The US approved the sale of $151.8 million worth of weapons to Israel without congressional review.

The Moldovan Parliament has expressed its confidence in the new government led by the financier Vasile Tofan. The Cabinet of Ministers has pledged to revitalise the economy, reduce the budget deficit and prepare the country for accession to the European Union.

Mykhailo Drapatiy, whom President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed as the new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, is on the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs’ wanted list. However, Russia added the Ukrainian general to the list back in September 2023, rather than following the announcement of personnel changes within the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Volodymyr Horbatyuk, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, is being touted as a possible successor to Andriy Gnativ. However, as of the time of publication, no official appointment has been made.

A Ukrainian F-16 has shot down a Russian fighter jet in an air-to-air engagement for the first time. General Dan Kane, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, announced this aerial victory for Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered Mykhailo Fedorov a position in the government in the field of technology. The former defence minister reportedly turned down the offer, as he believes it is impossible to implement his defence strategy without the powers of the Ministry of Defence.

"Ukrnafta", in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is preparing to build a modern combined-cycle gas-fired combined heat and power plant with a capacity of around 250 MW.

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund has completed the first review of the four-year Extended Fund Facility programme for Ukraine. The decision paves the way for the immediate release of approximately $690 million.

The real cost of living in Ukraine should be at least 11,000–12,000 hryvnias per month. However, there are currently no plans to raise it to this level in the near future due to the constraints on the state budget.

From 1 August 2026, the electricity tariff for households will remain unchanged. Household consumers will continue to pay 4.32 hryvnias per kilowatt-hour, regardless of their monthly consumption.

Between 13 and 17 July, the National Bank sold 1.074 billion dollars on the interbank foreign exchange market. This is 203.09 million dollars, or almost a quarter, more than the previous week.

Russian oil companies have managed to bring back into operation less than half of the capacity of the oil refineries that were damaged as a result of drone attacks. Some of the larger facilities remain shut down.

During hearings in the US Senate, Defence Minister Pete Hagseth failed to provide clear answers regarding the duration of the war with Iran, its ultimate objective and its cost. At the same time, Donald Trump’s administration is asking Congress to approve tens of billions of dollars in additional funding.

The Central Bank of Russia has been reducing its gold reserves for the sixth month running. In the first half of 2026, the reserves fell by 43.5 tonnes, marking the largest decline in at least the last 25 years.

The US Armed Forces have continued a series of air strikes on Iranian territory, which have now been ongoing for the eleventh consecutive night. US Central Command has stated that military targets have been struck, whilst Iran has reported new attacks on US bases in the region.

On the night of 22 July, Ukrainian drones attacked Wildberries’ logistics centres in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk in the Stavropol Krai.