On the 1625th day of the war, Ukraine attacked one of the largest refineries in Russia, located in the Yaroslavl region, over 700 km from the border. It was the second consecutive night that the Slavneft-Yanos unit was hit, and drone fragments caused fires in the city.
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced in the morning that over 600 drones were shot down in 20 regions and in Crimea. A logistics center in the Tver region of the Wildberries commercial giant was „slightly damaged.”
On the other hand, Russia's attacks once again caused deaths and injuries among civilians. At least seven people were killed in the night bombings in the Kharkov region. 13 people were injured in the cities of Zaporizhia and Sumy, and several buildings were damaged. Additionally, a Russian FPV drone attacked a bus transporting field workers in a village in the Kherson region, injuring six people.
The increase in Russian military flights near NATO's eastern border in July led to a 250% rise in emergency interventions by Alliance fighter jets.
On the other hand, it is confirmed that the exchange of information between the United States and Ukraine has returned to its previous high level.
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Ukraine's Strikes
- Second night of strikes at one of the largest refineries - Ukrainian drones attacked the Slavneft-Yanos refinery for the second consecutive night, one of the largest oil processing units in Russia, located in the Yaroslavl region, over 700 km from the Ukrainian border. According to images and videos posted by residents on social media, columns of smoke rose above the city of Yaroslavl during a drone attack, as reported by Kyiv Independent. Governor Mikhail Yeryayev announced it was the "largest attack" on the region, with 92 drones shot down. He announced traffic restrictions on the road connecting the city to Moscow. Drone fragments ignited several houses and damaged cars, he announced on Telegram.
- Over 600 drones in Russia - Moscow announces that during the night, 605 Ukrainian drones were shot down over 20 regions and the annexed Crimean Peninsula, according to AFP. The Russian Ministry of Defense specifies that a logistics center in the Tver region of the Russian online commerce giant Wildberries was "slightly damaged" according to local authorities. No one was injured, the region's governor Vitaly Korolyov announced.
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Russia's Attacks
- Massive attack in Kharkov - Three people were killed in Russian bombings launched during the night in Balaklia, a city in the Kharkov region in northeastern Ukraine, announced Vitaly Karabanov, the head of the city's military administration, according to AFP. In the first attack, a residence was hit, Karabanov wrote on Telegram. "Unfortunately, a woman was killed in the attack. A fire broke out at the attack site, and emergency teams are clearing the rubble," he added. A second attack killed two people, a man and a woman, near another residence, according to Karabanov. Additionally, two men were killed and eight people were injured in a Russian drone attack on a train station in Lozova, in the Kharkiv region. The drone hit a railcar near the station. The deceased and three of the injured were railway employees, as reported by Ukrainska Pravda.
- Injuries in Zaporizhia and Sumy - Three people were injured in a drone attack on the city of Zaporizhia. The roof of a nine-story residential building was partially destroyed, and the shockwave damaged neighboring houses. In Sumy, over 10 people were injured following Russian airstrikes on the city's civilian infrastructure. Several residential buildings were damaged, announced the Ukrainian Emergency Service in the morning.
- Bus hit by drone - Six people were injured after a Russian FPV drone attacked a bus transporting field workers in the village of Komisani in the Kherson region in the morning. The injured were taken to the hospital, announced the Military Administration of the city of Kherson cited by Ukrainska Pravda.
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Other Relevant Information
- A fiery month for NATO - The number of emergency interventions by NATO fighter jets increased by 250% as Russia tests its limits at the border with military aircraft, announces the Alliance. NATO fighter jets were scrambled over twice as often in July 2026 compared to the same period last year, announced the NATO Allied Joint Force Command for Eastern and Central Europe on Wednesday. The report comes amid an increase in the number of unregistered Russian military flights near NATO's eastern border, notes Kyiv Independent.
- Improved information exchange between the US and Ukraine - The information exchange relationship between the United States and Ukraine has returned to its previous high level. Senator Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a long-time supporter of increased US support for Ukraine, told Politico that he has seen signs of improvement in the information exchange mechanism. He believes this has helped Kyiv gain an advantage in the large-scale war initiated by Russia four years ago. "I don't want to go into specific details, but the situation has improved," Warner said, adding that the use of drones and long-range missiles has allowed Ukraine to strike deep into Russian territory and strengthen its position. John Herbst, former US ambassador to Ukraine, who served in Kyiv between 2003 and 2006 and continues to maintain connections with Ukrainian officials, stated that Washington also benefits from the information provided by Kyiv. "There is no doubt about it: Ukraine has excellent information about Russia," he said.
- Tusk pressured to revoke Zelensky's distinction - Zbigniew Bogucki, the head of the Polish President's Chancellery, urged Prime Minister Donald Tusk to "find the courage" to sign the decision officially revoking Volodymyr Zelensky from the ranks of recipients of the Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest state honor, reports Ukrainska Pravda. Polish President Nawrocki decided on June 19 to revoke the Order of the White Eagle from Zelensky following the naming of a Ukrainian military unit as "Heroes of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army." Zelensky returned the distinction, but the measure requires Tusk's signature to take effect.
- Russia denies recruiting Colombian mercenaries - The Russian Embassy in Colombia denied any connection on Wednesday to alleged networks recruiting Colombian mercenaries, known for their participation in armed conflicts worldwide, reports AFP. The Colombian news program Noticias Caracol published an investigation on Monday presenting testimonies and documents indicating a Moscow strategy to recruit Colombians to fight in its war in Ukraine. The Russian Embassy in Bogota stated on Wednesday that it has "no relationship with the recruiters mentioned in the report and no idea how they finance their activities."
- The Black Sea, the new front shaking global trade - An increase in attacks on ships, ports, and export terminals in the Black Sea disrupts global supply of cereals and oil, turning the region into the latest strategic point of commercial blockade affected by the escalating Russo-Ukrainian conflict. Details HERE.
- Voice of America returns in Ukrainian - Radio Voice of America will resume broadcasts in the Ukrainian language, and some of the employees of the Ukrainian Service will return to work after the institution's management decided to reactivate the program, reports Kyiv Independent. "It is a very important decision, especially now, when Russia is daily bombing Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, killing civilians and continuing propaganda and disinformation campaigns against Ukraine," transmitted Ruslan Petrîcika, the head of the Ukrainian Service of the station. Voice of America operates under the authority of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), an institution that was targeted in 2025 by measures from President Donald Trump's administration to reduce the size of several federal agencies.
The English translation of this article was generated with the assistance of AI technology.