🧵 WSJ: Xi and Putin’s relationship has changed sharply. Putin was once Xi’s “role model”; now China treats Russia as a junior partner. Putin’s latest Beijing trip failed to secure the Power of Siberia 2 deal after China demanded gas at low Russian domestic prices.

A Russian Molniya drone struck a civilian car near Berezivka, Kharkiv region, killing the 61-year-old driver.

🇪🇺 Nine countries want the IOC cut from EU funding for allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes. Estonia led the move, backed by Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Finland and Sweden.

UN: In June, Russian attacks killed at least 293 civilians and injured nearly 2,000 – the highest monthly toll since April 2022. In H1 2026, nearly 1,400 were killed and almost 8,000 wounded as missile and drone strikes intensified.

Russia’s oil refining has crashed to a 20-year low. In June, crude processing averaged 3.91M barrels a day, the weakest level since March 2005.

🇨🇳 China paused Power of Siberia 2 talks, demanding gas at Russia’s domestic price – about $50 per 1,000 m³. Before sanctions, Europe paid around $270. Beijing wants a much steeper discount.

Bloomberg’s weekly Russia oil export update: - Urals crude: $46/barrel (as of 10 July) - Weekly oil export revenue: $1.44 billion - Average seaborne crude exports: 3.98 million barrels per day

Ten countries launched the FREYJA anti-ballistic coalition. Fire Point leads integration, while Ukraine’s FP-7.x interceptor is being finalized. Zelenskyy expects the system to be operational by July 2027.

Two myths are spreading about Ukraine’s EU accession clusters. First, that Ukraine is to blame because not all were opened today — false. Kyiv completed every condition long ago. Closing them may be hard later, but they must be opened first. 🧵

One of Ukraine’s “hidden” May–June gains is now public. Ukrainian forces pushed Russia back near Maliivka, Sichneve, Novoheorhiivka and Zaporizke, retaking 43.4 km². Russian troops remain in rear areas – map updates will follow.

Ukrainian Navy has destroyed Russia’s FSB patrol ship Izumrud near Novorossiysk — and is already sharing satellite images. Sargan-3000 sea drone did the job. Its specifications remain classified.

OTD in 2022, Russia launched Kalibr cruise missiles at Vinnytsia. The attack killed 27 people, including three children, and injured more than 200. Among the victims was four-year-old Liza Dmytrieva.

Rolling blackouts have begun in Sevastopol. The schedule has gone from 3 hours on / 3 hours off to 2 hours on and 6 hours off. It really warms my heart when I remember our blackouts.

Remember Trump’s last round of tariffs? It turned into a legal disaster. The courts ruled against them, and now the U.S. Treasury is refunding illegally collected duties to importers. It refunded $22b in May and $49b in June, with more to come. Did #Trump learn anything? Not a chance.

🇪🇺 The European Commission began the process of cancelling a €2 million grant to the Venice Biennale after Russia returned to the exhibition for the first time since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The grant was supposed to cover the 2025–2028 period.

A 48 yo. woman wounded in Russia’s guided bomb attack on Sumy on 11 July has died in hospital. The death toll has risen to six. Another 44 people were injured. Seventeen people remain hospitalized, including four children. Two adults are in critical condition.

🇳🇱 The Bell: Putin placed Dutch AkzoNobel’s Russian paint businesses under temporary control of a secretive firm linked to Rostec. The same company took over Danish Rockwool’s Russian plants in late 2025.

Reuters: Syzran refinery fully halted crude processing on July 12 after Ukrainian drones damaged its AVT-5 unit – 7,100 tons/day, or 29% of capacity. Repairs may last until late July; the plant’s other crude unit has been offline since May 21.

Putin let Rosneft’s Tuapse refinery, fuel terminals, RN-Aero and airport fuel firms hide operating data – as Russia’s fuel crisis spreads and aviation companies report critical shortages.

Children’s rides with the burning Tvernefteprodukt oil depot in the background. Delulu. The depot was attacked on 9 July and supplies fuel to 50 gas stations across Russia’s Tver region.

CNN is chasing clicks with reports that Trump will back Lindsey Graham’s sanctions bill targeting buyers of Russian oil. Wake me up when he actually does. Until then, it’s just more talk.

🤯 CNN: Rubio says the Trump administration wants to “dismantle” the ICC and is urging Rome Statute members to quit and stop funding it. He called the court a tool of left-wing NGOs, globalists and hostile governments.

+ 11 Russian vessels hit in the Sea of Azov overnight: 5 tankers, 5 cargo ships and 1 tug. Total: 116 hits in 9 days.

The refinery in Salavat, Bashkortostan, is on fire. It’s Russia’s 10th-largest refinery, with a processing capacity of 7.2M tonnes per year (about 2.7% of Russia’s total refining capacity). 1,400 km from the Ukrainian border. This is the second reported attack on the refinery in 2026.

The best indicator of whether Ukraine has PAC-3 interceptors is the number of Russian ballistic missiles it shoots down. This night, 5 out of 8 were intercepted. For comparison, during the 6 July attack on Kyiv, not a single ballistic missile was shot down.

Russia has just hit Kyiv with at least six ballistic missiles. I’m so tired of waking up in the middle of the night, jumping out of bed, and running to the hallway. You have no idea.

Russia built trenches right beside Teremok kindergarten and a school in occupied Crimea’s Chkalove village. Satellite images suggest troops have used the site since at least late July 2023.

Zelenskyy: Ukraine needs a “winter package” of Patriot missiles. 100 per month, or 300 for the season.

🇫🇷 Macron says Ukraine will get 16 new Rafales in 2028–29. So the current plan looks like this: - Early 2027: 16 Gripen C/Ds - 2028–29: 16 new Rafale F4s - Early 2029: 16 new Gripen Es

Albina and her brother Dmytro were killed on July 10, when Russian forces dropped 7 aerial bombs on Kramatorsk and nearby Bilenke. Their father, Anatolii, survived but suffered severe injuries and was taken to Dnipro for treatment.

The Savchuk family was killed on July 2, when a Russian missile hit their home in Kyiv. The victims were: - Tetiana and Yurii Savchuk - their children, 15-year-old Sofia and 23-year-old Nikita - Nikita’s fiancée, Oleksandra Bardadym Nikita and Oleksandra were preparing for their wedding.

Iryna was killed on July 6, during a Russian attack on Kyiv. She worked as a barista and had settled in the capital after fleeing Russian-occupied Nova Kakhovka in the Kherson region. Iryna is survived by her mother, Kateryna Hrabko, and three younger sisters. That strike killed 19 and injured 76.

Ukraine's Ratel Robotics upgraded the Ratel X with a new frame, cargo deck, body, front end, and reinforced bumper. Frontline feedback also brought easier repairs, 400 kg payload, 14 km/h speed, 100+ km range, and 115+ km control.

🇱🇹 In 2024, Lithuanian firm UAB Eseka allegedly shipped Starlink terminals, cables and Japanese O.S. Engines parts to Russia through Latvia. Starlink gear was declared as ceramic tiles, while engines used in Russian drones were listed as model-aircraft parts.

According to Aksyonov, Crimea won’t have daily gasoline sales or reliable power schedules. Some areas have been without electricity for over 12 days. Street lighting is off, energy use will be cut, and generators will go first to the longest-hit towns.

FISU: Russia’s 2026 recruitment drive is losing steam. - 195k signed by July vs 204.5k planned; annual goal – 409k. - Medical and fitness standards were lowered. - Moscow wants 7.9k recruits from occupied Ukraine. - It targets 50k students, but only 1 in 400 agrees.

Russians have withdrawn ₽1.811 trillion in cash from banks as of 10 July. ₽422 billion of that was pulled out in the last nine days alone. The pace of cash withdrawals is now well ahead of previous years.

Overnight on July 13, Ukrainian drones destroyed five Russian air-defense assets: - S-400 launcher near Kerch that put on quite the fireworks show (video); - Tor-M2 near Valerianivka; - Pantsir-S1 near Osovyny; - 2x Nebo-U radars near Kerch and Melek-Chesme.

🇧🇬 Bulgaria will back the EU’s 21st Russia sanctions package – after Patriarch Kirill, Lukoil founder Alekperov and a Sofia metro supplier were removed. Tough sanctions, just neatly trimmed around the VIPs.

Russian firms are being charged for missing army recruitment quotas. In Buryatia, businesses can pay ₽100,000 per worker; one owner says officials demand ₽450,000. Muisky district’s 2026 target rose to 61, after only 13 of 37 joined in 2025.

A man involved in the occupation of Bucha is now running for Russia's State Duma under the United Russia banner. Eduard Shonov, No. 2 on the party's Moscow list, served in the 45th VDV Spetsnaz Brigade, which fought in Hostomel and took part in the occupation of Bucha.

2 killed, 9 injured in Zaporizhzhia following a Russian attack on the apartment building.

🇦🇿 On July 13, Aliyev said Azerbaijan may fully quit the Council of Europe, not just freeze membership. He also said ties with Russia are “fully normalized” after the 2024 AZAL crash crisis and his Oct 2025 meeting with Putin.

Russia’s fuel crisis is now choking aid deliveries to its troops. Volunteers say gas is missing along frontline routes, especially in occupied Zaporizhzhia. Trips are near zero, cargo goes with passing cars, and groups are fundraising for fuel cans.

Russian bastards struck central Orikhiv with a three-ton aerial bomb. This small city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast lies just 5–8 km from the front line. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, around 14,000 people lived there.

🇲🇩 A Russian drone crashing in Moldova barely raises eyebrows anymore. Hell, one even slammed into an apartment building in Romania, and Russia faced no consequences. So a blast on the outskirts of a Moldovan village? Boring.

On July 13, Russia's FSB detained two Omsk residents for posting videos of the July 6 refinery attack. They face fines of ₽500–1,500. The FSB says it is still tracking uploaders and warns that sharing footage with foreigners could be treated as treason. Treason, Carl!

DIU: Russia has turned the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP into a military base. Troops placed vehicles in turbine halls 1, 2, 5, and 6, weapons in basements, and missile systems and machine guns on reactor roofs. The former Kakhovka shore is mined.

The main issue isn't just the queues – it's the mass shutdown of gas stations. Across most cities, 30–65% are closed, rising to nearly 80% in some. There's also a clear regional divide: southern cities are far worse off than Moscow, Omsk, Ryazan, or Tula.

SSU: Overnight July 13, Ukrainian drones hit 10+ Russian military, logistics and fuel sites in Russia and occupied Crimea. - 2 Mangust patrol boats - Bagerove airbase - 3 radars - 4 ferries 👏 - fuel tanks - rail tankers - oil depot 600 km from Ukraine.