This Sunday, July 2, Moscow again sent missiles to kyiv, for the first time in twelve days. The war in Ukraine has a “destructive” effect on Vladimir Putin, the CIA director had declared the day before.
From the Ditchley Foundation, UK, William Burns called Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “the most immediate and acute geopolitical challenge to the international order today”. According to him, the war is a “strategic failure” for Moscow, which has exposed Russia’s military weaknesses, dealt a blow to its economy and encouraged the enlargement and strengthening of NATO.
“Dissatisfaction with the war will continue to gnaw at the Russian leadership […] This dissatisfaction creates for us at the CIA a once-in-a-generation opportunity,” Burns said. had recently posted a message on Telegram telling Russians how to reach the US agency through the dark web.The CIA director did not mention his recent trip to Ukraine, where he met with intelligence officials and the President Volodymyr Zelensky in June, shortly before the failed rebellion of Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.
kyiv again targeted by Russian attacks overnight
The Ukrainian Air Force announced on Sunday that it had shot down three cruise missiles and eight drones deployed overnight by Russian forces, the drones having notably targeted Kiev for the first time in 12 days. “All aerial targets – 8 Shahed-136/131 attack UAVs and 3 Kalibr cruise missiles – were destroyed!”, the Ukrainian Air Force said. “Eight Shahed (Editor’s note: Iranian-made) were launched from the southeast and three Kalibr missiles were launched from the Black Sea,” she added in a statement.
A man was injured in the leg and three houses were damaged by falling debris in the Kyiv region, according to Ruslan Kravchenko, the head of the regional military administration. Russia has intensified its nightly bombardments of Ukraine with explosive drones and missiles since May, as kyiv began its long-awaited counteroffensive in the east and south occupied by Russian troops in early June.
Zelensky wants invitation to join NATO at Vilnius summit
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday he wanted his country to receive an “invitation” to join NATO at the Vilnius summit in July. “We need a very clear and intelligible signal from the Vilnius summit that Ukraine can become a full member of NATO after the war,” he told reporters in Kyiv. alongside Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. “This invitation to the alliance is the first step, very concrete, which would be very important for us.”
Romania: departure of 40 Russian diplomats and employees
Forty diplomats and employees of the Russian embassy in Bucharest will leave Romania following a government request, against a backdrop of deteriorating ties between the two countries since the start of the conflict in Ukraine. Eleven diplomats and 29 technical and administrative staff, accompanied by their families, “will leave Romania on board a civilian plane belonging to a Russian airline,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
This decision “reflects the current level of bilateral relations”, drastically reduced by Romania “after the outbreak by Moscow of the war of aggression against Ukraine”, explained the ministry. The authorities issued their request on June 8, giving Russia 30 days to comply. Following the invasion of Ukraine, Romania, a member of NATO, expelled many Russian diplomats suspected of spying, like other European countries. In total, the staff of the Russian embassy has been slashed by more than half, according to Bucharest.