In Germany, discussions are underway about cutting social assistance for refugees from Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed Mykhailo Drapaty as the new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He will replace Oleksandr Syrskyi once the personnel decisions have been formally finalised.

The Hungarian party Fidesz has stated that the public prosecutor’s office carried out searches at the office where its servers are housed. The party has accused the government of attempting to obstruct its activities.

Kesh Patel, Director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, may visit Russia this autumn. According to Politico, the trip is currently being planned, and the details are still subject to change.

The Vatican is prepared to host a summit that could help bring an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. The date of the talks and the list of participants have not yet been agreed.

NATO countries are facing an acute shortage of cotton, which is needed to manufacture explosives for artillery munitions.

"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.

Anna Neplyakh, winner of the ‘Miss Ukraine Universe 2021’ beauty pageant, is no longer keeping her private life under wraps. The model spoke about her relationship with Kyiv-based businessman Oleksandr Gudkov and revealed the surprises they treat each other to.

Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin, who had previously expressed his support for Ukraine and had hoped to come here for a concert, unexpectedly addressed the audience in Russian during a performance in Kazakhstan. The Russians in their propaganda media are delighted with the artist’s gesture.

Singer Anna Trincher unexpectedly revealed that ever since her school days she had dreamt of marrying Vladimir Dantes, and it seems this crush has not faded to this day.

In the Polish city of Legnica, an unidentified woman attacked two 13-year-old girls from Ukraine on the evening of 18 July: the police are already investigating the incident.

Participants in the ‘National Cashback’ scheme will receive two payments in August — for purchases made in May and June. The money will be credited to their cards in separate instalments.

The Ukrainian military carried out a strike on the Russian military airfield ‘Khalino’ in the Kursk region, resulting in the destruction of a MiG-29 fighter jet and a ‘Pantsir-S1’ anti-aircraft missile and gun system.

Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the illegitimate President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, has stated that Russia considers the possible deployment of NATO military contingents on Ukrainian territory to be unacceptable. According to him, this is precisely how the Kremlin justifies the so-called ‘special military operation’.

Lockheed Martin has unveiled a new missile, the Adapted Capability Effector, for the Patriot systems, which is set to become a cheaper alternative to PAC-3 interceptors. The development was unveiled against a backdrop of growing demand for missile defence systems in the wake of ballistic missile attacks.

Russia has launched the second batch of ‘Rassvet’ satellites, which are seen as a future counterpart to the Starlink system. There are currently around 40 such satellites in orbit, but this is not sufficient for military purposes.

Explosions have been heard in occupied Mariupol. A petrol tanker, a petrol station and a garage were hit as a result of the strikes. Reports that the occupiers’ warehouses have been destroyed are also being verified.