Victory Chronicles-DAY 840

Ukraine’s defense forces launched an attack on Russian anti-aircraft missile systems in Crimea on June 11-12. 

The attack targeted one Russian S-300 anti-aircraft missile division near Belbek and two S-400 anti-aircraft missile divisions near Belbek and Sevastopol. The General Staff of Ukraine confirmed the attack’s success, with two S-300 and S-400 radars being destroyed and information being collected about the third radar. 

Ammunition detonations were also recorded in all three areas where the Russian anti-aircraft missile divisions are located. The Ukrainian military has stated that this attack is not the end and there may be more to come. 

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Ukraine’s military successfully shot down 29 out of 30 explosive missiles and drones fired by Russia during an overnight attack, thanks to its air defense system, which had recently been replenished with anti-aircraft missiles from allies like the United States. This interception rate is considered one of the best for Ukraine throughout the war. Additionally, authorities in Kyiv successfully shot down a volley of missiles and explosive drones aimed at the capital. Earlier in the year, Ukrainian air defense ammunition reached a critical point, with some battery commanders reporting a shortage of missiles, allowing Russian missiles to penetrate the city without obstruction. In response, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy requested additional American-made Patriot air defense systems. The Biden administration has decided to provide Ukraine with an additional Patriot system, and other countries, including Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway, are also considering supplying Ukraine with Patriot launchers and missiles.

On the night of June 12, an enemy attack caused a fire at an industrial facility in the Kyiv Oblast of Ukraine. The attack was carried out with the use of missiles and drones, and the firefight lasted about two hours. As of 7:00 a.m., falling debris had damaged several facilities in two districts of the region, including the industrial facility where the fire broke out.

Firefighters from the Kyiv Oblast, the city of Kyiv, and Ukrzaliznytsia worked to extinguish the fire, which involved more than 105 people and 30 pieces of equipment. In addition, the debris damaged a private house, a gas station, and a garage. One person was injured in the leg by debris but received medical treatment on the spot and refused hospitalization. 

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The official channel of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine published a video of the results of Russian shelling of a fire station in the frontline village of Liptsi, Kharkiv Oblast. The shelling caused a fire. The personnel were not injured and the equipment was not damaged. Reconstructed in 2009, the occupiers first destroyed the fire station building in 2022. In the same year, it was completely restored after the de-occupation of the village of Lyptsi.

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Ukraine’s Western allies continue to provide monetary and military assistance to Ukraine, including air defense systems. The Estonian Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced on June 11 that Estonia will provide an undisclosed number of Mistral man-portable short-range air defense systems and missiles to Ukraine as part of a new military assistance package.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced during the Ukrainian Recovery Conference in Berlin on June 11 that the European Union (EU) will transfer roughly 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) worth of profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine in July, of which Ukraine will allocate 90 percent to defense spending and 10 percent to reconstruction.

Von der Leyen stated that the EU will also transfer an additional 1.9 billion euros ($2 billion) to Ukraine from the EU’s Ukraine Facility mechanism, which is a separate fund that provides for the EU to transfer up to 50 billion euros ($53.7 billion) to Ukraine between 2024 and 2027.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz reiterated during the Ukrainian Recovery Conference that Germany will deliver a Patriot air defense system to Ukraine in the coming weeks and announced that Germany will also deliver an IRIS-T air defense system, an unspecified number of Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, and an unspecified number and type of missiles and ammunition to Ukraine in the coming weeks and months.

The German MoD initially announced the transfer of this third Patriot system in April 2024. The New York Times, citing senior US administration and military officials, reported on June 11 that US President Joe Biden recently approved the transfer of another Patriot system to Ukraine following a series of high-level meetings and internal debates regarding the best ways to meet Ukraine’s need for additional air defenses. 

Unnamed US officials stated that the new system could be deployed to the frontline within several days depending on any maintenance or modifications that the system may need, as the system is currently stationed in Poland.

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29-year-old paratrooper Andrii Yuzvak died on June 30, 2023, on the territory of the Serebrianka forestry near the city of Kreminna, Luhansk Oblast. He went to storm enemy positions with his unit, and contact was lost. The fate of the fighter was unknown to his family for a long time, and even now, they do not know the details of his death.

Andrii Viktorovych was born in Bila Tserkva district, Kyiv Oblast. He was a resident of the village of Vesnianka. Since childhood, he has been interested in technology, so after school, he went to study at a vocational school to become a mechanic. He had a knack for it, as he could disassemble and reassemble a motorcycle, repair the engine, and was well versed in electricity. After graduating, he worked for a long time at a service station in the capital. Later he returned to Bila Tserkva and got a job as a specialist at a furniture factory. He was the soul of the company, had many friends with whom he loved to relax and go fishing. After the war, he wanted to start a family, but his main desire was to live in a free and peaceful country.

With the outbreak of full-scale war, the furniture factory closed, leaving the man jobless. His brother Vitalii invited him to work at Nova Poshta LLC. In the summer of 2022, Andrii was hired there. 

In early October 2022, the man was mobilized and sent to study in the UK, where he received a grenade launcher specialization. Upon his return, he joined the 95th separate airborne assault brigade. Andrii already met the new year of 2023 at a position near Kreminna.

“Andrii was a reserved person, we didn’t know much about him. He was even more reluctant to talk about the war. He would say either ‘everything is fine’ or ‘you don’t need it’. My brother’s temper was hot and short-tempered. He was always responsible for his words, could stand up for himself and others. But when he came home for a few days after six months at the front, he was completely different. Restrained, concentrated, balanced,” Vitaliy Yuzvak recalls.

Andrii proved himself brilliantly in combat, so he was sent to study to become a squad leader. On June 20, 2023, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi awarded him the Golden Cross decoration. Andrii was also to be promoted to sergeant. At the end of June, he returned to the unit and immediately assumed the duties of commander. However, he served in his new status for only a week.

On June 30, he went on his last combat mission. Only in October 2023, during the exchange of dead, the body of the Hero was returned to Ukraine. The family learned about it only in February 2024, when the DNA match was confirmed.

On February 16, the fighter was buried in the village of Horodyshche-Pustovarivske in Kyiv Oblast. Andrii is survived by his family, friends and fighters-in-arms.

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

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• NYT: Biden approves sending second Patriot system to Ukraine
• Ukraine will receive first F-16s this summer, Dutch defense minister
• Norway will contribute € 240 M to air defense measures for Ukraine.
• US to announce new sanctions against Russia at G7 summit
• UK Defence Intelligence: Russian losses in battle for Chasiv Yar are high