Timeline: day 128 of Ukraine's defense against russia's aggression
Today is July 1. russia's military attack on Ukraine has been going on for 128 days. We're reporting on the current news. The article will be updated.
What about today?
Key points
"The Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting offensive operations in several directions," said Oleksii Hromov, Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Department of the Ukrainian General Staff. Despite conducting defense along the entire contact line, our troops are trying to perform offensive actions and inflict damage on the enemy.
"During the week, the settlement of Potiomkino was liberated and taken under control in the Kryvyi Rih direction. Pavlivka is a settlement in the Kurakhiv direction. Units of missile troops and artillery hit command posts of troop groups and ammunition warehouses. They inflicted significant losses on the enemy," General Hromov emphasized that russian rhetoric regarding the war in Ukraine is constantly changing, which indicates that none of the Kremlin's plans to seize our country have been implemented.
This fact prompts the occupiers to launch new bloodthirsty attacks. They arrived this night at a high-rise building and recreation center in the resort village of Serhiivka, Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi district, Odesa region. Again, the russians targeted civilian facilities. Rockets struck people who were peacefully sleeping. We witness destruction and victims agin. A blow to the Odesa region is revenge for Zmiinyi Island liberation.
russia's "goodwill gesture" is actually like that. It's a killer country, a cannibal country, a terrorist country. Unable to accept the victories of our soldiers on the fronts, russia is killing civilians again.
The military operation on Zmiinyi lasted almost ten days. Now the Ukrainian military is preparing to check the entire island territory to ensure that there are no dangerous objects on it.
russia's defeat on Zmiinyi Island will reduce the pressure on the Ukrainian coast. Still, the retreat will not end the naval blockade, according to a report by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
Three hundred forty-three children have died in Ukraine since the beginning of russia's invasion. The Prosecutor General of Ukraine announced this. The officials reported that the child who died due to night shelling in the Odesa region was ten years old. The two children who were injured were four and 17 years old.
Who's coming to Ukraine?
On financial and information aid, weapons and politicians
The European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the reconstruction of Ukraine was officially launched in Brussels. The President of the European Committee of the Regions, Vasco Ilídio Alves Cordeiro, emphasized that the Alliance would provide specific local expertise to Ukrainian partners and avoid duplication of efforts. Great Britain, Denmark, and the Baltic countries have already expressed their willingness to help reconstruct Ukrainian regions.
On June 28, a Polish journalist announced the start of fundraising to purchase a Turkish drone for Ukraine. The Poles have already collected a million zlotys to buy the Bayraktar combat drone for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The required amount is 4.5 million dollars. It is planned to raise in a month.
Great Britain provided financial support to Ukraine. Ukraine received a loan within the World Bank project for 446.8 million euros, of which 424.6 million euros came from Britain, the Minister of Finance Serhii Marchenko reported. Raised funds will ensure adequate funding for public sector employees.
The Pentagon is considering 1,300 proposals from 800 companies for producing new weapons, including for Ukraine, CNN reports. The US Department of Defense will focus the order on the production of air defense, anti-tank, anti-personnel, coastal, and unmanned systems. Emphasis will also be placed on counter-battery means and secure communication. In the coming weeks, the US Department of Defense will likely decide on the projects they will launch.
News from partners!
The EU is starting to get off russia's "gas train." In June, for the first time in history, the US delivered more gas to the EU than russia through its pipelines. The Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, announced this.
At the same time, Germany, frightened by putin, is putting pressure on Lithuania and asking to allow the transit of goods to Kaliningrad. The German authorities fear that this sanction measure could lead to "an escalation of the conflict between russia and the EU," Spiegel reports.
Imagine Dragons soloist Dan Reynolds dedicated a speech to Ukraine and performed the song Alphaville Forever Young for all Ukrainians who lost their homes. "Why are children dying in 2022, and we can't stop the war? Why can't we do more than sing songs with support? I feel helpless," Reynolds said before the performance. We all can't figure out these whys, Dan.
What's in russia?
From today, July 1, Ukraine introduces a visa regime for russian citizens. russians will be required to issue the necessary documents for entry at VFS Global visa centers in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, Kazan, Novosibirsk, Rostov-on-Don, and Samara.
Life considering hostilities
Ukrainian borshch may be recognized as a UNESCO cultural heritage site. The organization can decide on this as early as today, July 1, said First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Emine Dzaparova: "I believe that it will be a truly historic event for Ukraine. Recognition of the uniqueness and identity of the Ukrainian element of intangible cultural heritage, and, at the same time, recognition of its universal value and significance for world culture." The decision was supposed to be made in 2023, but the organization sped up the procedure due to the war.
Chernihiv region
Yesterday, June 30, 2022, around 11 p.m., the North operational command reported that the Semenivka community in the Chernihiv region was shelled. There are no losses among personnel and equipment. The authorities received no information about casualties among the local population or damage to civil infrastructure.
Donetsk and Luhansk regions
"The situation in the Donbas remains the toughest. We still feel the fire superiority of the occupiers. They took everything from their reserves to attack us, the Luhansk region, and the Donetsk region. I'm grateful to everyone who protects us in such conditions," Volodymyr Zelensky said in a new address.
In the Lysychansk direction, the russian army is shelling Ukrainian positions, continuing its attempts to take control of the Bakhmut–Lysychansk highway, but without success. At the same time, it intensified combat operations in the Kramatorsk direction.
The occupiers are storming the Lysychansk oil refinery, holding the north-western and south-eastern parts of the plant. Ukrainian soldiers stopped the enemy's advance in the direction of Loskutivka–Lysychansk Gelatine Plant and forced them to retreat, Serhii Haidai, Luhansk Regional State Administration, reports.
Kharkiv region
Kharkiv psychologist Petro Poliashchenko and Rada, a labrador, conducts dog therapy sessions for children. The other day they visited the village of Yakovlivka near Kharkiv, which was bombed by the russian army in March. "Communication with a dog, communication with each other gives positive emotions. It shows that during the war, there is a place for kindness, communication, emotions, joy, that there is a place for friendship and love," says Petro.
In the Kharkiv region, the Ukrainian Armed Forces did not surrender a single meter of our territory, which was retaken during the counteroffensive in May. Oleh Sinehubov, the head of the Kharkiv region, said this in an interview with RBC Ukraine. Our Armed Forces are focused on holding their positions and inflicting maximum defeat on the enemy.
"The enemy has also concentrated on defending their positions and is constantly trying to break through our defensive lines. However, the aggressor suffers losses, has no success, and retreats from previously occupied positions. It happens to us practically every day. We don't have quiet days. We are actively fighting on all front lines. It is in the northern, northeastern direction, as well as in the Izium direction."
Sumy region
The night of July 1 passed peacefully. But the morning began again with enemy shelling: the russians struck at the Esman community at 7 am with 17 mortar attacks. Fortunately, there were no casualties or damage.
Poltava region
At 9:00 a.m. on July 1, six more body fragments were discovered at the site of emergency rescue operations on the territory of Amstor shopping center. Since the beginning of the work, 28 body fragments have been found. A total of 19 people died due to the rocket attack, and 62 people were injured, of which 26 people were hospitalized, the State Emergency Service reported.
Dnipropetrovsk region
Yesterday, the occupiers fired on Zelenodolsk and Velyka Kostromka. In populated areas, a warehouse, more than one and a half dozen units of agricultural machinery, and a non-residential building in a summer association were destroyed. In addition, three houses were damaged, including the premises of the village club and a power line, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Council, Mykola Lukashuk, said. Fortunately, there were no casualties.
On June 30, another 23 people were evacuated from the Kherson region to Kryvyi Rih. These are the residents of the villages of Vysokopillia, Olhine, and Arkhanhelske, occupied by the russian army. There are now more than 65,000 displaced people in the city, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the military administration.
At night, russian troops with anti-aircraft missiles targeted the Nikopol district of the Dnipropetrovsk region; preliminarily, no one was injured.
Zaporizhzhia region
Ruscists are launching a train from Melitopol to Crimea to transport weapons, hiding as a "human shield," says Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov. It is how the invaders want to protect themselves from the sabotage of the partisan movement.
However, for the time being, the launch of trains from Crimea to Kherson and Melitopol, scheduled for July 1, has been postponed "for security reasons." This was stated by the "head of Crimea," Aksionov. He said the delay was because "the work on ensuring security on the Dzhankoi–Melitopol, Dzhankoi–Kherson railway line has not been fully completed."
Over the past 24 hours, the enemy fired 33 rounds at the positions of our defenders in the Zaporizhzhia direction, using tank weapons, rocket artillery, and cannon artillery along the entire contact line.
According to the police in the Zaporizhzhia region, the occupiers shelled civilian infrastructure in the areas of Huliaipole and Mala Tokmachka over the past 24 hours.
There were 39 reports of civil infrastructure objects being destroyed due to shelling by the russian occupation forces.
Kherson region
In the Kherson region, within the boundaries of the Bilozerka community, Ukrainian aviators carried out a pair of helicopter strikes on a concentration of enemy workforce and military equipment, the South Operational Command reports.
Also, our missile and artillery units, during the execution of fire missions, eliminated 35 invaders, two modernized T-72B3 tanks, and four more units of other armored vehicles.
The harvest has begun in the Kherson region. Due to constant shelling by russian troops, farmers risk their lives working in the fields. Since the beginning of russia's full-scale invasion of the area, 60% of agricultural enterprises have stopped working.
Mykolaiv region
The number of victims as a result of a russian missile attack on a residential building in Mykolaiv has increased to eight; a man's body was found under the rubble. Rescuers continue to dismantle the debris, the State Emergency Service noted.
In the morning, the enemy shelled the Mykolaiv region as well. At least ten explosions were heard in the city, the Suspilne correspondents reported.
Odesa region
A terrible night in Odesa. Around 01:00, the resort village of Serhiivka came under rocket fire. The missile attack was carried out by strategic aircraft from the direction of the Black Sea. One rocket hit a 9-story residential building; the second hit a recreation center. In the apartment building, one entrance of 9 floors was destroyed.
As of 08:39, 16 people have died, including three children. Thirty-one people were hospitalized. Seven people (including three children) were rescued from the rubble by the State Emergency Service units. Works are ongoing.
As a result of the second rocket strike, a three-story and a four-story building of the recreation center was partially destroyed, as a result of which two people were killed (including one child), and one person was injured. Work at the sites of missile strikes continues.
8:30 a.m. – "The third missile fired over Odesa hit the second recreation center. The details will come soon," said Bratchuk, the Odesa regional military administration spokesman.
West of Ukraine
The Regional Ukrainian Women's Congress was held in Ivano-Frankivsk. The event took place on the territory of the Promprylad. Renovation innovation. This year, women from all over Ukraine joined the meeting. Speakers from abroad joined the discussion via video link.
