News And Information From Ukraine

Dispatches from Ukraine. Day 1,219.

Russian Attacks on Ukraine

On June 25, Russian drones killed three residents and wounded 13 others in the southern Kherson province. In the eastern Donetsk region, Russian shelling killed two and wounded 14 other civilians. Meanwhile, the death toll from the Russian ballistic missile strike on the regional capital of Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region has increased to 20, with at least 314 people wounded.

NATO Summit. Allies have agreed to raise defense spending, committing to a new target of 5% of GDP by 2035, more than double the alliance’s 2% target, in response to growing security threats and U.S. pressure. The plan, which was announced at a June 25 summit in The Hague, Netherlands, earmarks 3.5% for core defense needs and allows contributions to Ukraine’s defense to count toward the total. NATO leaders reaffirmed support for Kyiv but avoided directly condemning Russia’s invasion, a notable shift from last year’s language in the final communique.

Ukraine National News

Ukraine’s economy is teetering on the brink as the war with Russia shows no signs of abating. Despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s promise to end the war within a day and high public expectations that his presidency might deliver a swift ceasefire, the conflict has only intensified. Ukrainian cities are now enduring the largest, most frequent drone barrages ever. In addition, Russia’s progress in decreasing reliance on Western components while increasing weapons production is only gaining momentum.

Western financial support, including release of frozen Russian assets, is keeping the Ukrainian government afloat. Officials in Kyiv, however, privately admit that the outlook is bleak for the country, which needs $40 billion annually in foreign support. Private investors, who were once optimistic about a post-war reconstruction boom, are now holding back due to security concerns and political instability. The only major economic bright spot for Ukraine is the recently ratified deal with the U.S. to develop vast mineral resources. Yet even that is still years away from producing tangible results.

Ukraine is developing Russian-like glide bombs. Kyiv-based design bureau “Medoid” reportedly has tested a domestically produced planning and control module that turns standard 1,100-pound bombs into guided weapons, much like Russia’s glide bomb kits. Early trials have demonstrated the Ukrainian system’s ability to hit targets at distances of 35 miles. Currently, work is underway to push that range to approximately 50 miles or even more.

Engineers at Medoid say the project is nearing the final testing phase required before the homegrown glide bomb can enter mass production. Further development of the project, however, is stalling due to chronic funding shortfalls. The estimated cost per unit is roughly $25,000, significantly lower than similar Western weapons such as the AASM Hammer, a French smart stand-off air-to-surface weapon, yet funding shortages threaten to derail the entire effort.

Ukraine Destroys Another Russian Ship. Ukrainian forces on June 25 attacked and destroyed a Russian ship as it moved landing troops along the Black Sea coast off the Kherson region of Ukraine. The ship was part of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, which has withdrawn from most naval operations following the loss of approximately one-third of its vessels. Those losses include the Moskva missile cruiser, the flagship of the fleet.

Kyrgyzstan-Based Crypto Exchange Moves $9.3 Billion in Russia-Linked Token

A new cryptocurrency token, A7A5, designed to facilitate cross-border payments despite Western sanctions on Russia, has moved an estimated $9.3 billion in just four months, according to a Financial Times analysis. Launched in Kyrgyzstan by a Russian defense sector bank and Moldovan fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor, the token is billed as the first stablecoin pegged to the Russian ruble.

The A7A5 stablecoin is backed by ruble deposits in Promsvyazbank, a Russian bank under Western sanctions, and is traded primarily on Grinex, a crypto exchange also based in Kyrgyzstan. The token’s circulation has reached 12 billion units, worth roughly $156 million, with daily transaction volumes routinely several times higher. Experts suggest that the stablecoin serves a small but active group of users, likely including Russian importers, seeking a reliable alternative to dollar-pegged assets.

Shor, the token’s controversial majority owner, fled Moldova after being convicted of a $1 billion bank fraud and is accused of running illicit political operations. His involvement has raised concerns about the stablecoin’s connections to Moscow’s efforts to fund influence campaigns abroad. Meanwhile, the platform Grinex, which trades A7A5 exclusively, appears to be a successor to the Garantex exchange, which U.S. authorities shut down in March over alleged money laundering tied to Russian elites.

Culture Front. Ukrainian author Victoria Amelina has been posthumously awarded the UK’s Orwell Prize for political writing for her book Looking at Women, Looking at War. Amelina, killed while documenting war crimes in eastern Ukraine in 2023, was known for her powerful prose and sharp political insight into Ukraine. Her book, completed by close friends after her death, explores the resilience of Ukrainian women and the fight for justice since Russia’s 2022 invasion.

By Danylo Nosov, Alan Sacks