The Main Focus Is Currently on the Donetsk Region and Supplying Our Forces with Everything They Need – Address by the President

24 June 2024 – 20:01

I wish you health, fellow Ukrainians!

Briefly about this day.

First, there was a morning meeting with the military. The Commander-in-Chief, the Chief of the General Staff, and the Minister of Defense were present. We discussed the situation in key areas, with the main focus currently on the Donetsk region and supplying our forces with everything they need. We also discussed personnel issues within the Armed Forces of Ukraine. I decided to replace the Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Yuriy Sodol, with Brigadier General Andriy Hnatov. There was also a report today on the aftermath of the Russian missile strikes on Pokrovsk. Dozens of people were injured, including three children. Four people were killed. My condolences to their families and loved ones. We will definitely retaliate against this Russian attack, and our response will be totally fair.

Secondly, today I introduced a new Head of the Department of State Protection. His task is to create a new, modern structure of the Department, to ensure a new format and quality. An absolutely patriotic one.

Thirdly, I honored our warriors from the Center of Special Operations “A” of the Security Service of Ukraine with state awards of Ukraine. They are heroic men! We can be really proud of each of them. I thanked them for their strength and congratulated them on the 30th anniversary of the Center of Special Operations “A” of the Security Service of Ukraine.

Fourth, we have achieved several results today in our relations with partners. Another country, Malawi, has joined the Peace Summit communiqué. Greater African representation in global efforts for peace increases the pressure on Russia to stop this criminal aggression. The more countries and leaders that stand with us, with Ukraine, the sooner we will fully restore the power of the UN Charter.

I also want to thank the United States today for a new decision in support of our people. This timely humanitarian decision involves U.S. funding for the urgent printing of books for children in Ukraine. Three million copies, including textbooks, will be printed using Ukrainian facilities before the start of the school year. At a time when the Russian occupiers are literally burning everything, including Ukrainian culture and the infrastructure of culture and education, it is important to feel the support of our partners in this area as well. Thank you, America!

And fifth, the European Union. Final preparations are now underway for tomorrow’s extremely significant, historic event. Negotiations between Ukraine and the European Union regarding Ukraine’s accession are set to begin. This is a day Ukraine has been striving toward for decades. And now we are making it a reality – Ukraine will never be deterred from its path to a united Europe, to our common home of all European nations. A home that must be peaceful! Thank you to everyone who helps!

Glory to all who fight for Ukraine!

Glory to Ukraine!

“More than 30 oil refineries, terminals, and oil depots in Russia have already been hit,” – President Zelenskyy during the presentation of state rewards to soldiers of the SBU Special Operations Center “A.”

“For SBU drones, a distance of 1,500 kilometers is no longer a problem.… pic.twitter.com/loKcLEZCJf

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) June 24, 2024

More: Zelenskyy announced the latest shakeup of the country’s senior military leadership following a meeting with commanders on Monday evening.

The move to sack Sodol, who previously served as commander of the marine corps, came hours after Azov National Guard Brigade chief of…

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) June 24, 2024

More: Zelenskyy announced the latest shakeup of the country’s senior military leadership following a meeting with commanders on Monday evening.

The move to sack Sodol, who previously served as commander of the marine corps, came hours after Azov National Guard Brigade chief of staff Bohdan Krotevych among others accused Sodol of essentially working on behalf of Russia and blamed him for the deaths of “thousands” of Ukrainian soldiers under his command.

In the rare display of public criticism of Ukraine’s military leadership by an active-duty officer, Krotevych wrote on Telegram that he had appealed to the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) to conduct an investigation into Sodol’s activities.

“I wrote a letter to the SBI with a call to launch an investigation against one military general who, in my opinion, has killed more Ukrainian soldiers than any Russian general,” he said.

“I don’t care if they start an investigation against me, and I donʼt care if they put me in prison. I care that combatants and brigade commanders are judged for the loss of an observation post, but the general is not judged for the loss of regions and dozens of cities and the loss of thousands of soldiers,” he added.

Sodol was appointed in February, when Zelensky announced a major military reshuffle and tapped Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky to replace Gen. Valery Zaluzhny as the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces.

“More than 30 oil refineries, terminals, and oil depots in Russia have already been hit,” – President Zelenskyy during the presentation of state rewards to soldiers of the SBU Special Operations Center “A.”

“For SBU drones, a distance of 1,500 kilometers is no longer a problem. Together with the successes of our Ukrainian Armed Forces and our intelligence agencies, these are very significant results that bring a just end to this war closer for Ukraine and ensure that Russia is held accountable for everything it has done against Ukraine and our people in a real, tangible, painful way,” the President said.

Glory to Ukrainian Defenders!

The cost:

Estonian volunteer Martin Jaeger, who fought in the ranks of the 3rd Assault Brigade, died defending Ukraine in Luhansk region.

Martin Jaeger, 42, was a professional soldier in the Estonian army: he was part of
an elite unit for more than 10 years and had participated in a… pic.twitter.com/8FVz2bGOq3

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) June 24, 2024

Estonian volunteer Martin Jaeger, who fought in the ranks of the 3rd Assault Brigade, died defending Ukraine in Luhansk region.

Martin Jaeger, 42, was a professional soldier in the Estonian army: he was part of
an elite unit for more than 10 years and had participated in a mission in Afghanistan since 2013. He came to fight in Ukraine more than a year ago, and during this time, he has been in different units. He joined the Third Assault Brigade about a month ago.

Martin Jaager the third Estonian who died defending Ukraine: Ivo Jurak died in Ukraine in March 2023 and Tanel Kriggul – in September.

Eternal memory and eternal glory to fallen Warrior. Ukraine will never forget your sacrifice.

The US:

.@JakeSullivan46 says @USAID will help Ukraine print more than 3mn textbooks ahead of the coming school year after a Russian strike in May destroyed a Kharkiv printing house pic.twitter.com/xDtcXR71Gp

— Felicia Schwartz (@felschwartz) June 24, 2024

The EU:

EU to use legal loophole to bypass Hungary’s veto on using Russian assets to support Ukraine

Chief diplomat @JosepBorrellF told @FT that because Budapest abstained on a vote to raise the money, it “should not be part of the decision to use this money”

https://t.co/v8WQNpU7Si

— Henry Foy (@HenryJFoy) June 24, 2024

The Financial Times has the details:

The EU has devised a legal workaround to sidestep Hungary’s veto on buying weapons for Ukraine with the profits generated by Russia’s frozen assets this year, in a move that could also clear the way for the G7 to pay $50bn to Kyiv.

EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell told the Financial Times that since Hungary abstained from an earlier agreement to set aside the proceeds from Russia’s frozen assets, it “should not be part of the decision to use this money”.

He added that the workaround, which on Monday released up to €1.4bn to purchase military equipment for Kyiv, was “as sophisticated as every legal decision, but it flies”.

Bypassing Budapest this way could also remove a hurdle that could complicate G7 efforts to raise a $50bn loan for Kyiv by December — designed to be paid off by the future proceeds — a decision taken by leaders at a summit in Italy earlier this month.

Assets worth about €210bn are immobilised in the EU, the bulk of which is in Belgium — and the bloc earlier this year agreed to use the profits generated as of February to buy arms for Ukraine.

Hungary, the EU’s most pro-Russian member state, has long argued against the 27-country bloc collectively providing military support to Ukraine. Budapest is also blocking seven other decisions related to arming Kyiv, worth about €6.6bn.

The legal workaround was not challenged by EU foreign ministers at a meeting in Luxembourg on Monday. It could also be crucial for the G7 deal to work and for the $50bn loan to be issued by the end of the year. Under the G7 plan, the profits generated by Russia’s frozen assets from next year will be spent on paying off the loan.

Hungary’s foreign minister Péter Szijjártó did not strongly object when the details of the legal workaround were presented at the meeting, according to two people briefed on the private discussions.

That has raised hopes among other ministers that Budapest would not consider its own legal options to block it, the people added.

But some capitals are concerned about the legal basis used for the loophole, officials said, and the potential precedent it could set for other issues where Brussels could circumvent potential vetoes.

Szijjártó told reporters on Monday: “The pro-war hysteria continues . . . Many governments are preparing for a long war, and the commandments ‘we must act faster for Ukraine, we must do more for Ukraine’ have been constant.”

On blocking seven other decisions related to arming Kyiv, worth about €6.6bn, he said: “Instead of arms shipments, we are advocating a ceasefire.”

Concerns from the US and other G7 partners over Hungary likely blocking an EU decision to keep the Russian assets immobilised indefinitely caused significant delays in the negotiation over the $50bn loan. The legal workaround for the EU use of proceeds is likely to suffice in guaranteeing the payout of the loan, according to officials familiar with the matter.

However, Hungary could still block EU sanctions under which Russian assets are blocked, a decision that needs to be renewed unanimously every six months by the EU’s 27 countries, officials said.

More at the link.

The Mariinka front:

Video of the Russian attack on the Mariinka front repelled by the 33rd Brigade of Ukraine:

“Early in the morning, the enemies tried to attack Ukrainian lines.

Additional protection, EW and anti drone cages did not save Russian equipment from damage. In particular, our ATGM… pic.twitter.com/LeXgq9lRre

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

Video of the Russian attack on the Mariinka front repelled by the 33rd Brigade of Ukraine:

“Early in the morning, the enemies tried to attack Ukrainian lines.

Additional protection, EW and anti drone cages did not save Russian equipment from damage. In particular, our ATGM operators worked effectively – they hit 5 pieces of equipment. Unfinished armor was finally stopped by drone drops.

Our fighters were able to destroy:
🔸 3 tanks
🔸 1 BMP

Damaged:
🔸 2 tanks

And also reduced the presence of the Russian contingent:
🔸 Killed – 5
🔸 Injured- 4”

https://t.me/mechanized33/178

For you drone enthusiasts:

Dream team for such a filming, especially with Russian drones frequently detected overhead pic.twitter.com/VFBL25KHqj

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) June 24, 2024

Moscow:

There are some major changes coming to the FSB. Mark Galeotti has the details and subject matter expert analysis:

Col. Gen. Sergei Beseda, head of the FSB’s 5th Service, retires
A thread on what I think this means. 1/

Сергей Беседа покинул пост руководителя пятой службы ФСБ, его место занял Алексей Комков — источники «Важных историй»По словам наших собеседников, Беседа стал советником директора ФСБ Александра Бортниковаhttps://storage.googleapis.com/istories/news/2024/06/22/sergei-beseda-pokinul-post-rukovoditelya-pyatoi-sluzhbi-fsb-yego-mesto-zanyal-aleksei-komkov-istochniki-vazhnikh-istorii/index.html

Just a reminder: the 5th Service, the Operational Info & International Relations Service, has other duties but especially runs agents in ex-Soviet countries and as such was meant to have a massive network in Ukraine, that largely failed to materialise in 2022 2/

The Kaleidoscopic Campaigning of Russia’s Special ServicesRussia’s operations against Ukraine have involved the full spectrum of its special services. Understanding the role each service plays is vital if the West is to counter their malign influence.https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/kaleidoscopic-campaigning-russias-special-services

First of all, despite the reporting, I don’t actually think this is ‘punishment’ for his failures around the start of the Ukraine war. Revenge may be a dish best served cold, but 28 months later seems a tad too cold 3/ 

Rather, it is that he has reached the compulsory retirement age of 70 and although he could stay in post by presidential decree, where his failings come in is in that he doesn’t have the political capital to get that, even if he wants to 4/ 

Besides, he is not out in the cold, but is appointed an adviser to the director of the FSB, a usual sinecure. Had the govt wanted to signal displeasure, it would have foregone this courtesy. 5/ 

What’s important is that Beseda’s replacement is Alexei Komkov, who is a client of FSB 1st Dep Director Sergei Korolev and former head of FSB’s Internal Security (ie: he knows where the bodies are buried). 6/

СМИ: Руководитель УСБ ФСБ, занимавшийся задержанием «полковника Захарченко от контрразведки», перешел на другую работуГлава Управления собственной безопасности ФСБ РФ Алексей Комков перешел на другое место работы.https://www.fontanka.ru/2019/05/17/029/

Korolev has been meant to take over for years, his elevation stymied by a scandal, the war (and Putin’s dislike of churn in the security agency management, but also a strong ‘stop Korolev’ camp, including Beseda 7/ 

With Beseda gone, and Alexei Sedov, head of the 2ndService (2nd FSB service (political security and counter-terrorism ) turning 70 in August (assuming he survives the current Dagestan crisis), Korolev is likely to have the power base he needs 8/ 

Besides, 73-year-old Bortnikov is ill and for years has been wanting to retire. This year, surely, he’ll be granted release by Putin, and presumably Korolev will take his place. 9/ 

As I wrote back in 2021, Korolev will be a dangerous FSB director, active, ruthless, smart and with organised crime connections 10/

https://platformraam.nl/dossiers/kremlin/1821-korolev-s-coronation-and-the-rise-of-the-ruthless-in-the-fsb

He may well be even more dangerous for surviving dissidents at home and abroad, not least as he will have something to prove. However, for a little silver lining… 11/ 

…this also marks the rise of a newer generation of security chiefs who do not have a personal relationship with Putin. They are not of his era, not necessarily of his mindset. Not for a minute is Korolev a liberal, but would he go to the wall for Putin? I’m not so sure. 12/end

1. An extremely unpopular high-ranking military commander with a notoriously gruesome service record gets promoted because he’s got connections or because, very often, getting such a character a new assignment with a promotion is the only way to get rid of him.

2. He gets…

— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) June 24, 2024

1. An extremely unpopular high-ranking military commander with a notoriously gruesome service record gets promoted because he’s got connections or because, very often, getting such a character a new assignment with a promotion is the only way to get rid of him.

2. He gets promoted in this way, again and again, striking terror into entire units under his command over his leadership style and deadly practices.

3. The situation heats up so wildly that popular young mid-ranking battlefield leaders go public nationwide and seek disclosure and support from the media and the nation.

4. The Zelensky administration, amid yet another scandal, gives its reaction and *sometimes* removes the unpopular high-ranking general and gives him another assignment, optionally with yet another promotion.

5. Repeat with another problem that devours this country from the inside.

Ukraine is a country that lives making “two steps forward and one step back” all the time.

And indeed, this nation survives and, in a brutal war of annihilation, tries to win a chance for the future thanks to men and women who make a difference against all odds, again and again, every single day.

Kudos to Ukraine’s Azov Brigade chief executive officer @BohdanKrotevych for his heroic stand, one of his many in this damned war.

Also, Moscow:

The fire in Moscow region has spread to 4,000 square meters, Russian Telegram channels report. https://t.co/LbSUsuSKS8 pic.twitter.com/sfd0d0gIlw

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) June 24, 2024

Yesyk, Krasnodar Krai, Russia:

Claims regarding the aftermath of the recent Ukrainian strike on Yeysk (see thread attached:

“On June 21, 2024, a strike was carried out on the military training ground of the 726th Air Defense Training Center (military unit 33859, Yeysk) in the Krasnodar Region of Russia.

The… https://t.co/OKXg1mLK0o

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

Claims regarding the aftermath of the recent Ukrainian strike on Yeysk (see thread attached:

“On June 21, 2024, a strike was carried out on the military training ground of the 726th Air Defense Training Center (military unit 33859, Yeysk) in the Krasnodar Region of Russia.

The training center is engaged in training and preparing military personnel to use various types of UAVs.

The strike was carried out by two cruise missiles of an unidentified type (probably R-360 Neptune).

The death of instructors and technical personnel from Yelabuga (employees of the plant that produces and maintains the analogue of the Iranian “Shahed-136” – “Geran-2”) is reported. Surnames of the killed instructors: Gunya, Sadreev, Kazhanov.

According to the source, destroyed:
• “Shahed-136”/“Geran-2” – 20 units;
• “Lancet” loitering munition – 50 units;
• Reconnaissance UAV “ZALA” – 40 units.

There is no information about casualties among military personnel.“

https://t.me/dosye_shpiona/548

Before we finish, I want to switch gears really quick and include this clip of Christiane Amanpour interviewing Rear Admiral (ret) Ami Ayalon. RADM Ayalon is both a former director of Shin Bet and a former Chief of Naval Operations. This is important because one of Ayalon’s successors at Shin Bet, Yuval Diskin, both joined one of the largest protests over the weekend, but also addressed the crowd calling for Bibi’s removal and new elections.

“If we shall not end the occupation, we shall not have security,” warns Ami Ayalon, former head of Shin Bet, “and if we shall not end this occupation, we shall not have democracy.”

In an extraordinarily candid interview, Israel’s former internal security chief condemns what he… pic.twitter.com/tUplALZY3G

— Christiane Amanpour (@amanpour) June 24, 2024

If you want to see more of Ayalon and Diskin, as well as four of the former directors of Shin Bet, here they are in The Gatekeepers documentary:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1N93pFcopE

That’s enough for tonight.

Your daily Patron!

There are no new Patron tweets or videos today. Here is some adjacent material.

Two cute gingers in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/wX0dcYeSE9

— Lorenzo The Cat (@LorenzoTheCat) June 23, 2024

Who wants to hear the story of new saved baby ? ) pic.twitter.com/QrrzzJcZ4o

— Eugene Kibets (@eugenehmg) June 18, 2024

Turn up the sound on this video and listen to this little badass Ukrainian kitten as she is rescued. The life force in her! 💙💛💙 https://t.co/HgcAGxDAFW

— Lorenzo The Cat (@LorenzoTheCat) June 20, 2024

#Liptsi . The story of the Shepherd Jessica, rescued by our #military

Jessica was adopted by military #volunteers. “We regularly work on the #frontline, we see animals there, see their condition. We wanted to help at least one of them”.

PayPal: [email protected]#war pic.twitter.com/Y6ebOZqiiH

— Animal Rescue Kharkiv 🇺🇦 (@AnimalRescueKh) June 24, 2024

Open thread!