Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky with Maj. Gen. Yevhenii Khmara, Kyiv, June 25, 2026
EA-Ukraine VideoCast: Under Pressure, The Kremlin Considers A Return to Talks
Thursday’s Coverage: More Ukrainian Strikes on Besieged Crimea
UPDATE 0722 GMT:
The Russian Defense Ministry says Ukraine carried out a record drone attack overnight, launching 660 UAVs on Russian-occupied Crimea and 12 regions of Russia.
Explosions were reported near the Azot chemical plant in the Tula region. The complex is Russia’s largest domestic producer of ammonia and nitrogen fertilizers and a supplier of raw materials for explosives.
A power plant was set afire in Novomoskovsk. The unit supplies heat and hot water to 60% of the residential area in the city of more than 115,000.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin claimed at least 47 drones were intercepted. He did not provide any further details, saying only that emergency services were working at sites of impact. Moscow’s Domodedovo, Vnukovo, and Sheremetyevo airports imposed restrictions on incoming and outgoing flights.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported intercepting 8,849 drones in May, compared to 3,676 in January and 2,504 in May 2025. Around 35% of confirmed successful Ukrainian strikes inside Russia this year occurred in June.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky approved a “40-day influence operation…with the aim of ending the war”. He discussed the “long-range sanctions plan” and “medium-range sanctions” with commanders.
UPDATE 0715 GMT:
France’s President Emmanuel Macron says the French Navy intercepted the Russian shadow fleet tanker Deliver off the coast of Sicily on Thursday.
Automatic identification systems data indicated that the Cameroon-flagged Deliver left the port of Primorsk in northwest Russia on June 4 and turned off its AIS tracking on June 23.
UPDATE 0703 GMT:
At least two civilians were injured when Russia fired five ballistic missiles on Kyiv on Thursday night.
Ukraine’s Air Force issued a warning just before 9 p.m. Minutes later, explosions indicated air defense units were repelling the attack.
Falling missile debris caused a fire in a warehouse in the Darnytskyi district.
The Air Force issued another ballistic missile warning at around 1 a.m.. Explosions were soon reported in Kremenchuk in the Poltava region in central Ukraine.
ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky says the anxiety of Russians is rising amid Kyiv’s counter-attacks deep inside the country and Russian-occupied territory.
After meetings with commanders on Thursday, including on Ukraine’s “long-range sanctions” with missile and drone strikes, Zelensky cited Ukrainian intelligence that the fuel and logistics crisis in Russian-occupied Crimea is worsening. He noted the cutoff of gasoline sales except for the military and essential services, and the admission of Russian proxy officials of widespread power outages.
Citing “internal Russian documents”, Zelensky said the “level of anxiety” among Russians is more than 50%, higher than during Ukraine’s cross-border incursion into the Kursk region in summer 2024.
66% of Russians consider their financial situation difficult. More than 80% of Russians believe a large-scale economic crisis in Russia is inevitable. These are absolutely clear indicators that reflect the failure of Putin’s war policy.
Another Warning to Belarus Not to Intervene
Zelensky issued another warning to Belarus not to intervene to prop up Russia’s 52-month full-scale invasion.
The President said that, on the Belarus border with northern Ukraine, “The construction of road infrastructure and storage bases for ammunition and fuel and lubricants is nearing completion. These facilities have no purpose other than a military one.”
Belarus knows what steps it must take for peace. The development of border infrastructure for aggression from Belarus must be stopped.
Zelensky said that, after his earlier warning, Minsk had suspended relays assisting Russian targeting of drone strikes on northern Ukraine.
