[Korrespondent] 22:51 Reznikov admitted that Ukraine could be accepted into NATO at the next NATO summit in Washington in July 2024. Then the war may end, the minister noted.
22:13 Zelensky said in an evening video message that a Russian X-22 anti-ship missile hit the altar of the Holy Transfiguration Cathedral in Odessa during a night attack. The President recalled that this is one of the most valuable cathedrals in Ukraine, which was plundered and destroyed by the Bolsheviks in 1936, and already in independent Ukraine it was restored.
In addition, in Odessa, as a result of Russian missile attacks, the second consular office was damaged - this time the building of the Greek consulate. Three days ago, another such attack damaged the Chinese consulate building.
20:59 UNESCO "strongly condemned" the Russian attack on Odessa and called it "an escalation of violence against the cultural heritage of Ukraine."
19:52 The Wall Street Journal writes, citing sources, that the West knew in advance about the insufficient preparation of Ukraine for the success of the counteroffensive, but counted on the courage and determination of the Ukrainians. According to the publication, Western military leaders knew that Ukrainian troops did not have the required training, nor a sufficient arsenal of weapons - from shells to combat aircraft - necessary to dislodge Russian forces from fortified positions.
The newspaper notes that the lack of air defense and anti-aircraft weapons in Ukraine provided Russia with air superiority on most of the front. In such a situation, complex offensive operations are simply impossible.
19:43 Blinken said that Ukraine has already returned about 50% of the territory that Russia seized during the full-scale war. According to the forecast of the US Secretary of State, Ukraine's counter-offensive will continue for at least several more months.
19:37 Russia is modernizing some types of missiles, Vadim Skibitsky, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, said: "We clearly know that measures have been taken to modernize some types of missiles. The same Kh-22, in fact, has already become the Kh-32, that is, it has undergone modernization." According to him, Ukrainian intelligence officers also have information about the plans of the Russians to modernize Onyx missiles. Skibitsky added that after the modernization, the Russians resumed the use of Bal and Bastion anti-ship systems used against civilian targets.
18:58 At the next meeting of the UN Security Council, Ukraine will raise the issue of the threat posed by the Russian Federation to Ukrainian Orthodoxy, Kuleba said.
18:29 Ukraine will receive F-16 fighters, but their delivery will take several months, Blinken said in an interview with CNN.
17:40 The Biden administration refuses to transfer long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukraine, despite requests from Kiev and pressure from American lawmakers, writes The Washington Post. Washington believes that Ukraine has more pressing needs. In addition, they fear that sending long-range missiles to Ukraine will seriously undermine the US preparedness for potential conflicts.
17:13 Zelensky said that Ukraine needs a full-fledged air shield: "We have already shown that we can shoot down even those Russian missiles that the terrorists especially boasted about. Thanks to the help of partners and the air defense systems provided to Ukraine, our sky defenders saved thousands of lives. But for our entire territory, for all our cities and communities, more air defense systems are needed."
16:47 Italian Prime Minister George Meloni said that her country is ready to join the restoration of the Transfiguration Cathedral, which suffered as a result of a missile attack on Odessa: "A free people will not allow themselves to be intimidated, barbarism will not win. Italy, with its unique experience in the world in restoration, is ready to join in the restoration of the cathedral and other treasures of the cultural heritage of Ukraine."
16:21 Lukashenko said at a meeting with Putin that the transfer of Ukrainian lands to Poland is unacceptable, "if Western Ukraine asks for help, we will provide it." According to him, now there is supposedly a lot of talk about "Ukraine joining NATO in parts, in order to tear off Western Ukraine in this way." Lukashenka invited Putin to discuss the issue of "possible support for the population of Western Ukraine."
15:33 According to updated information, as a result of a night attack in Odessa, one person died, 21 were injured, four of them were children , Oleg Kiper, head of the OVA, said. At least 44 buildings were damaged, 25 of which are architectural monuments, including buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries. Kiper recalled that the historical center of Odessa, which was hit by a missile attack, is under the protection of UNESCO.
14:17 Russian intelligence is studying the state of Ukraine's energy infrastructure facilities, Vadym Skibitsky, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, said in an interview with We - Ukraine : "We are monitoring all issues related to the exploration of our energy facilities by the Russian Federation. They have begun such work." According to Skibitsky, the enemy uses various types of intelligence, including space, his goal is to find out the state and identify critical objects that affect the Ukrainian energy system.
13:40 In the morning, the Russians fired cluster munitions at the city of Chasov Yar, Donetsk region - they destroyed the Palace of Culture, which was used as a humanitarian headquarters and a place for providing medical assistance, said the head of the OVA, Pavel Kirilenko. The building of the Palace of Culture burned down, because firefighters could not put out the fire because of the shelling. Insignificant stocks of humanitarian aid and medical equipment were destroyed, people were not injured.
13:19 Lukashenko said at a meeting with Putin that he was concerned about the Wagner PMC mercenaries, who allegedly "want to go to Warsaw": "Perhaps it would not be worth talking about, but I will say. The Wagnerites began to strain us. "I want to go to the West. Let us." I say, why do you need to go to the West? "Well, go on an excursion to Warsaw, to Rzeszow." Lukashenka assured that he keeps mercenaries in the center of the country and does not want to redeploy them to the west of Belarus, because "they have a bad mood." "We will oppose this in every possible way. And I also ask you to consider this issue at home," Lukshenko addressed Putin.
12:38 A meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council at the request of Kiev will be held on July 26, said Alliance Speaker Oana Lungescu. She specified that the meeting will be held at the level of ambassadors. The parties will hold consultations on recent developments and discuss the transportation of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea.
12:07 Danilov said that the main goal of Russian rocket attacks on Odessa and the region is an attempt to completely isolate Ukraine's access to the Black Sea, and through an act of intimidation to prevent and neutralize international efforts to resume the functioning of the grain corridor. According to the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, the Kremlin expects that by blackmail it will force the West to negotiate and accept a "grain ultimatum" - the resumption of exports of Russian ammonia, the lifting of some sanctions and other restrictions.
In turn, the destruction of the Ukrainian infrastructure that ensures the functioning of the grain corridor should make the world dependent on Russian grain, Danilov said: “The plan is to bring the world to its knees and make Russia a unique grain supplier. After the failure of the idea of an “energy superpower,” Putin wants to become a “grain super-empire.”
11:34 The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that today's strike on the center of Odessa allegedly destroyed "the facilities where terrorist acts against the Russian Federation were prepared using unmanned boats, as well as the places of their manufacture in the Odessa region." And on the affected objects, according to Moscow, there were "foreign mercenaries".
10:55 Radio Liberty showed a video from inside the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odessa after the missile attack:
09:28 Air defense forces destroyed nine missiles out of 19, with which Russia attacked the Odessa region at night, the command of the Air Force reported. In particular, all four Caliber cruise missiles and five Iskander-K ground-based cruise missiles were shot down. In addition to them, the Russians used five Oniks cruise missiles, three Kh-22 air-launched cruise missiles (launched from Tu-22MZ aircraft from the Black Sea) and two Iskander-M ballistic missiles (also fired from Crimea).
09:02 In the Donetsk region over the past day, as a result of Russian shelling, four people were killed (in Sofievka, Avdeevka, Toretsky and Fedorovka), 11 more were injured. In the Kharkiv region, one person died as a result of the shelling of Kupyansk, another one - in the village of Dvurechnaya, Kupyansky district, one civilian was wounded. In the Kherson region, one person died, according to the IVA.
08:41 At night, the Russians attacked the outskirts of Zaporozhye and the Zaporozhye region with four missiles, there were no casualties, said the head of the OVA, Yuri Malashko.
08:37 The General Staff announced the approximate losses of the Russian Federation as of the morning of July 23:
- personnel - about 241,960 (+630) people liquidated,
- tanks - 4151 (+11),
- armored combat vehicles - 8105 (+9),
- artillery systems - 4658 (+29),
- MLRS - 697 (+4),
- air defense systems - 451 (+3),
- aircraft - 315 (+0),
- helicopters - 310 (+0),
- UAV operational-tactical level - 3958 (+14),
- cruise missiles - 1298 (+0),
- ships/boats - 18 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tankers - 7172 (+13),
- special equipment - 696 (+5).
07:45 The Russian army is concentrating its main efforts on the Kupyansky, Limansky, Bakhmutsky, Avdeevsky and Maryinsky directions - over the past day there have been about 40 clashes, the General Staff said in the morning summary . The Defense Forces of Ukraine continue the offensive operation in the Melitopol and Berdyansk directions, and consolidate on the achieved lines.
In Energodar, Zaporozhye region, the occupiers have intensified repressions against ZNPP workers who refuse to cooperate and conclude contracts with the Russian "administration". Ukrainians continue to resist: they do not go to work, they sabotage the implementation of decisions, etc. The occupiers apply measures of psychological and physical influence to such workers. Employees of Rosgravdia and the FSB of the Russian Federation intimidate, threaten, blackmail, beat Ukrainian specialists, take away their cash, funds from bank cards, mobile phones.
06:33 At night, the Russians attacked the Odessa region with at least five types of missiles of all types based: Caliber, Onyx, Kh-22 and Iskander-K, as well as ballistic Iskander-M, OK Pivden reported. The air defense forces destroyed a significant part of the missiles, the rest damaged the port infrastructure, at least six residential buildings, including apartment buildings. On one of the central squares of Odessa, the Cathedral of the UOC-MP , the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral, the largest Orthodox church in Odessa, suffered from a missile attack. Two architectural monuments were damaged. It is known about one dead, another 19 people were injured, including four children.