Russia says Ukraine attacks repelled in Donetsk, Zaporizhia

Russia’s defence ministry says Moscow’s forces have repelled attacks by Ukrainian troops in the Donetsk and Zaporizhia regions.
Ukraine says it has liberated a fourth village as part of what military experts have cast as the start of Kyiv’s long-promised counteroffensive.
Blinken hopes Ukraine offensive a ‘success’ to force talks
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said it was too soon to say exactly where Ukraine’s counteroffensive was going, but Washington was confident that Kyiv will continue to have success in trying to take back its land seized by Russia.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, Blinken said the United States was determined to maximise its support for Ukraine so it can succeed on the battlefield.

“Success in the counteroffensive would do two things – it would strengthen its position at any negotiating table that emerges, and it may have the effect as well of actually causing Putin to finally focus on negotiating an end to the war that he started,” Blinken told reporters.

A “robust” package of political and practical support for Ukraine, Blinken added, can also be expected at the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius.Putin visits wounded Russian troops at military hospital
Putin has visited Russian soldiers wounded in Ukraine in a rare face-to-face meeting with ordinary troops at the Central Vishnevsky Military Clinic outside Moscow on “Russia Day”.

The Kremlin aired images of Putin wearing a dark suit and accompanied by Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in military attire.

The officials stood in front of a row of men in blue hospital outfits, some of them in wheelchairs.

As he pinned a medal on one of the men, the 70-year-old Russian leader said: “I congratulate you.”

“I serve Russia,” the soldier replied, shaking Putin’s hand.

The meeting appeared to take place under heavy security.

The TASS news agency said Putin presented the commander of a rifle platoon the “Hero of Russia Star” — a Soviet-era medal that is the highest award in Russia.Ukraine denounces Russian MH17 ‘rambling conspiracy theory’ at ICJ
Lawyers for Ukraine at the International Court of Justice have rejected Russia’s account of the downing of MH17 as a conspiracy theory, in a case alleging Moscow backed separatists in eastern Ukraine in 2014 and discriminates against ethnic Tatars in Crimea.

Kyiv said that Moscow violated a UN anti-terrorism treaty by equipping and funding pro-Russian forces, including militias who shot down Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, killing all 298 passengers and crew in 2014.

Last November, a Dutch court convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian separatist in absentia for their role in the downing of the airliner and sentenced them to life in prison. It found that Russia had “overall control” over the separatist forces.Russia at the time rejected the decision by the Dutch court.

Last week, in hearings before the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, Russia said Ukraine’s MH17 case was based on “nonsense” and offered a host of alternative explanations for what happened.

On Monday, Ukraine’s lawyers hit back. One of them, Marney Cheek, told the court it had been “subjected to a rambling conspiracy theory” about the shooting down of MH17 which would be “better relegated to the darkest corners of the internet”.

Kyiv has accused Russia of being a terrorist state and said it tried to erase the culture of ethnic Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea.UN chief worried Russia will quit grain deal on July 17
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says he is concerned that Russia will leave the Black Sea Grain Initiative (BSGI) deal on July 17.

“I am concerned, and we are working hard in order to make sure that it will be possible to maintain the Black Sea initiative and at the same time that we are able to go on in our work to facilitate Russian exports,” Guterres told reporters.

Moscow has previously threatened to quit the deal if obstacles to its grain and fertiliser shipments are not removed.

The agreement allows Ukraine to export its farm products from its Black Sea ports during the war.F-16 training for Ukrainian pilots could begin by summer: Netherlands
Ukrainian pilots could begin training on F-16 fighter jets as soon as this summer, the Dutch defence minister has told the Reuters news agency.

The Netherlands and Denmark are leading an international coalition to train pilots and support staff, maintain aircraft and ultimately supply F-16s to Ukraine.

“This summer is our ambition, and we’ll see if that’s realistic” for the start of the training programme, Kajsa Ollongren said.

Ollongren said the aim would be to have the training programme fully operational within six months.

But a final decision has not been taken on Kyiv’s request for its allies to supply it with F-16s, Ollongren added.