Ukraine

Today, thanks to the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates, another 95 Ukrainian defenders, including military personnel, members of the National Guard and border guards, were released from Russian captivity, bringing the total number of Ukrainians released from Russian captivity since the beginning of the full-scale invasion to 3,405, although the exact number of those still in captivity remains unknown due to Russia's lack of transparency.

In Sumy region, a civilian car was attacked by a Russian drone, injuring a female passenger.

The Ministry of Economy discussed expanding cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to attract additional resources for Ukraine, in particular for projects in the energy sector, strengthening war risk insurance, increasing financial instruments, and supporting demining and investment initiatives.

Japan plans to provide Ukraine with a $3. 3 billion loan as part of a $50 billion financial support package from the Group of Seven countries, which will be repaid from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets.

Germany has approved a budget for 2025 with a record 78 billion euros of investment, net borrowing of 43. 8 billion euros, and a total budget size of 481 billion euros, adhering to the constitutional debt limit, but plans to cut military aid to Ukraine to 4 billion euros from about 8 billion euros in 2024.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has appointed Patrick Turner as the Alliance's senior representative to lead the mission to Ukraine, coordinating NATO's efforts and providing an assessment of the situation in Ukraine until it becomes a NATO member.

The National Bank of Ukraine has set the official hryvnia exchange rate for July 18, 2024 at UAH 41. 4627 per dollar and UAH 45.3457 per euro.

Lithuania's foreign minister commented on the potential impact of Donald Trump's choice of Jay DeVance as vice president, saying it means “entering the territory of uncertainty.

95 Ukrainian soldiers, including 23 defenders of Mariupol, were released from Russian captivity.

The Russians are using FPV drones to attack civilian targets, especially emergency services and police units in Kharkiv region, and have increased the number of drone strikes on Ukrainian cities.

Twenty-three Ukrainian soldiers who defended Mariupol were released from Russian captivity, thirteen of them were Azovstal defenders.

Ukrainian footballer Yevhen Konoplyanka, the third leading scorer in the history of the national team with 21 goals in 87 matches, has announced his retirement.

Another 95 Ukrainian defenders, including soldiers, members of the National Guard and border guards, were released from Russian captivity thanks to the mediation efforts of the United Arab Emirates. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that we are looking for everyone who may be captured.

The downing of flight MH17 by Russia 10 years ago showed that Russia's violation of international law and threat to the international legal order goes far beyond Ukraine.

Russia's capabilities in the Black Sea have been significantly reduced due to the withdrawal of its ships, which is a serious military and propaganda setback for Russia, as Ukraine is effectively destroying its Black Sea Fleet using naval strike drones.

As of July 2024, 26. 1% of Ukrainian pensioners receive a pension of less than UAH 3,000, and only 12.5% of pensioners receive payments of more than UAH 10,000.

Trump has hinted at a willingness to ease or lift sanctions against Russia as part of his "deal" to end the war in Ukraine, saying he does not like sanctions and considers them useful only in certain cases, such as with Iran.

On the 10th anniversary of the MH17 crash, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia's responsibility is inevitable and all those responsible for this and other Russian war crimes will be punished as 298 people, including 80 children, died when Russian killers shot down the passenger plane.

A 51-year-old Kyiv resident organized a scheme to smuggle conscripts across the Ukrainian border in exchange for money, entering their data into the Shlyakh system under the guise of volunteers transporting goods for the Armed Forces.

The Foreign Minister said that russia will not be able to avoid responsibility for the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014, and the entire command staff must be brought to justice.

Former US President Donald Trump said that Vladimir Putin "will never get into Ukraine" and that he himself told Putin to "never, ever go into Ukraine" during his presidency, despite Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Despite the proposal to rename Brovary to Brovari, members of the city council voted to appeal to the Verkhovna Rada to preserve the historical name “Brovary” so that, in particular, they would not spend money on changing the documentation instead of such important expenses as supporting mobilized and wounded soldiers.

Last year, the SBU successfully struck the Crimean Bridge for the second time when Sea Baby maritime drones rammed into the bridge's pylons, cutting off a critical logistical artery for Russian troops in southern Ukraine.

Belgium will provide EUR 150 million to finance projects to restore energy and social infrastructure in Kyiv and Chernihiv regions of Ukraine.

A unit at the nuclear power plant has been repaired, which is expected to help reduce electricity consumption limits and stabilize Ukraine's power grid.

Mobile operators in Ukraine are to provide 10 hours of uninterrupted mobile communication during a power outage by February 2025, and 80% of base stations are to meet this requirement by December 2024, according to an order from the State Special Communications Service.

Maksym, 6, and Mykyta, 12, were returned from the temporarily occupied territories to the government-controlled territory of Ukraine.

Ukraine has adopted a law that improves the legal regulation of the starosta institution by introducing measures such as clarifying the criteria for the population of starosta districts, ensuring the continuity of starostas' activities, introducing mechanisms for their election and dismissal, expanding their powers, introducing remote public discussions and reporting procedures.

A grenade was thrown into the yard of the mayor of Bashtanka, Mykolaiv region, damaging the mayor's car, but no one was injured.

Power engineers have completed scheduled repairs and reloading of nuclear fuel at one of the NPP units ahead of schedule and connected it to the grid to strengthen the stability of Ukraine's power system in a difficult period when nuclear power covers more than half of the country's energy consumption.