Date—July 25, 2022

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Stories

1. President Volodymyr Zelenskyi dismissed Ruslan Demchenko from the post of First Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. Zelensky signed a decree on Demchenko’s dismissal on July 25: “Fire Ruslan Demchenko from the post of First Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.” Journalists found out that Demchenko was previously subject to lustration. Still, his name and surname disappeared from the website of the Ministry of Justice, where he was listed on the list of persons prohibited from holding public office. The President’s Office refused to report the results of the lustration check of Ruslan Demchenko, the first deputy secretary of the NSDC. In 2010, Demchenko lobbied for the “Kharkiv Agreements,” according to which Ukraine extended the stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea, which the Russian Federation occupied in 2014. (Source: UP).

War

1. Ukraine announced the start of a counter-offensive in the south – the military is trying to recapture the occupied territories of the Kherson region. (Source: BBC).

2. The Armed Forces destroyed 100 soldiers as a result of hitting a hotel in the city of Krasniy Luch, Luhansk region on the night of July 24, the Strategic Communications Department said. The Ukrainian military hit the command post of the Russians, which was located in a hotel in the city of Krasny Luch. As a result of the hit, 100 Russians died, the department has “optimistic forecasts” that the number of people killed will increase due to injuries. (Source: UP).

Opinions

1. UK Intelligence: Inconclusive fighting continues in the Donbas and Kherson areas. Russian commanders continue to face the dilemma of whether to intensify their offensive in the east or strengthen their defenses in the south. The problems of the occupiers with military equipment are noted. On July 18, 2022, intelligence identified a Russian factory for repairing and maintaining military equipment near Barvinok in the Belgorod region of Russia, 10 km from the border with Ukraine. There were 300 damaged vehicles, including main battle tanks, armored personnel carriers, and general support trucks. In addition to well-documented personnel problems, Russia will likely continue to struggle to recover and repair thousands of combat vehicles damaged during operations in Ukraine. (Source: ).

Military Help

1. Krzysztof Platek, the spokesman for the Armaments Agency of the Ministry of National Defense of Poland, spoke about the transfer of Polish PT-91 Twardy tanks to Ukraine. Poland will fill the gap created by the transfer of tanks to Ukraine with the supply of tanks from South Korea: “The gap of more than 200 T-72 tanks, the gap of a certain number of PT-91, about which I cannot say the number, will be filled, and even with double strength because these are tanks of a much higher level of quality.” PT-91 Twardy tanks from Poland are already in Ukraine. It is not known how many tanks we are talking about. PT-91 Twardy is a Polish modernization of the T-72 tank. It was developed in the 90s. Cars in this version have a more powerful engine, an upgraded fire control system, and dynamic armor. Poland plans to buy 48 fighter jets and 180 tanks from South Korea. In March, the Polish Sejm adopted the law “On the Defense of the Fatherland,” which increased defense spending and the army’s size by almost three times. (Source: YouTube).

2. “Today, the first three Gepards officially arrived. These are anti-aircraft missile complexes, for which we have received tens of thousands of rounds. We are expecting the first 15 Gepards. Three arrived in Ukraine today. They are already at the disposal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” said Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov. In mid-July, official Berlin published a list of weapons it still plans to deliver to Ukraine, among which were 30 Gepard air defense systems. The supply of ammunition for the Gepard was previously considered a problem, as only slightly less than 60,000 35 mm shells were available. The Gepard can fire at a rate of up to 1,000 rounds per minute. However, in actual conditions, it fires in short bursts adapted to the target. After several weeks of efforts, the German government officials and the Norwegian Ministry of Defense found a manufacturer that could produce additional ammunition. Previously, the system manufacturer trained Ukrainian soldiers to use the installations. (Source: UP).

Foreign news

1. FSB: Ukrainian intelligence tried to “convince Russian pilots to steal planes”, promising money and EU citizenship in return. In Kyiv, they allegedly planned to persuade Russian pilots “to fly and land aircraft at airfields controlled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.” Even in the first days of the war, Ukroboronprom promised to pay a premium of 1 million dollars for stolen or captured aircraft of the occupiers. (Source: RBK).