Ukraine Will Get Everything It Needs to Withstand and Achieve Its Goals – Address by the President

24 July 2024 – 20:02

I wish you good health, fellow Ukrainians!

I began today with a report on the work of the air defense – the completion of our warriors’ training and the deployment of Patriots in Ukraine.

Second. Today we have already quite thoroughly planned our work with foreign audiences for August and September. Information work, meetings and negotiations, participation in summits. Now, these weeks, even though it is the vacation season in the world, we cannot have any pauses. And especially there can be no pauses in communicating information about Ukraine – about our defense against Russian terror, about our needs. We already have a clear work schedule and pre-arranged meetings, including those with leaders, for the new political season in the world. Ukraine will get everything it needs to withstand and achieve its goals. Today, there were several reports that contributed to a clearer understanding of both tasks and needs. There was a report by the Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, Oleh Ivashchenko, on what to expect in the near future and what opportunities Ukraine should definitely seize. We also talked in detail with the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Rustem Umerov, about ensuring our military tasks for this month. We are preparing some news. I also spoke today with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi, there was a report on the frontline situation and our defensive actions.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, who is visiting China these days, held talks with his counterpart and gave me a report on the results of the meeting. This is the first visit of a Ukrainian official at this level in many years. And this is good. There is a clear signal that China supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. It was also confirmed what Chinese leader Xi Jinping told me – that China will not supply weapons to Russia. I expect a detailed report from the Minister upon his return to Ukraine.

And one more thing. I spoke with our Olympic athletes. With the Ukrainian team that will represent our country and our Ukrainian people at the Summer Games in Paris this week. This is already an achievement for Ukrainians – that in the midst of such a war and full-scale Russian terror, we have prepared, we are still participating in the Olympics. Our flag and the Ukrainian anthem will be in France on par with all nations that respect life and the principles of Olympism. I thank everyone who helps Ukraine to preserve as many elements of normal life as possible – no matter what. I thank everyone who protected the principles of Olympism from distortion and prevented flags and the participation of a terrorist state in the Olympics. Putin is making sure that the only Russian sport today is killing people. And the world will never tolerate this. Russia must lose in war, lose in terror. Then life will win.

We are doing everything for that.

Glory to Ukraine!

The cost:

That’s how childhood looks when russia is your neigbor.

📷: Roman Pilipey pic.twitter.com/A1XcLAgk4J

— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) July 24, 2024

The US:

Today I had a productive call with my 🇺🇸 counterpart @SecDef Lloyd Austin.
We discussed the recent developments on the frontline and urgent battlefield needs.

I once again highlighted the importance and urgency of lifting the bans on long-range fires.

Ukraine must have the…

— Rustem Umerov (@rustem_umerov) July 23, 2024

Today I had a productive call with my 🇺🇸 counterpart @SecDef Lloyd Austin.
We discussed the recent developments on the frontline and urgent battlefield needs.

I once again highlighted the importance and urgency of lifting the bans on long-range fires.

Ukraine must have the right to destroy the enemy’s airfields from which the fighting jets are bombing Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure.

Germany:

*Ukraine, that is; not “the” Ukraine (blame the press release…)

— Mike Eckel (@Mike_Eckel) July 24, 2024

From the Rheinmetall’s website:

Rheinmetall has now received its first important order from the Ukrainian government for the construction of an ammunition factory in the Ukraine, which was announced in February 2024, and marks the starting point for the realisation of the project. The order for the Duesseldorf-based technology group Rheinmetall covers the complete technical equipment of the factory through to commissioning. This involves a total value ranged in a low three-digit million euro range, which will be booked as incoming order at the start of the third quarter of 2024. It is foreseen to begin in short term and to be completed within a few years. The intention is to start the ammunition production in the Ukraine within 24 months. Together with its Ukrainian joint venture partner, Rheinmetall will also be responsible for operating the plant.

Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall AG: “We are putting our words into action and together with our partner we will create a Ukrainian competence centre for ammunition. The order underlines the confidence in Rheinmetall’s expertise and manufacturing capacities. We are grateful to be able to support the country in its re-industrialisation and in strengthening its defence capability”.

Measures are currently being taken in the Ukraine to prepare the necessary infrastructure. A joint venture between Rheinmetall and a Ukrainian state-owned company in operating the ammunition plant is about to be established. This was announced at a side-discussion at the Munich Security Conference in February 2024.

In June 2024, the CEO of Rheinmetall AG, Armin Papperger, and the Ukrainian Minister for Strategic Industries, Oleksandr Kamyshin, signed an agreement to expand the strategic cooperation at the “Ukraine Recovery Conference” in Berlin. A few days earlier, they opened an armour plant in western Ukraine, which is operated by the joint venture Rheinmetall Ukrainian Defence Industry LLC. The first Lynx Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) from Rheinmetall is to be handed over to the Ukrainian armed forces before the end of this year, and local production is to commence as soon as possible.

I’m guessing that the German for Ukraine still includes the German part of speech equivalent of “the.” Which would explain the unfortunate formulation in the announcement above.

Colonel-General Syrskyi sat for an interview with The Guardian.

We sat down for an exclusive interview with Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, #Ukraine‘s commander-in-chief. “I know we will win – and how,” he said, while acknowledging Russia has a “significant advantage” in soldiers and resources. Also: F-16s, drones, Crimea https://t.co/puau3FPBVP

— Luke Harding (@lukeharding1968) July 24, 2024

Here are some excerpts:

Sitting on a stack of ammunition crates at a secret military base, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi was tight-lipped about when Ukraine will receive a long-awaited delivery of F-16 fighter jets. The Dutch and other allies have said they will arrive soon. This week? Or maybe August? “I know. But I can’t tell you about it, unfortunately,” he said, with an apologetic grin, as gulls squawked nearby.

Syrskyi is Ukraine’s new commander-in-chief. His unenviable task is to defeat a bigger Russian army. Two and half years into Vladimir Putin’s full-scale onslaught, he acknowledges the Russians are much better resourced. They have more of everything: tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, soldiers. Their original 100,000-strong invasion force has grown to 520,000, he said, with a goal by the end of 2024 of 690,000 men. The figures for Ukraine have not been made public.

“When it comes to equipment, there is a ratio of 1:2 or 1:3 in their favour,” he said. Since 2022 the number of Russian tanks has “doubled” – from 1,700 to 3,500. Artillery systems have tripled, and armoured personnel carriers gone up from 4,500 to 8,900. “The enemy has a significant advantage in force and resources,” Syrskyi said. “Therefore, for us, the issue of supply, the issue of quality, is really at the forefront.”

It is this man and machine superiority that explains recent events on the battlefield. Since last autumn Ukraine’s armed forces have been going steadily backwards. One of his first acts when he got the job in February 2024 – replacing Valerii Zaluzhnyi, now Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK – was to order the withdrawal of his troops from the eastern city of Avdiivka. The retreat coincided with a six-month gap in the US supply of weapons.

More have recently arrived. The Russians, however, are still seizing fields and villages in the eastern Donbas, using airdropped bombs to blast a path forward. They have gobbled up territory north-west of Avdiivka, towards the garrison town of Pokrovsk, and besieged the hilltop settlement of Chasiv Yar. In May Russian forces opened a new front in the Kharkiv region, storming the city of Vovchansk. Ukraine anticipated this attack. Seemingly it couldn’t stop it.

In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, his first with a foreign newspaper as overall military chief, Syrskyi admitted things were “very difficult”. “The Russian aggressor attacks our positions in many directions,” he said. Could Russia’s advance be halted? “Yes, of course. First of all, it depends on our brave soldiers, our officers,” he said. Quite frequently “resilient and heroic” Ukrainian units defeated bigger enemy groups, he said.

By way of example, he cited Russia’s latest attempt to seize Kharkiv and the neighbouring province of Sumy. “It failed,” Syrskyi said. Fighting continued but he said Putin’s attempt to create a “so-called security corridor” next to Russia’s border and Belgorod region had been thwarted. What about rumours Moscow was planning another assault in the southern Zaporizhia region? If it happens “we can give them a good response”, he replied.

Overall, Syrskyi sought to put recent setbacks in context. He described Russia’s creeping victories as “tactical” ones – local gains rather than an “operational” breakthrough, such as the capture of a major city. “In principle, the enemy has not made any significant progress,” he said. The frontline, he added, was 3,700km long. Active hostilities were taking place across “977km” of it, or “twice the length of the border between Germany and France”.

Russia’s successes, meanwhile, came at a staggering human cost. The Kremlin’s casualties were “three times” higher than Ukraine’s, and “even more” in certain directions, Syrskyi said. “Their number of killed is much bigger,” he emphasised. In February Volodymyr Zelenskiy said 31,000 Ukrainian service personnel had died since 2022. Could Syrskyi update this figure? He declined, saying losses were “sensitive” and a topic Moscow could exploit.

Syrskyi contrasted his battlefield tactics with those used by Russian commanders, who are known for sacrificing huge numbers of infantry troops to gain “100 to 200 metres”. “It’s very important for us to save the lives of our soldiers. We don’t defend ruins to the death,” Syrskyi said. He said he was not willing to “achieve goals at any cost”, or to chuck his men into “futile meat assaults”. Sometimes it was necessary to move to “more favourable positions”.

Amid scepticism about Ukraine’s prospect of achieving outright victory, Syrskyi noted various positive developments. F-16s would strengthen Ukraine’s air defences. They would allow Kyiv to work more effectively against Russian cruise missiles and to hit ground targets accurately. However, there were limits to what F-16s might achieve, he stressed. They had to remain “40km or more” from the frontline because of the risk Moscow would shoot them down.

Russia had “superior aviation” and “very strong” air defences. Because of this Ukraine was increasingly turning to unmanned aerial systems, Syrskyi said. It used drones “very effectively” and was trying out “robotic ground systems” – land robots that could deliver ammunition or rescue a wounded soldier. There was a new unmanned systems command, the first of its kind. “We fight not by quantity but quality,” he said, adding that drones played “as big a role as artillery”.

Ukraine’s armed forces were successfully using long-range kamikaze drones to strike deep inside Russia, he said. So far they had targeted “about 200 critical infrastructure sites”. All were connected with “military logistics”, and included factories, fuel dumps and munition depots. Speedboat-like sea drones, meanwhile, had sunk about a third of Russia’s Black Sea naval fleet. “It really became a trap for them and for some [vessels] a grave,” Sryskyi said.

The Kremlin, he added, has been forced to “completely pull out” from the Crimean port of Sevastopol, after a series of Ukrainian attacks. Drone and missile strikes have wiped out radar and rocket installations. A key Ukrainian objective is to destroy the Kerch road and rail crossing connecting the occupied peninsula with Russia. Syrskyi declined to say when this might happen. Two earlier attempts featured a truck bomb and a drone strike.

He said Kyiv had a plan to get back Crimea, more than a decade after Vladimir Putin illegally annexed it. Was this really feasible? “It’s realistic. Of course, it’s a big military secret,” the general said. He continued: “We will do everything we can to reach the internationally recognised borders of 1991 [when Ukraine voted for independence from the USSR]. We have to win … to liberate our citizens who are in the occupied territories, who are suffering.”

Aged 58, Syrskyi was born in Vladimir, a city outside Moscow, in what was then the Soviet Union. Since the 1990s he has served in Ukraine’s armed forces. Critics accuse him of Soviet military thinking. Supporters describe him as a disciplined and talented commander who – in contrast to his charismatic predecessor, Zaluzhnyi – is often on the frontline. In February 2022, as head of ground forces, he led the defence of Kyiv. Zelenskiy made him a hero of Ukraine and six months ago promoted him to commander-in-chief.

Close up, Syrskyi is warm and personable. His handshake is suitably iron. Meeting Syrskyi involved cloak-and-dagger arrangements and a mysterious ride in a van. The Kremlin, you imagine, is keen to kill him. Aides built a small stage for his rare media appearance, with a camouflage netting backdrop.

Like many serving soldiers he sees his family rarely. “They suffer without me, so it’s maybe it’s an issue for me too,” he said. “But I know that we will win. I know how I have to do it. And I’m sure that we will do it.” The general says he doesn’t sleep “many hours”. In rare moments off he read books on Ukrainian history, in order to understand past “processes”. “We have brave people and a difficult history,” he observed.

One of Syrskyi’s most pressing challenges is to find new recruits to replace Ukrainian soldiers who have been killed and injured. Those fighting in trenches are exhausted. The patriotic fervour that led many in spring 2022 to volunteer has worn off. The government recently reduced the conscription age from 27 to 25. Last week a new law came into effect requiring men to register their details with military recruitment centres. Many have done so. Others are hiding.

More at the link!

Kharkiv:

In addition to the five missiles that struck Kharkiv earlier today, russian forces have now bombed a residential neighborhood in the city center, causing fires and injuries, according to the mayor.

— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) July 24, 2024

Russia is back to their tactics of trying to make Kharkiv unlivable. At least 5 strikes with missiles and guided bombs hit the city in a single day, targeting the FSD deminers’ office, prominent Kharkiv volunteer’s home, and stables in the eco park. pic.twitter.com/78aBx3FZSl

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) July 24, 2024

Russia hit FSD deminers’ office in Kharkiv today, Swiss humanitarian organization dedicated to mine clearance. Six vehicles damaged, and the building massively destroyed. How soon until Russia claims it was a legit military target? pic.twitter.com/oxKjJOD6rO

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) July 24, 2024

In Lozova, Kharkiv Oblast, a russian missile strike on a critical infrastructure facility claimed the lives of three workers and injured four others, one of whom is in critical condition. Preliminary information indicates that the russians used an Iskander ballistic missile. pic.twitter.com/mhjnGinmf3

— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) July 24, 2024

The Kyiv Independent has the details:

Russian forces used an Iskander missile armed with cluster munitions in a “double-tap” attack on an industrial facility in Kharkiv on July 24, Volodymyr Tymoshko, the head of the National Police in Kharkiv Oblast, said in a comment to Suspilne.

The Russian military launched multiple attacks against the northeastern city of Kharkiv throughout July 24, injuring at least nine people and damaging a Swiss NGO office.

Tymoskhko said that one of the targets, an industrial site, was attacked repeatedly, including one strike with cluster munitions.

“At 5:00 in the morning, a completely civilian object was hit, then two strikes on an industrial facility in Kharkiv, an hour later the same object was hit with a cluster munition,” Tymoshko told Suspilne.

“We are absolutely sure that the second time they used cluster munitions to hit the rescuers and police officers who were there.”

Rescue workers had already cleared the area shortly before the missile hit, Tymoshko said.

Russian forces have been known to target first responders by hitting previously damaged sites a second time shortly after a first attack, a tactic known as “double-tap” strikes.

Over the past months, Russia’s  “double-tap” attacks have escalated, killing nearly 30 rescue workers in Odesa, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia and wounding more than 20 in March and April of 2024 alone.

“It’s a miracle that both the rescuers and the police left the site 10 minutes before the second strike,” Tymoshko said.

“However, they hit with a cluster, the cluster scattered over a large area and injured people who were passing by the private enterprise on the street or were in the private sector located nearby.”

Tymoshenko said that markings on fragments of the weapons found on scene indicate that the missile was manufactured in the second quarter of 2024.

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly accused Russia of using cluster munitions to target civilian areas. These weapons “spray” small bomblets across a wide area, with some of them detonating long after the attack, posing a continued danger to the local population.

Attacks on population centers in Kharkiv Oblast intensified after Russian forces launched a new cross-border offensive in the northern part of the region in May.

Pokrovsk:

Deep State updated their map their map this morning showing further Russian gains on the Pokrovsk front that places battalions from Ukraine’s 31st Mechanized Brigade in an increasingly precarious position. https://t.co/5a3izk0bil https://t.co/R98pGfoKpk pic.twitter.com/43QQg0l2k4

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) July 24, 2024

Deep State reported last night that part of the servicemen of the 1st and 3rd battalions of the 31st Brigade may become surrounded in the Lozuvatske district. And this morning, the enemy also moved past Tymofyyvka.

Ukrainians struggled to defend against enemy forces trying to… pic.twitter.com/FWeLIMm8oe

— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) July 24, 2024

Deep State reported last night that part of the servicemen of the 1st and 3rd battalions of the 31st Brigade may become surrounded in the Lozuvatske district. And this morning, the enemy also moved past Tymofyyvka.

Ukrainians struggled to defend against enemy forces trying to encircle them near Progress. South of Lozuvatske, the enemy has created a bottleneck, threatening positions west of height 236.9, using tactics to advance towards Ivanovka. The situation became critical after a chaotic retreat by another infantry brigade over the weekend. Reinforcements from the 47th Brigade were unable to hold back the numerically superior enemy.

https://t.me/DeepStateUA/19955

The 31st Brigade’s leadership allegedly insists they hold their ground to the last soldier despite losses.

110th Brigade of the AFU destroys enemy vehicles in Pokrovsk direction.https://t.co/ppywmTCz5s pic.twitter.com/SD3uzlpfYJ

— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) July 24, 2024

I think this is in Khurakove, Pokrovsk:

Soldiers of the 79th Brigade repelled one of the largest Russian assaults. In total 57 AFVs, 12 motorcycles and 200 infantrymen attacked from different directions.

Russian army simultaneously used 11 tanks, 45 APCs with infantry and 1 BMPT ‘Terminator’.

As a result of the… pic.twitter.com/RDtVNaqm5e

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) July 24, 2024

Soldiers of the 79th Brigade repelled one of the largest Russian assaults. In total 57 AFVs, 12 motorcycles and 200 infantrymen attacked from different directions.

Russian army simultaneously used 11 tanks, 45 APCs with infantry and 1 BMPT ‘Terminator’.

As a result of the battle, 6 tanks and 7 APCs with infantry were knocked out. All 12 motorbikes were burnt. Russians suffered losses in manpower: 40 were killed, another 37 were wounded.

After knocking out the first tanks and armored vehicles, other vehicles rushed to flee the battlefield. Drone operators finished off the infantry that ran around the landings.

https://t.me/odshbr79/244

Novomykhailivka:

18+
Huge battle between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Novomykhailivka. Russian forces numbering 13 vehicles and 200 people were repelled and many were destroyed.

pic.twitter.com/zrxyRkxFcH

— WarTranslated (Dmitri) (@wartranslated) July 24, 2024

Vovchansk:

WE DESTROYED ANOTHER RUSSIAN «TIGER» but they payed us back…

Near Vovchansk our company is working every day trying to destroy their logistics, places where they are hiding, assault groups.

And we managed to destroy another «Tiger» but Russian FPV…👇🧵 pic.twitter.com/GKSA4mwe4E

— Kriegsforscher (@OSINTua) July 24, 2024

WE DESTROYED ANOTHER RUSSIAN «TIGER» but they payed us back…

Near Vovchansk our company is working every day trying to destroy their logistics, places where they are hiding, assault groups.

And we managed to destroy another «Tiger» but Russian FPV…👇🧵

And a small bonus👌 Destroyed T-72B3M.

The general price is 1600$.

We got those HMMWVs from the US with bald tires. Army will replace destroyed one with the same bald tire. That’s why we want to buy at least one that is normal. pic.twitter.com/9ecq1LtxXC

— Kriegsforscher (@OSINTua) July 24, 2024

30 clicks south of Donetsk:

Shark reconnaissance drone and HIMARS MLRS destroy Russian Pantsir-S1 air defence system. Somewhere 30km south from Donetsk. https://t.co/hSmg23lPgP pic.twitter.com/9kmoMh1Oop

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) July 24, 2024

Obligatory:

Moscow:

/2. In Russian media there is a discussion about who was blown up in a car in Moscow this morning. Andrei Torgashov said that he was not in the car that was blown up in Moscow.

But at the same time, according to Russian media BAZA – “At the time of the explosion, Torgashov’s…

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) July 24, 2024

Here’s the full text of the first tweet:

This morning in Moscow, Andrei Torgashov, Deputy Chief of the 89th Satellite Communications Center of the Russian Armed Forces, was blown up in his Toyota Land Cruiser.

The explosion occurred in a parking lot on Sinyavinskaya Street. Torgashov’s legs were torn off.

The cause of the car explosion was the detonation of an explosive device.

And the second tweet:

/2. In Russian media there is a discussion about who was blown up in a car in Moscow this morning. Andrei Torgashov said that he was not in the car that was blown up in Moscow.

But at the same time, according to Russian media BAZA – “At the time of the explosion, Torgashov’s namesake (both by name and surname) was in the car. And at the same time he also serves in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.”

That’s enough for tonight.

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