Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that any Ukrainian attempt to detonate a radiological “dirty bomb” on Russian territory would be met with a catastrophic, “mirror” response in line with Moscow’s nuclear doctrine. Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on 20 June, he called such an action “perhaps their last mistake,” while adding that Russian intelligence has no evidence Kyiv plans to use the weapon. Putin also said he is “concerned” the world is drifting toward a third world war, citing the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East as flashpoints that have greatly increased the potential for global confrontation. He urged that outstanding disputes be resolved by peaceful means. The Russian leader further stated that Moscow and Tehran are fighting “the same forces” and reiterated support for Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy. His remarks underscored Russia’s growing alignment with Iran and highlighted the broader geopolitical tensions he believes are pushing the world toward a more dangerous era.

U.S. Special Envoy Keith Kellogg arrived in Kyiv on 14 July for an extended mission aimed at strengthening security ties between Washington and Ukraine, marking his first trip to the country since taking up the role earlier this year. Kellogg held talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak and Defence Minister Rustem Umerov. Ukrainian officials said the discussions focused on reinforcing the country’s air-defence network, expanding joint weapons production with European partners and widening sanctions on Russia. The visit follows President Donald Trump’s pledge on 13 July to supply additional Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries to Kyiv. Zelenskyy signalled Ukraine’s readiness to purchase further U.S. weapons, while U.S. diplomats indicated more defence measures could be announced in the coming days. An air-raid alert sounded in the capital shortly after the Kellogg-Zelenskyy meeting, underscoring Ukraine’s urgent need for enhanced air defences amid continuing Russian strikes. Kellogg is expected to remain in Ukraine for several days before briefing the White House on next steps.

Ukraine marked the first anniversary of the missile strike that hit Kyiv’s Okhmatdyt National Children’s Specialized Hospital on 8 July 2024 by disclosing new findings about those responsible. The Kh-101 cruise missile attack killed two people, wounded 16 others—including seven children—and damaged five buildings while 627 pediatric patients were receiving treatment. On the anniversary, Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence said it has identified Russian Major Denis Sheynov, chief of the special engineering service of the 121st Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, as directly involved in preparing the missiles used. Investigators allege Sheynov supervised the technical configuration of the weapons before they were launched by Russia’s strategic aviation forces. The new allegation complements an earlier Ukrainian probe that named a senior commander—believed to be Lieutenant-General Sergey Kobylash—as the officer who ordered the strike. Kyiv prosecutors intend to use the findings in planned war-crimes cases that accuse Russia of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure. International monitoring bodies have documented a growing pattern of Russian attacks on medical facilities and other civilian targets since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. Ukrainian officials say the latest disclosure underscores their effort to pursue individual accountability for what they call systematic violations of the laws of war.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul made his first trip to Kyiv on 30 June, declaring that President Vladimir Putin "wants Ukraine’s capitulation and has no interest in peace talks." Standing alongside Ukrainian officials, Wadephul said the Kremlin’s maximalist demands leave Europe with "no choice but to keep supporting Ukraine’s defence." The minister travelled with senior executives from Germany’s defence industry and promised "continued and expanded" military assistance, including modern air-defence systems. Berlin also intends to help Ukraine set up domestic arms production so it can "produce more and faster on its own," Wadephul said. His visit came hours after Ukraine reported one of the heaviest overnight bombardments of the war, with more than 500 drones, rockets and cruise missiles launched across the country. The air force said an F-16 pilot was killed during the interception effort. Wadephul called the strikes further evidence that Moscow seeks conquest rather than compromise and pledged that sanctions and military aid would remain central to Europe’s response.

Kyiv said on 11 July it is rolling out a full-fledged interceptor-drone system to defend the capital’s airspace as Russian unmanned aerial vehicle strikes intensify. The announcement, issued by the Kyiv City Military Administration on the instructions of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, expands the home-grown Clean Sky programme from a regional pilot into a city-wide defence layer. The city has earmarked 260 million hryvnias (around $6.2 million) to buy domestically built interceptor drones, establish a dedicated training centre for operators and form additional mobile units that will patrol Kyiv and its outskirts. Officials said the new assets will be integrated with existing air-defence batteries through joint command links with the Air Force and other branches of the armed forces. During several months of testing in Kyiv Oblast the system brought down almost 550 incoming Russian drones, according to the administration. The upgrade follows Russia’s biggest missile-and-drone barrage since the full-scale invasion began, including a 10 July strike that killed two people and wounded 28 in the capital. Ukrainian commanders view the relatively inexpensive interceptors—costing roughly $5,000 each—as a cost-effective answer to Shahed-type drones that Moscow is now producing at a rate of about 170 units a day. Kyiv is also seeking extra-budgetary funding to accelerate deployment as it confronts delays in Western air-defence deliveries.

Since the arrival of General Keith Kellogg, a special envoy appointed by former President Donald Trump, Ukraine has experienced a two-night pause in massive Russian shelling, particularly around Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky highlighted this lull in attacks, suggesting that Russian President Vladimir Putin is deterred by the presence of American officials. Zelensky noted that Ukrainians are jokingly proposing to grant Kellogg a Ukrainian passport and allow him to reside in Ukraine, reflecting the perceived protective effect of his visit. The period of relative calm has been informally dubbed "The Kellogg shield" by some Ukrainians and Western diplomats. Additionally, General Kellogg, alongside U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, reportedly played a key role in influencing Trump to support Ukraine. Ukrainian citizens and officials have expressed a desire for Kellogg to extend his stay to maintain the reduction in hostilities.

Ukraine’s military intelligence service (HUR) has identified Russian Armed Forces Major Denis Alekseyevich Sheynov as one of the officers responsible for last year’s missile strike on Kyiv’s Okhmatdyt National Children’s Specialized Hospital. Sheynov heads the special engineering service of the 121st Heavy Bomber Aviation Regiment, part of the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division, and was allegedly in charge of preparing the Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles used in the attack. The 8 July 2024 strike killed two adults and injured at least 34 others, including seven children, while 627 patients were receiving treatment at the facility. Five hospital buildings—among them the intensive-care and toxicology units—were destroyed. The attack drew wide international condemnation for targeting Ukraine’s largest paediatric hospital. Ukrainian prosecutors had earlier charged Lieutenant General Sergey Kobylash, commander of Russia’s long-range aviation, with ordering the strike. HUR said it is gathering evidence to bring additional charges against Sheynov and other participants, and called on allies to expand sanctions. The agency also reported that more than 70 companies involved in producing components for the Kh-101 missile remain outside current sanctions regimes.

Kyiv has allocated $6.2 million (260 million hryvnias) to develop and deploy a drone interceptor program aimed at defending the capital from increasing Russian drone attacks. The initiative, known as the 'Clear Sky' project, includes the deployment of interceptor drones which have reportedly intercepted nearly 550 Russian drones over Kyiv Oblast during several months of testing. In addition to high-tech solutions, Ukrainian forces are employing low-tech measures such as installing fishing netting along roads, particularly in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region, to protect against Russian fiber optic drones that are difficult to jam. These nets have been donated by fishermen from partner countries like the Netherlands. The drone and missile assaults by Russia have intensified over the past two months, causing widespread disruption and fear among Kyiv’s 3.7 million residents, many of whom seek shelter in subway stations at night. The attacks have also extended the operational range of drones from 5km to 15km from the front lines, increasing the threat to civilian and agricultural areas. Ukrainian officials continue to emphasize the need for enhanced defensive weaponry to counter these ongoing threats.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius stated unequivocally on June 12, 2025, during a joint briefing in Kyiv with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, that Germany is not considering the supply of Taurus long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine. This position was reiterated multiple times throughout the day by various sources and media outlets. Despite previous comments in 2024 by then-chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz, who had suggested that Germany might provide Taurus missiles if Russia continued attacks on civilian targets, the current German government under Defense Minister Pistorius has ruled out such deliveries. However, Germany plans to allocate an additional 1.9 billion euros in aid to Ukraine in the near future, continuing its support through other means. The announcement comes amid ongoing conflict and intensified shelling in Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, but Germany remains cautious about escalating its military support with long-range missile systems.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on 20 June that Moscow is not demanding Ukraine’s unconditional surrender but expects Kyiv to accept “the realities that have developed on the ground” since Russia’s 2022 invasion. He reiterated that Russia’s military objectives remain unchanged and framed any future negotiations around formal recognition of territories now under Russian control. Putin also said Russia and China "see a clear way for a new world order," signalling deeper strategic alignment with Beijing as relations with Western capitals remain at post-Cold War lows. Ukraine has repeatedly rejected ceding territory and insists on a complete Russian withdrawal as a prerequisite for peace talks, a position backed by the United States and European Union, which deem Russia’s annexations illegal.

Russia launched one of its heaviest recent missile barrages against Kyiv overnight, according to Ukraine’s military, setting off air-raid sirens across the capital. While no casualties were reported in Kyiv, a separate strike on the southern city of Mykolaiv injured seven people and wrecked or damaged dozens of homes and public buildings, regional governor Vitaliy Kim said. Ukraine continued its own long-range campaign by striking an oil depot in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. Krasnodar region governor Veniamin Kondratyev said debris from a drone ignited a 2,000-cubic-metre fuel tank in the Adler district, and more than 120 firefighters were deployed to contain the blaze. Flights at Sochi airport were briefly suspended as a precaution before resuming early Sunday. Further north, drones hit the city of Voronezh, injuring four people and causing several fires, local authorities said. The Russian defence ministry claimed its air defences destroyed 93 Ukrainian drones overnight, including intercepts over the Black Sea and the Krasnodar region. The overnight exchanges underscore the widening scope of the conflict, with Ukrainian strikes increasingly targeting Russian energy infrastructure and Moscow persisting with missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces carried out a large overnight strike on Kyiv early on 4 July, deploying long-range, high-precision missiles and drones against what it described as Ukrainian military targets. The ministry listed drone-production lines, robotic-systems workshops, military airfield infrastructure and an oil refinery among the facilities hit, claiming that all objectives were destroyed. Moscow framed the attack as retaliation for what it called recent “terrorist acts” by Kyiv and said it marked the fifth group strike on Ukraine’s military-industrial complex within a week. Independent verification of the claims and any assessment of damage or casualties were not immediately available. The latest barrage follows a 29 June operation in which Russia said it used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and other precision weapons against Ukrainian defense plants and energy assets. Together, the strikes underline a stepped-up Russian effort to degrade Ukraine’s weapons production and logistical networks.