Timeline: day 147 of Ukraine’s defense against russia’s aggression

Today is July 20. russia's military attack on Ukraine has been going on for 147 days. We're reporting on the current news. The article will be updated.

What about today?

Key points

Ukraine needs about 50 HIMARS missile systems to stop the russian troops, and a hundred systems will help the Armed Forces of Ukraine conduct an effective counteroffensive. Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov made such a statement during the Atlantic Council discussion. According to Reznikov's calculations, Ukraine needs about 100 HIMARS launchers, additional armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles, and reconnaissance drones for an effective counterattack.

Currently, there are 13 HIMARS in Ukraine, which work at 100% so as all weapons presently available in the Ukrainian forces.

The General Staff reports that Ukrainian aviation and missile and artillery units continue successful fire missions shelling enemy command posts and logistic support bases. As a result, there is a shortage of ammunition, food, and water in enemy units.

The Ukrainians destroyed many russian missile systems in Nova Kakhovka. Then, in particular, Smerch MRLS detonated. After hitting their warehouses, the russians are hysterically shooting with what is left, MP Serhii Khlan notes.

"That's why, for example, russia bombards Mykolaiv with S-300s, which are anti-aircraft missiles. They hit in agony from impotence and anger that the Armed Forces of Ukraine is consistently destroying the rear in the Kherson region."

The South operational command reported new losses of the occupiers in the south of Ukraine. On July 19, the "second army of the world" lost 41 occupiers, one Su-35 aircraft, one unmanned aerial vehicle, three Grad MRLS units, thee Msta-B and one Gvozdika howitzers, and one radio station vehicle. Also, our military destroyed one more field artillery depot in the Bruskynske district.

In the Kherson region, the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed the state-of-the-art russian Podlyot radar station. The most exciting thing is that it was eliminated in the Kherson region, more than 100 km from the positions currently occupied by the Ukrainian troops.

The russians are trying to gain a foothold and defend themselves with all their might. "But the enemy does not know that only death awaits them in our land!"

The Ukrainian military destroyed about 11 thousand occupiers during the battles for Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk of the Luhansk region; such numbers were announced by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov.

In total, since the full-scale invasion began, 38,750 occupiers have been eliminated by the soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Ukraine's talks with russia

"Bread negotiations": to unblock Ukrainian Black Sea ports, two coordination centers can be created, in Odesa and Istanbul, with representatives of all countries. This was reported by the Financial Times, citing sources familiar with the progress of the negotiations.

Details and final coordination of the agreements between Ukraine, the UN, Turkey, and russia regarding the unblocking of Black Sea ports are currently underway following the results of the meeting in Istanbul on July 13. The main disagreements remain on ensuring the safety of ports and vessels for grain export blocked in Ukraine through designated corridors.

In the morning, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, said that russia and Ukraine, with the help of international mediators, had almost reached an agreement on unblocking Ukrainian ports for the export of grain.

Who's coming to Ukraine?

On financial and information aid, weapons and politicians

There will be more HIMARS! The USA announced a new package of military aid to Ukraine. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said this would be announced in the next few days. This (already the 16th) package will include mobile HIMARS MLRS, projectiles for rocket launcher systems, and artillery ammunition.

France sent 6 Caesar self-propelled artillery units to Ukraine. This was announced by the Foreign Minister of France, Catherine Colonna. "At the national level, France is fully involved in helping Ukraine, even if we emphasize what we do less than others. We decided not to report our entire military contribution and leave this information for our partners," she stressed.

CNN writes that the US will invest 100 million dollars in support of Ukrainian farmers. The funds will provide farms with essential goods: seeds, fertilizers, equipment, and pesticides. The initiative also includes funding for farmers with rising prices for reduced incomes. There are also plans to strengthen Ukrainian infrastructure and the ability to export agricultural products. The program's fundamental goal is to mitigate the effects of the global food crisis caused by russia's war against Ukraine.

Vinnytsia was visited by a foreign delegation, which included the ambassadors of 16 countries of the European Union, Israel, and Switzerland. They came to the city to see with their own eyes the consequences of the terrible terrorist attack that happened on July 14. Representatives of foreign countries met with leaders of the city and region and discussed ways to eliminate the consequences of the destruction after the terrorist act of the russian aggressor.

The US will provide Ukraine with four more HIMARS multiple-launch missile systems as part of new military aid. This was stated by Pentagon chief Austin Lloyd at the Ramstein-4 meeting of defense ministers. We want to remind you that the Rammstein-4 negotiations are taking place today in an online format.

Today, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, discussed with the Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of NATO and the USA in Europe, Christopher Cavoli, the interaction of Ukrainian and NATO officers at the headquarters level.

Today, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavsky, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria, Alexander Schallenberg, arrived in Ukraine. They announced this on Twitter. "Devastating to see what Russia's brutal war of aggression has been doing to this beautiful country and its people," Shallenberg wrote.

Ukraine will receive a record tranche of non-refundable aid worth $4.5 billion. The Cabinet of Ministers approved the attraction of a $4.5 billion grant from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association. This is evidenced by Order No. 613 of July 19, 2022. The non-refundable support is aimed at financing the project "Supporting public expenditures to ensure sustainable public administration in Ukraine."

Reuters writes that the United States and its allies are beginning to study the possibility of training Ukrainian pilots to help Kyiv create a renewed air force. According to the Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, General Charles Brown, it is a long-term plan to create an air force that Ukraine will need in the future.

"You know, this is a critical phase of the conflict. And so our collective support for Ukraine is vital—and urgent. Russia thinks that it can outlast Ukraine—and outlast us. But that's just the latest in Russia's string of miscalculations," said US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

Lithuania will provide military aid to Ukraine with M-113 and M-577 armored personnel carriers, as well as organize training courses for the Ukrainian military, the Republic's Ministry of Defense announced.

Olena Zelenska called on the US Congress to provide weapons to Ukraine. "I am asking for weapons. Not to wage war on foreign land, but to protect our home and the right to wake up alive in this home," said the wife of the Ukrainian president, speaking in Congress. "Help us stop this terror against Ukrainians, and it will be our great joint victory in the name of life, freedom, and the pursuit of happiness," she added.

Helping refugees

The sculpture, Insatiable Putin, was put up for auction in Dusseldorf. They plan to transfer the money to Ukrainian refugees. The figure of the russian president is trying to swallow a map of Ukraine with the inscription "Choke!!!" The author of the sculpture is the artist Jacques Tilly. Previously, this caricature sculpture was shown in Düsseldorf and Berlin. In Berlin, it stayed for some time near the Brandenburg Gate, not far from the russian Embassy.

News from partners

The USA doesn't recognize the inclusion of any regions of Ukraine in russia and will introduce new sanctions against Moscow if this happens. At a briefing, the National Security Council's coordinator for strategic communications in the White House, John Kirby, made such a statement.

"The model of Germany's economic success in the past decades was based on the import of cheap energy resources: oil and gas from russia. Anyone who criticized this was immediately silenced," DW columnist Henrik Boehme writes. "The latest German policy is largely to blame for the situation in which the country found itself. It will not be possible to quickly correct the mistakes of the past years. It will be a cold winter," he believes.

Ukrainians received the Dissident Human Rights Award for bravery in defending human rights. The day before, the award was presented to Olena Zelenska at the Memorial to the Victims of Communism in Washington, who will bring it to Ukraine. Since 2015, the prize has been awarded to activists and dissidents for fighting for human rights and freedoms. This year it was awarded to the entire Ukrainian people for noncompliance.

Sanctions on the aggressor

The USA included russia in the list of countries engaged in a "policy or pattern" of human trafficking.