Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 06-29-2024

The first video of a Ukrainian pilot using French AASM Hammer precision-guided munitions, which were delivered in January 2024, has been released on X.

An undated, unverified video has emerged on X/Twitter that shows a low-flying Ukrainian MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter aircraft delivering two projectiles against a target using a “toss bombing” technique. The post says the weapons are French-made Hammer precision-guided bombs although they could be Joint Direct Attack Munition-Extended Range (JDAM-ER) glide bombs.

The video is edited to show both the moment the aircraft releases the two projectiles and them striking their target. The “blue ticked” milblogger Status-6 (Military & Conflict News) posting on X says the incident has been geo-located with the coordinates: 50.341803,36.293120 which places it close to the Nekhoteevka border crossing which is about 35 kilometers southwest of the city of Belgorod.

Since shortly after the full-scale war, “Exen” has been taking vehicles from his native Poland and transporting them to Ukrainian soldiers at the front.

A Polish volunteer has been organizing significant aid for Ukrainian soldiers for the past two years, delivering nearly 250 off-road vehicles to Ukrainian soldiers. Kyiv Post had the opportunity to talk with him about the details of his efforts.

Michał Kujawski: You have already delivered almost 250 off-road vehicles to the front, raised over $1,385,000 for them, were visited by the Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Radosław Sikorski, the current Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs, who accompanied you on your trips to Ukraine three times. It looks very impressive. How did it all start?

France's parliamentary elections are set for Sunday after President Emmanuel Macron's party suffered heavy losses against the right-wing opposition in the EU elections – but how will it go from here?

The first round of the French parliamentary elections will be held on Sunday. President Emmanuel Macron dissolved the National Assembly after his party suffered heavy losses and the right-wing nationalist Rassemblement National (RN) made strong gains in the European elections. The electoral alliance New Popular Front (NFP) is running with a center-left agenda. Europe's press is keeping a close eye on the developments in France.

Dangerous polarization

The world in focus, as seen by a Canadian leading global affairs analyst, writer and speaker, in his review of international media.

Democratic leaders and donors on Friday tried to make sense of the devastating performance by President Joe Biden during the first televised debate of the 2024 election. From Kyiv to Berlin to Taipei, allies began to ponder the prospect of a return to the bully diplomacy in the form of a second Donald Trump administration. The normally staid The Economist probably summed up the situation best saying: “Joe Biden’s decision to seek re-election as America’s president rather than standing aside for a younger standard-bearer now looks like a reckless endangerment of the democracy he claims to want to protect.” On the same side of the ocean, the venerable Financial Times weighed in, saying: “Within minutes viewers were arrested by the sight of a frail Biden rasping through incoherent answers in a pivotal debate for which he had supposedly spent days preparing.”

In perhaps the most bruising post-debate reaction, the New York Times editorial board - a traditional backer of the Democratic Party and its leaders- said President Biden is engaged in “a reckless gamble” that will not end well. “The greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election,” it said. The board added: “The clearest path for Democrats to defeat a candidate defined by his lies is to deal truthfully with the American public: acknowledge that Mr. Biden can’t continue his race, and create a process to select someone more capable to stand in his place to defeat Mr. Trump in November.”

Europe’s new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy brings a much-needed defiance, capturing the shared Baltic and Eastern European memory of the danger of the Russian threat.

The Europeans have agreed on a new “triumvirate” to lead the EU over the next four years: Ursula von der Leyen as head of the EU “government,” former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa as head of the European Council, and Kaja Kallas, Estonia’s prime minister, as head of European diplomacy.

With this distribution, the EU nations have outlined their favorites for the next election cycle in four years’ time, particularly for the leadership of NATO. Last November, TheNew York Times pointed to Kallas as a talented and serious candidate for the new NATO chief. Around the same time, I argued in favor of the same solution here and in other European media.

Rheinmetall and Lockheed Martin, the world’s defense industry giants, have announced the joint creation of GMARS, a new artillery rocket system to replace the well-known HIMARS in the future.

The new GMARS system was presented at Eurosatory 2024, one of the largest international defense exhibitions, in Paris. GMARS stands for Global Mobile Artillery Rocket System. The developers describe it as the future for mobile multiple launch rocket systems and claim it can become the key to the rearmament of NATO countries’ armies.

The GMARS is based on the Rheinmetall HX 8x8 wheel chassis which provides for excellent performance at high speeds, overall mobility, reliability, and modularity. The carrying capacity of the Rheinmetall HX 8x8 is about 70 tons. It has proven to be very effective and is among the world’s most massively produced military trucks. As of today, more than 16,000 such trucks have been produced in various modifications for various types of troops and tasks. A 540-horsepower diesel engine allows the vehicle to reach a maximum speed of 100 km/h.

Police said trucks are now banned on the road in Kyiv when the temperature rises above 28 degrees Celsius to protect the road surface.

Starting today, heavy cargo vehicles are now banned on the roads of Kyiv when the temperature reaches 28 degrees Celsius (82.4 degrees Fahrenheit) to help protect the soft asphalt, authorities said.

“In order to preserve the road surface, trucks are prohibited from moving when the air temperature exceeds +28 degrees Celsius.

The information war with Russia has demonstrated what a powerful weapon ridicule can be against a Moscow bent on undermining Western aid to Ukraine.

NAFO (North Atlantic Fella Organization) recently commemorated its second anniversary as a group dedicated to supporting Ukraine’s efforts to defend itself in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion. This decentralized group of individuals from around the world, often unorganized, can organically assemble with great passion to make a mockery of those spreading Russian disinformation when needed. The group has shown no signs of relenting in its fight against pro-Russian narratives and propaganda on the internet. Its most recent target was former Trump administration official, Elbridge Colby.

According to the Department of Defense, Elbridge Colby was the “Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Force Development, in which capacity he was responsible for defense strategy, force development, and strategic analysis for OSD Policy.” He is also the grandson of William Colby, who was the head of the CIA under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. As a CIA Deputy in Vietnam under Lyndon Johnson, he was responsible for the Phoenix Program.

EU leaders stated that “the law adopted on transparency of foreign influence represents backsliding” on steps Georgia took to become an EU candidate country.

Georgia’s accession to the bloc has ‘de facto’ been halted after the country’s authorities passed a controversial Russia-style ‘foreign agent’ law, EU leaders warned on Thursday (27 June).

EU leaders on Thursday also stated that “the law adopted on transparency of foreign influence represents backsliding” on steps Georgia took to become an EU candidate country in December.

Once a fiery law student who called for the withdrawal of Soviet troops, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has had a major shift in political orientation over his three decades in politics.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's frequent attacks against Brussels and his warm relations with Russia have left the country increasingly isolated as it takes over the bloc's rotating presidency on Monday.

The longest-serving leader in the European Union, Orban has recently ramped up his rhetoric against what he calls the "technocratic elite of Brussels," warning "we will rack our brains on how to hurt them."

The deal, mediated by the Vatican, saw the release of 10 civilians from Russian and Belarusian captivity, including a politician and two priests.

In a deal mediated by the Vatican, Ukraine managed to secure the return of 10 civilian prisoners from Russian and Belarusian captivity, announced President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday evening.

“Thanks to everyone who helped! Thanks to our team working on the release of prisoners. I would also like to note the Vatican's efforts to bring these people home,” said Zelensky in his Telegram announcement.

Serhiy Kolyada on Moscow enticing migrant workers and would-be citizens to die for its imperialist cause.

Biden seeks to reassure supporters and restore confidence in his shaken candidacy for president

A fired-up Joe Biden came out swinging Friday as he tried to make up for a disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump, insisting he was the right man to win November's US presidential election.

Biden's appearance at a campaign rally in the battleground state of North Carolina came amid rumblings in his alarmed Democratic Party about replacing the 81-year-old as their nominee – and shortly before the nation's most influential newspaper urged him to step aside.

Not knowing your Candidates until the Convention is Positively American. It can even be the smart move--Think Eisenhower in 1952 or Kennedy in 1960

The debate from the extensive highlights I watched was a disaster for both candidates. Joe Biden was old and slow, forgetful at times and deeply unimpressive. He gave all indication that he would cognitively struggle filling the office of president for four more years. Donald Trump was mean, dissembling and rambling. His answers revealed, once again, that he really has no ability to come up with honest answers to difficult policy questions and his entire world view is based on lies.

If Biden and Trump at the candidates that are on the ballot in November, I will definitely and enthusiastically vote for Biden—because I care about US democracy.

The IMF unlocked another two-billion-dollar tranche for Ukraine, but decreased its main economic indicators in the forecast since Russia’s strikes on energy infrastructure are “devastating.”

The Board of the International Monetary Fund completed the Fourth Review of the extended agreement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement for Ukraine, allowing it to withdraw $2.2 billion in budget support. 

“All quantitative performance criteria and all but one indicative targets for end-March were met; the one indicative target was missed by a small margin”, the IMF stated in its press release. 

Western officials have called the weapon transfers “unlawful” and said they breached multiple Security Council resolutions as ties between Pyongyang and Moscow reached new heights.

The US, joined by the UK and France, challenged North Korea at the United Nations on Friday over its weapon transfers to Russia, claiming that it is breaching arms control measures.

Robert Wood, the US deputy envoy to the UN, called the weapon transfers “unlawful.”

As Russia tries to forge deeper alliances with North Korea and Vietnam, its relationship with China might feel some strain. Ukraine’s partners could take advantage of the strain in the short term.

President Putin’s recent signing of two new strategic partnerships underscore Russia’s shifting priorities and desperation for alternatives amid deepening isolation, to the point he is willing to normalize relations with a totalitarian dictatorship that even China holds at arm’s length: North Korea.

After Putin’s surprising and first governmental reshuffle in 10-plus years, including installing Andrey Belousov – an economist, as new defense secretary – these pacts reflect Moscow’s efforts to bolster its military capabilities and apparent alliances, despite a war campaign that remains unpopular among the international community.

The March terrorist attack staged by the Islamic State (IS) claimed more than 100 lives and injured many more, where Moscow accused Kyiv of its involvement despite IS's claims of responsibility.

Moscow's Crocus City Hall, the site of the deadliest attack in Russia in two decades, will not operate as a concert venue after it is restored, the regional governor told state-run media on Saturday.

The plush venue on the outskirts of the capital burned down on March 22 after a mass shooting during a rock concert that killed 145 people and wounded hundreds more. 

Russian prosecutors said the man had "made videos of the process of work of an air defense system and commented on its location to assist Ukraine's armed forces."

A Russian court in the annexed peninsula of Crimea sentenced a man to 12 years in prison for filming Russian military sites to help Ukraine's armed forces, Russian news agencies reported Thursday.

Since sending troops into Ukraine, Moscow has targeted hundreds of its own citizens that it says have aided or supported Kyiv throughout the two-year conflict.