Newsletter 14/06/2024
Daily news digest
Top
NATO members agree on plan to help Ukraine, but talks on financial pledges still in progress
NATO defense chiefs, who concluded a two-day ministerial today at the Alliance's Headquarters in Brussels, agreed on a long-term plan to help Ukraine and train the Ukrainian military, but have not yet reached an agreement on regular financial contributions to sustain these efforts.
Zelensky on Putin's readiness for peace talks: He will not stop
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky drew a parallel between Putin and German Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler's expansionist drive before the outbreak of World War II.
"He will not stop. It is the same thing that Hitler used to do. [...] This is why we should not trust these messages," he said that on Italy's SkyTG24 news channel.
Ukraine downs seven Russian cruise missiles, 17 Shahed drones
In total, the enemy used 31 units – 14 air- and ground-based missiles and 17 attack UAVs, namely:
10 Kh-101/Kh-555 cruise missiles, launched by Tu-95 MS strategic bombers (launch area over Saratov region);
three "Iskander-M" ballistic missiles (launched from the temporarily occupied Crimea and Krasnodar Territory);
a Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missile (launched from the airspace over Tambov region);
17 attack drones of the Shahed-131/136 type (Yeysk launch area).
A total of 24 incoming targets were shot down over Khmelnytskyi, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kirovohrad regions:
seven Kh-101/X-555 cruise missiles;
17 attack UAVs of the Shahed-131/136 type.
Ukraine, U.S. sign bilateral security agreement
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Joe Biden have signed a ten-year bilateral security agreement that envisages support for Ukraine now and in the long term in order to strengthen the country's ability to fend off potential future aggression.
President Zelensky, Pope Francis talk consequences of Russian aggression
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine discussed with Pope Francis the consequences of Russian aggression against Ukraine, Russian air terror, and the challenging situation of Ukraine’s energy sector.
Ukraine returns 254 bodies of fallen Ukrainian defenders
In particular, Ukraine repatriated the bodies of 221 defenders who fought in the Donetsk region, 25 fallen soldiers from the Zaporizhzhia region, four fallen defenders from the Luhansk region, and four dead soldiers whose bodies were transferred from Russian morgues.
Source: the official channel of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
War
On June 14, the enemy shelled the recreation area of Ochakiv, Mykolaiv Region
Occupiers are reducing number of troops at some bases in Crimea - partisans
IAEA says mine exploded at Zaporizhzhia NPP
Ukrainian cyber experts shut down provider of Russian banks
Crimea may lose its role as Russia’s bridgehead due to Ukrainian strikes - ISW
Russia used deliberate starvation tactics during capture of Mariupol in 2022 - The Guardian
On the Vovchansk front, border guards of the Rapid Response Border Command "Shkval" destroyed two enemy earth-moving machines.
Defense
Denmark becomes first NATO country to invest in arms production in Ukraine
Defense Ministers Rustem Umerov of Ukraine and Troels Lund Poulsen of Denmark at a meeting held as part of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group signed a memorandum on the purchase of weapons and equipment from Ukrainian manufacturers.
Ukraine, Netherlands to create financing mechanism for Ukrainian arms makers
Deputy Minister for Strategic Industries Serhii Boiev, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren signed a statement of intent, which recorded on paper the intentions of Ukraine and the Netherlands to create an effective mechanism of financial support for Ukrainian arms manufacturers.
The Ministry for Strategic Industries said the allocation of funds by the Netherlands for the purchase of Ukrainian drones is a significant contribution to the ZBROYARI: Manufacturing Freedom fundraising campaign. The goal of the campaign is to collect $10 billion for the production of Ukrainian weapons in 2024. As part of the project, Ukraine already has three donors. In addition to the Netherlands, Denmark allocated $28.5 million and Canada earmarked $2.1 million.
Germany sends new aid package to Ukraine
Germany has transferred a new military aid package to Ukraine, which includes HIMARS multiple rocket launchers, air defense systems, and tanks.
New batch of humanitarian aid for Ukrainian military sent from Latvia
Under the coordination of the Embassy of Ukraine, another humanitarian aid shipment for the needs of the Ukrainian military, which was collected by Latvian volunteer and charitable organisations, was sent to Latvia.
Politics
Scholz on $50B for Ukraine from frozen Russian assets: This is a clear signal to Putin
"Putin's plan is quite clear and open: he wants to continue his war until everyone else stops supporting Ukraine. And this plan failed today. After all, the intention of the G7 countries to mobilize $50 billion, which will be financed using profits from frozen Russian assets, creates the basis for the fact that Ukraine will be able to get everything it needs from the point of view of weapons, but also investments in reconstruction, in energy infrastructure," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Russia seeks to influence U.S. elections to undermine support for Ukraine - media
A growing number of U.S. adversaries – led by Russia – are seeking to influence the 2024 presidential election by hiring commercial entities and employing artificial intelligence, including to undermine U.S. support for Ukraine.
Zelensky: We have signed strongest agreement with United States since our independence
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has called the security agreement between Ukraine and the United States signed on the sidelines of the G7 summit historic.
Putin’s manipulative statements show Russia’s fear of true peace - MFA Ukraine
“It is absurd for Putin, who planned, prepared, and executed, together with his accomplices, the largest armed aggression in Europe since the Second World War, to present himself as a peacemaker and to put forward options for ending the war he started that undermine the foundations of the international legal order and the UN Charter,” - Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
The ministry added that all of Putin's ultimatums had been voiced by Moscow multiple times before so “there is nothing new in these latest statements”.