Russia attacks Kyiv with drones, Biden to meet with Zelensky at NATO summit, Lithuanian President calls for NATO bases at Russian border

Novaya-Europe’s round-up

It is day 503 of the war in Ukraine. Russia attacks the Ukrainian capital with drones once again. Media report citing officials that Biden is planning to meet with Zelensky during the NATO summit in Vilnius. Lithuanian President Nauseda calls for NATO bases near the Russian border. The ISW estimates that Ukraine has liberated nearly as much ground in five weeks as Russian forces had gained in over six months.

Read the top headlines of the early hours of 11 July in Novaya-Europe’s round-up.

Russia hits Kyiv with drones

The Kyiv authorities reported that Russian drones — likely Shaheds of Iranian production — attacked the Ukrainian capital overnight. Serhiy Popko, head of the city’s wartime administration, said this was the second aerial attack on Kyiv this month, adding the drones were likely launched from Russia’s Krasnodar region.

“Our air defence destroyed all detected air targets moving in the direction of Kyiv. Once again we thank our air defence for doing a great job!”, Popko said.

A spokesman for the Ukrainian Armed Forces said the extent of the ensuing damage is still being established, adding that in the last 24 hours Russia also carried out 48 air strikes and 60 artillery attacks on positions of the Ukrainian army as well as settlements, injuring civilians and damaging an infrastructural facility in Mykolaiv.

The Ukrainian Army also reported that certain units of the Belarusian Armed Forces were conducting operations near the Ukrainian border.

Head of the Dnipro region military administration Serhiy Lysak reported strikes on Nikopol and Marhanets. “The enemy fired over a dozen shells against the Dnipro region last night,” he wrote, adding that there were no casualties.

Two drones hit an administrative building in the port of Odesa, Operational Command South reported. Pieces of the wrecked drones caused a fire in two port terminals. The blaze was promptly extinguished and did not lead to heavy damage or human casualties. Air defence managed to shoot down a further 22 Shahed-136 drones.

Three residents of the Donetsk region have been killed as a result of shelling overnight, head of the local military administration Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

Biden to meet with Zelensky at NATO summit

US President Joe Biden is planning to meet with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky during the NATO summit in Vilnius, Politico and CNN reported citing US officials.

Politico’s sources claim the meeting has been set for 12 July, even though Ukraine has not yet confirmed Zelensky’s participation in the summit.

“Biden will look to convince Zelenskyy that removing a series of bureaucratic hurdles and reforms, in addition to a large security commitment by the U.S. and some NATO allies, was the most Kyiv could get in Vilnius this year,” Politico writes, adding that Biden had previously opposed the idea of a speedy path for Ukraine into NATO as the war was ongoing.

Biden is also set to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who greenlighted Sweden’s bid to join NATO on Monday.

ISW: Ukraine gains nearly as much ground in 5 weeks as Russia did in 6 months

The US-based Institute for the Study of War estimates that Ukrainian forces recaptured approximately 253 square kilometres of territory since their counteroffensive began, while Russian forces captured a total of 282 square kilometres in the entire theatre since 1 January.

“In five weeks, Ukrainian forces have liberated nearly the same amount of territory that Russian forces captured in over six months,” the ISW concluded.

On 10 July, Ukraine conducted counteroffensive operations on at least three sectors, the ISW wrote and cited Ukrainian military officials as saying that their troops were continuing offensive actions in the directions of Bakhmut, Berdyansk, and Melitopol.

Lithuanian President calls for NATO bases at Russian border

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda told The Times that he believes NATO should deploy permanent military force near the Russian border.

Nauseda said the Alliance should finally scrap the NATO–Russia Founding Act of 1997, which prohibits the stationing of nuclear weapons and other significant permanent forces on the soil of new NATO members, since Russia has started deploying nuclear weapons in Belarus.

When asked about the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO, Nauseda said that although that was currently unfeasible because of the war one should map a speedy path towards accession.

Lithuania is hosting the NATO summit this week in its capital, Vilnius.