Ukraine’s military destroys Russian troops, equipment in southern Ukraine

In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, Kateryna Denisova examines one of Ukraine's most unusual legal contradictions. Numerous adult content creators pay taxes to the state while risking criminal prosecution for the very work that generates their income.

Ukraine struck several substations in Crimea overnight on July 5, plunging the Russian-occupied territory into a blackout, social media channels reported.

"The number of targets hit at a distance of more than 50 kilometers from the contact line has almost doubled," Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said in a Telegram post.

Russia launched 125 long-range kamikaze long range Shahed-type drones, an anti-radar missile and three guided air missiles overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force said.

The number includes 1,290 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.

"It is good to see you. Thank you for your service, for defending our country, and for your courage. We are proud of you and wish you a speedy recovery," President Volodymyr Zelensky told wounded soldiers.

President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump on July 4, congratulating him on U.S. Independence Day and discussing the battlefield situation, diplomacy, and efforts to end Russia's war against Ukraine.

Ukraine's Air Force said Russia launched 74 missiles and 496 long-range drones during the attack, most of which targeted Kyiv.

Russia proposed a temporary ceasefire in the front-line city of Kostiantynivka to facilitate a handover of fallen Ukrainian service members' bodies, and the Kremlin said that President Volodymyr Zelensky should travel to Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin instead of meeting in the embattled city.

The decision to place the Pantheon on the territory of the Kyiv Pechersk-Lavra is associating it with what Metropolitan Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, calls "one of the holiest places in the Christian world."

"When we ask America for Patriots, we believe that the values of respect for life and for people that prevailed 250 years ago will prevail again today," Zelensky said.

The EU's new steel allocation, set to enter into force on July 1, was introduced in response to global steel overcapacity, which has been hurting EU producers. The measure aims to restrict tariff-free steel imports to 18.3 million metric tons per year, a 47% reduction.

Witnesses to the accident claim it was provoked by a driver heading in the wrong direction on the motorway toward the minibus, according to Mykolaiv police.

The new footage was published just hours after another night of Ukraine successfully attacking military targets on the peninsula.

Some groups of Russian infantry troops have entered the embattled city, and the situation is difficult, but Kostiantynivka remains under the control of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Head of Ukraine's General Staff Major Andriy Kovalev stressed.