Almost all residents have fled the twin cities of Lysychansk and Sievjerodonetsk, which were reduced to rubble by Russia. Kremlin boss Putin wants to continue his "special operation". Heavy fighting is reported from Donetsk in the evening. Kazakhstan wants to help the EU with oil and gas and the Pope is planning a trip to Moscow. The 130th day of the war at a glance.
In eastern Ukraine, after the Ukrainian withdrawal from the city of Lysychansk, the focus of the fighting has shifted to the neighboring Donetsk region. At the border between the two regions, Russian attacks were successfully repelled near Bilohorivka and Verkhnjokamjanske, the Ukrainian general staff announced on Facebook in the evening. The Wuhlehirsk thermal power plant to the west of Svitlodarsk, which has already been conquered by pro-Russian separatists, is also contested. On the other hand, the Russian troops had gained territory north of Slowjansk near Masanivka. In addition, Ukrainian positions on large parts of the front were shelled with artillery, rocket launchers and mortars. The Russian air force also bombed positions of Ukrainian units.
The Kremlin rules Luhansk over ruins and ghost towns
According to Ukrainian sources, only a few thousand people remain in Lysychansk, which was conquered by Russia. The military governor of the Luhansk region, Serhiy Hajdaj, said the figure was around 10,000 on Ukrainian television. In the neighboring city of Sievjerodonetsk, which is also under Russian control, only about 8,000 people remained. More than 100,000 people lived there before the start of the war. Almost everything in the metropolitan area has now been destroyed: 90 percent of the infrastructure has been damaged and 60 percent of the residential buildings have been destroyed. Hajdaj said the loss of Lysychank was painful but not critical. "It hurts a lot, but it doesn't mean losing the war."
Putin: "Special operation" will continue
After the capture of Luhansk, Russia announced the continuation of fighting in other parts of the neighboring country. "The armed forces of the Russian Federation are continuing the military special operation," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a meeting with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. In Moscow, the war against Ukraine that began around four and a half months ago is officially referred to as a "special operation". Putin said Russian soldiers who took part in the capture of Luhansk should now "rest" to gather strength for further fighting.
Ukraine wants $750 billion in reparations
The Ukrainian government wants to finance the reconstruction of its war-torn country largely with Russian money. According to estimates, at least 750 billion dollars (almost 720 billion euros) are needed, said Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal at the first major reconstruction conference in Lugano in Switzerland. According to Schmyhal, the assets of the Russian state and oligarchs, which are frozen around the world, should be used around 300 to 500 billion dollars.
Oil and gas: Kazakhstan's president would bypass Russia
The President of the ex-Soviet Republic of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, promised the EU oil and gas supplies. "Kazakhstan is ready to use its hydrocarbon potential to stabilize the situation on world and European markets," his press service quoted him as saying after a phone call with EU Council President Charles Michel. Kazakhstan could form a kind of "buffer zone" to compensate for the imbalances in the distribution of energy between East and West and North and South, it said. In this context, Tokayev called on the EU to expand alternative transport corridors - including through the Caspian Sea. This would allow raw materials to be delivered to Europe bypassing Russia.
Resource-rich, authoritarian Kazakhstan is part of the Russian-dominated Eurasian Economic Union. However, during a panel discussion with Putin at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Tokayev declared that Kazakhstan would not follow Russia's example of recognizing the eastern Ukrainian separatist regions of Luhansk and Donetsk as independent states.
Pope wants to go to Moscow first, then to Kyiv
Pope Francis publicly considered a trip to Moscow for the first time. There were contacts between Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about a possible visit, Francis told Reuters. A few months ago, the Vatican asked for a possible trip to Moscow for the first time. At that time, the Russian answer was that this was not the right time. But Francis is now suggesting that something may have changed recently. "I would like to go to Ukraine and I wanted to go to Moscow first." After his return from Canada at the end of July, a visit to Ukraine is conceivable.
Bulgarian secret service raises propaganda allegations
According to the Bulgarian secret service, public figures receive the equivalent of around 2,000 euros if they do propaganda for Russia. This was explained by Lena Borislawova, spokeswoman for the Bulgarian government, as the news portal Euractiv wrote. Accordingly, the Russian state pays well-known Bulgarian journalists, politicians and other public figures money for the distribution of Kremlin propaganda. "Everyone who spits on the EU and NATO and supports Putin's actions in Ukraine should know this," said Borislavova. "Those who influence you get paid. Monthly."
German LNG terminal approved
Germany's first terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) to replace Russian pipeline deliveries in Wilhelmshaven can now be built. The Oldenburg Trade Inspectorate approved the project, according to the energy company Uniper. The agency said it had given permission on Friday to start work early on the jetty and on land.
Green to open letter: "From the sofa"
The Greens reacted with incomprehension to the recent letter from prominent Germans on the war in Ukraine. He admits to the authors of the letter "that they want the best," said party leader Omid Nouripour. At the same time, however, he lacks a bit of understanding for people who think they have to tell the people in Ukraine "whether their fight is the right thing to do or not." The co-chair stressed: "Anyone who wants to protect human life must now support Ukraine." In the appeal in "Zeit", personalities such as the philosopher Richard David Precht and the writer Juli Zeh called for a ceasefire. Nouripour said the call came from people who, "sitting comfortably on the couch" probably lost their patience in the face of the disturbing images from Ukraine and therefore decided "that this is enough and that it has to stop now" with the War.
Melnyk could be called back to Kyiv
The Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, could return to Kyiv. As "Bild" claims to have learned from several sources in the Ukrainian capital, there are plans for the 46-year-old to move to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry. Accordingly, Melnyk could take over the post of deputy foreign minister there before the fall. The ministry submitted this proposal to President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, as the "Bild" quoted a Ukrainian government official. "Andriy Melnyk is very much appreciated in Kyiv for his work," he continued.
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