave Island would also be difficult to secure, but would no longer be necessary in the future.

Ukraine war: “covert mobilization” in Belarus – Russia sends submarines to “combat readiness”

+++ 6.25 pm: It appears that Russia has continued to launch missile attacks on Ukrainian cities. Mykolaiv city officials say at least seven people were killed in the attack on the residential area. Six others were injured, some seriously.

+++ 3.45 pm: According to Ukrainian civil servants, “covert mobilization” is currently taking place in Belarus. This is reported by various local media including news portal Glass. Accordingly, numerous draft orders were sent to various regions of Belarus. The request also went to those previously classified as unfit for military service to report to the troops. They were also threatened with fines if they ignored the summons. Information cannot be independently verified.

+++ 2 PM: Ukraine’s military says a village in Kherson province has been liberated. The 60th Infantry Division conducted a “successful attack,” it said Thursday afternoon. Information cannot be independently verified. News portal Independence of Kiev Published them.

+++ 1 PM: According to the Ministry of Defense, Russia is currently holding thousands of Ukrainian soldiers as prisoners of war. The number of captured or surrendered Ukrainian military officers is “more than 6,000,” ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday. He also confirmed that 144 armed forces from both sides had been released earlier in the day as part of a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukraine says the number of Russian soldiers killed since the beginning of the war is 35,600. Information provided by both warring parties cannot be independently verified.

+++ 11.45 am: Russia appears to have deployed five submarines to the Black Sea from the port of Sevastopol. News portal reports Independence of Kiev With reference to the report of the media group Krym Realii. Four of the five submarines are in “combat readiness”. The move by the Russian military may be related to the seizure of Snake Island by Ukrainian forces (see update from 11:00 am). However, the information cannot be independently verified.

+++ 11.00 am: Ukraine’s military has announced that it has recaptured Snake Island in the Black Sea. “There are no Russians on Snake Island. The Ukrainian Armed Forces made a wonderful operation,” said General Staff Andrey Yermak. Armed forces were reportedly withdrawn from Russia. “Today, as a sign of goodwill, the Russian army completed its duties and withdrew the garrison stationed there,” the state said. News agency RIA reported that the information provided by the two warring parties could not be independently verified.

+++ 10.15 am: According to the British Ministry of Defence, following the withdrawal from Severodonetsk, Ukrainian troops are now focused on securing the strategically important city of Lisysansk. According to a situation report based on intelligence, the central element may be a fight over a local oil refinery. Information cannot be independently verified.

Ukraine war news: Air defense systems appear to have been destroyed on Snake Island

+++ 9.30 am: According to the Ukrainian military, it destroyed Russian air defense systems and howitzers on Snake Island. News portal reports Independence of Kiev With reference to Task Force “South”. Information cannot be independently verified.

Ukraine war news: US Secret Service with “gloomy” prognosis

+++ 8.30 am: The US Secret Service has released a new assessment of the further course of the war in Ukraine. Accordingly, Russia still has ambitious ambitions for Ukraine. US intelligence coordinator Avril Hines told Reuters that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not changed his goal of seizing much of Ukraine.

There are three scenarios for the further course of the war in the short term: Russia gradually advances in a fierce conflict, but no progress, a major Russian advance, or small Ukrainian advances in southern Ukraine, with the front line stabilized. at the same time. “In short, the picture is very bleak,” Haynes said. An analysis by the US think tank “Institute for the Study of War” said that Putin is not satisfied with the territorial gains so far. Russian forces will continue offensive operations north of Kharkiv, suggesting the Kremlin has territorial ambitions beyond the Donbass. Information cannot be independently verified.

Ukraine War Update: Russia Continues to Rely on Artillery in Donbass

Reporting from Thursday, June 30 at 6:30 am: KYIV – The Russian military is relying on massive artillery strikes in the Donbass industrial region to weaken Ukrainian positions. Ukrainian artillery is outnumbered, although some modern guns have arrived from the West. Fighting is currently raging for the city of Lyssychansk, and Ukrainian troops have withdrawn from neighboring Chivzerodonetsk.

previous stress Ukraine war Russia is not enough, Ukraine’s president said Volodymyr Zelenskyj and pointed out that ten Russian rockets were fired at the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv on Wednesday alone. “All aimed at civilian targets,” he said.

Ukraine war news: Exchange of 300 prisoners

According to their own reports, the Ukrainian military and the Russian side exchanged nearly 300 prisoners in the past 24 hours. It was the largest prisoner exchange since the start of the war. Zelensky said 144 people returned to Ukraine. The eldest is 65 years old and the youngest is 19 years old.

Among the freed Ukrainian soldiers are 95 fighters who, until a few weeks ago, were guarding the hard-fought Azovstal steelworks in the Russian-captured port city of Mariupol. According to Ukrainian sources, this is the largest exchange of prisoners since the beginning of the war. On the other hand, separatist leader Denis Buchylin spoke about the release of 144 Russian and pro-Russian militants from Ukrainian prisons.

Ukraine war: Putin’s “special operation going according to plan”

More than four months after Russia’s war of aggression began, Putin says hostilities are back on schedule. “The mission is calm, rhythmic, the troops are moving and reaching the lines that have been set as milestones for them,” he told reporters in the Turkmen capital of Ashgabat. “Everything is going according to plan.” Russia officially refers to the war as a “special operation”. (AFP/dpa with marv/tu)