Destruction from a Russian glide bomb on Kharkiv, Ukraine, June 30, 2024 (Nikoletta Stoyanova/Getty)

Sunday’s Coverage: Russia’s Attacks Kill 12, Including 3 Children, in South and East

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1053 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has challenged the Biden Administration’s hesitancy over Kyiv’s accession to NATO.

Speaking with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Zelenskiy said:

We hear the opinions of the [Democratic and Republican] parties. And this suggests that no one sees Ukraine in NATO today. Unfortunately.

It is so-called “one step forward, two steps back” policy. I do not think that this is the policy of world leaders.

If America is afraid of irritating Putin, and that is why we are not invited, then we ask the United States to give us as much as possible that can protect us.

UPDATE 0819 GMT:

The independent Russian outlet Meduza explain how a subsidiary of Russia’s sanctioned Gazprombank, operating in Luxembourg, has made record profits during Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Despite being sanctioned, Gazprombank isn’t subject to blocking restrictions. So American companies can still do business with GPB International, which also overcame the sanctions on Russia’s seizure of Crimea in 2014. The EU has also refraining from the blocking measures, allowing GPB to continue using the SWIFT system for international payments.

Gazprombank’s special status is a consequence of Europe’s past dependence on Russian energy resources, primarily gas. GPB International, launched in 2013, is the site for Gazprombank’s correspondent account for euro transactions.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: As Russia’s glide bombs kill more civilians, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has called on the world to help Ukraine “neutralize Russia’s combat aviation” and strike Russian military infrastructure and airfields.

In Russia’s latest killing, an employee was slain and nine other civilians, including a baby, were slain in the bombing of a post office in Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv.

In the Obolon suburb of Kyiv, fragments from a downed Russian missile started a fire and damaged balconies of a 14-story apartment building. An elderly woman was hospitalized, and five women residents were treated for stress. Debris also caused three injuries, with two victims in hospital, in the region.

And drone footage showed bodies in a civilian area in Toretsk, the town in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine which Russia is trying to overrun. Local officials said Russia is firing glide bombs .

Across Donetsk, two people were killed and 12 injured. One of the fatalities was in Toretsk and the other in Siversk.

In Dnipro in south-central Ukraine, seven people were wounded by a missile, two days after one civilian was slain and 12 — including a 7-month-old baby — were injured by a Russian strike.

On Saturday, Russian attacks killed 12 civilians, including three children, in the south and east of the country.

The children were among seven fatalities from two Russian missiles fired on the town of Vilniansk in the Zaporizhzhia region in the south. At least 31 people, including eight children, were injured.

“Enough Strength To Force Russia To Make Peace”

Zelenskiy said Russia has used more than 800 glide bombs on Ukrainian targets in the past week. In his nightly video address to the nation, he continued:

Such Russian bombs remain Putin’s key capability to wage war. The sooner the world helps us neutralize Russia’s combat aviation launching these bombs and the sooner we can strike back with justified strikes against Russian military infrastructure and airfields, the closer peace will be.

The world possesses enough strength to force Russia to make peace. While defending the Kharkiv region from Russian advances, we have shown that the resolve of partners truly makes a difference. Strikes on Russian border areas have helped our efforts to save lives. Similarly, further bold decisions will help, the ones that are necessary and the ones we are discussing with partners.

Zelenskiy also spoke of follow-up to the initial Global Peace Summit two weeks ago, with about 90 countries signing the statement supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty and seeking an end to the 28-month Russian invasion.

“We now have more details on progress within working groups on specific security issues within the Peace Formula,” the President said. “There is no alternative to peace, and despite Russia’s efforts to expand the war, we will make every effort to restore peace to Ukraine. A just peace.”