Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Moscow and Washington discuss the potential resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe, among other issues related to the peaceful settlement of Russia's war in Ukraine, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed to the Russian state-run Interfax news agency.
"This is a historic decision, as weapons for Ukraine will be purchased at the expense of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets through the European Peace Fund," Denys Shmyhal said.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
A generator is seen while Kyiv is going through blackouts as a result of the harm caused by Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure in Kyiv, Ukraine on June 4, 2024. (Danylo Antoniuk/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Ukraine imported over 858,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity in June 2024, which is 91% more than the volume imported in May and more than what was imported in the whole of 2023, ExPro Electricity monitoring data showed on July 3.
Russia renewed its attacks on Ukraine's critical infrastructure in the spring, pushing the country's energy grid to breaking point.
Ukrainians have faced lengthy, daily interruptions in electricity since May 15, when scheduled blackouts were implemented amid serious power shortages.
Ukraine's largest private energy company, DTEK, said at the end of June that it had lost nearly 90% of its energy generating capacity due to Russian attacks.
Most of Ukraine's energy imports in June came from Hungary, at 42%, while Slovakia and Romania provided 17% each, Poland provided 16%, and Moldova provided 8%, according to ExPro data.
Slovakia, Romania, and Poland provided emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine for five days in June. On average, Ukraine imported 28,600 MWh from its neighbors each day in June.
Myroslava Tanska-Vikulova
