Victory Chronicles-DAY 1234

Ukraine’s former top general and current ambassador to the United Kingdom, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, says Ukraine’s victory in the war, already in its fourth year, with Russia is essential for preserving the United States’ role as a global leader and for maintaining international security. 

He made the statement in an op-ed published Friday by Kyiv-based Ukrainska Pravda. Zaluzhnyi warned that the world is undergoing a period of geopolitical instability, marked by the breakdown of the post-World War II global order and the emergence of new security alliances. 

He believes the U.S. is shifting its focus away from Europe to prepare for strategic competition with China, which may jeopardize long-term military support for Ukraine.

“A failure to support Ukraine poses the greatest geopolitical risk to the United States as a guarantor of global security,” Zaluzhnyi wrote.

He said modern warfare demands rapid adaptation, and Ukraine must urgently develop a new soldier protection system, build a nationwide layered air defense network, and formulate technology-driven requests for support from partners.

Zaluzhnyi called for deeper cooperation with Western allies — particularly the U.S.—not only in supplying arms but also in co-developing new weapons systems based on Ukraine’s battlefield experience. He proposed the creation of a joint Ukrainian-American research center to deliver structured, evidence-based security solutions.

“Today, Ukraine is not only defending its statehood, but shaping the foundation of a future global order,” he wrote. “Through this lens, we must build lasting alliances.”

Zaluzhnyi added that while European countries remain committed to supporting Ukraine, many are overly dependent on the U.S. and struggle to respond quickly to security threats. 

In contrast, he described the U.S. as a country of “virtually unlimited capabilities” and stressed that American leadership is indispensable for Ukraine’s survival and the creation of a new global security system.

Ukraine and EU to invest 100 million euros (about $108 million) in defense tech under new initiative. Ukraine and the European Union are launching BraveTech EU, a joint defense innovation initiative backed by 100 million euros, Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced on July 11. The program aims to fund game-changing battlefield technologies through hackathons, grants for defense startups, and integration of Ukrainian defense tech into the EU market. Funding will be split evenly between Ukraine and the EU, coordinated by Ukraine’s Brave1 cluster and the EU’s EUDIO office in Kyiv. The initiative begins in fall 2025 with a seed phase and will scale up in 2026.

Emergency crews clear rubble at missile strike site in Kyiv’s Shevchenkivskyi district. Emergency responders have completed rescue operations at a residential building hit during a Russian overnight attack in Kyiv’s centrally located Shevchenkivskyi district, local authorities reported on July 10.

More than 60 cubic meters of debris were cleared from the site. Response efforts continue at another location, where 53 rescuers and 14 emergency and firefighting vehicles remain deployed.

Earlier in the day, officials said that Russian strikes damaged civilian and industrial infrastructure in the Shevchenkivskyi, Solomianskyi, and Darnytskyi districts of the capital. Two civilians were killed and 26 others injured in the attack.

Russian shell hits garbage truck in Kostiantynivka, injures municipal workers. Russian forces shelled the city of Kostiantynivka in the easternmost Donetsk region, striking a garbage truck and injuring local utility workers who were carrying out their daily duties, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (SES) reported.

The vehicle was targeted while collecting waste in a residential area — a routine task carried out by civilians working to keep life going in a frontline city under constant threat.

Footage released by emergency services shows the aftermath of the strike. “This is what Russian aggression looks like — shelling not just schools, hospitals, and markets, but garbage trucks,” the SES stated.

Key Takeaways:

• U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed frustration following a June 10 meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about Russia’s lack of progress towards ending the war in Ukraine.
• The Kremlin continues efforts to use its diplomatic engagements with the United States in an effort to divert attention from the war in Ukraine and toward the potential restoration of U.S.-Russian relations.
• The Economist assessed that it would take Russia about 89 years to seize all of Ukraine at its current relatively accelerated rate of advance, which has fluctuated throughout the war and is unlikely to remain constant.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with U.S. Special Envoy to Ukraine General Keith Kellogg in Rome on July 9.
• The United States reportedly resumed some military aid shipments to Ukraine.
• Ukraine’s Western allies continue to provide military aid to Ukraine.
• Russia launched another large-scale missile and drone strike against Ukraine on the night of July 9 to 10 that heavily targeted Kyiv City, resulting in civilian casualties and significant damage to civilian infrastructure.
• Russia’s strike tactics, coupled with the increased scale and concentrated targeting of Russia’s recent strike packages, aim to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses and are resulting in significant damage.
• Kremlin ruler Vladimir Putin dismissed Deputy Foreign Minister and Presidential Special Representative to the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov on July 9.
• Russian forces recently advanced near Borova, Toretsk, and Novopavlivka.

In Memoriam: Serhii Stets, a hero of Ukraine’s defense forces

Serhii Stets, a soldier in Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces, was killed on February 18, 2025, near the village of Kutkivka in Kharkiv Oblast. He was 38 years old. While on a combat mission, Serhii suffered a fatal blast injury during a Russian drone attack. His call sign was “Siry.”

Serhii was born on September 25, 1986, in the village of Kryve Ozero, Mykolaiv Oblast. He graduated from the local agricultural vocational school with a degree in tractor operation. He lived in Kryve Ozero Druhe with his family and worked for the local municipal utility service.

After Russia’s full-scale invasion, Serhii enlisted to defend Ukraine. He served with the 186th Battalion of the 123rd Separate Brigade of the Territorial Defense Forces.

“He was kind, responsible, and selfless—always there to help,” said his wife, Inna. “A loving father, caring son, and loyal friend.”

Serhii was laid to rest in his home village. He is survived by his widowed wife, son, brother, sister, and nieces and nephews.

*Stets’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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