What happened on the day of July 15th. The main thing

The Russian army continued to strike at the port infrastructure used for the delivery of military goods in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). In the morning, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that targets in the ports of Odessa and Chernomorsk had been hit. As a result, a container ship and a dry cargo ship were hit in the latter, and two dry cargo ships were destroyed in the port of Dnepro-Bugsky, Mykolaiv region. Later, it was reported about a strike on two dry cargo ships with military cargo in the port of Odessa and one vessel in the port of Yuzhny. Other main events of the day are in the Izvestia digest.

EU ambassadors fail to agree on the 21st package of sanctions against Russia

The ambassadors of the European Union (EU) could not agree on the 21st package of sanctions against Russia, the Reuters news agency reported, citing a diplomatic source. In addition, the European diplomats decided to keep the ceiling on Russian oil prices unchanged until July 23, when there will be a new discussion of sanctions. Currently, the price ceiling is at $44.1 per barrel. The coordination of restrictions is still ongoing. At the same time, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on several individuals, including two Russian citizens and one Russian company. Russians Vadim Druzhbin and Maria Selina have added to the list. Avratek company also got there.

IHF allows Russian handball players to participate in competitions

The International Handball Federation (IHF) has allowed Russian national teams to participate in the competition. The ban was introduced back in March 2022, but the organization reversed the decision in accordance with the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee. The lifting of sanctions also applies to athletes from Belarus. In cooperation with the International Testing Agency, the federation will take all necessary measures to comply with anti-doping requirements upon the return of Russian athletes. No additional restrictions will be applied to participation.

Fuel situation in Russia: Novak's statements

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that the Russian domestic market is being filled with diesel fuel, the volume of which will be sufficient to provide harvesting operations for agricultural producers. He attributed this to the government's decision to ban diesel exports, which was introduced last week. The Deputy Prime Minister also called for fuel supplies to retail chains as a matter of priority. Among the reasons, he pointed out the task of preventing food spoilage, as well as rising prices for them.

Against this background, the official representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, Irina Volk, announced that the regional divisions of the State Traffic Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia would cancel the regulations on bringing drivers queuing at gas stations to administrative responsibility for violations of parking and stopping rules. More information about the fuel situation in the regions can be found in the exclusive Izvestia article.

Putin meets with Potanin in the Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin received Vladimir Potanin, the head of Norilsk Nickel, in the Kremlin. The businessman said that by the end of 2026, the company expects to reach a record volume of ore production — more than 17 million tons. Potanin added that Norilsk Nickel continues to reduce its dependence on foreign technologies and is completing the implementation of a sulfur program, which will continue to develop mainly on the basis of Russian developments. According to him, the demand for products remains stable, but the sanctions create difficulties with logistics and sales. At the same time, Norilsk Nickel is increasing sales of metals on the domestic market.

Szijjarto resigned as a member of the Hungarian Parliament

Former Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto will step down as a member of the national parliament in connection with an offer to start working in a senior position at the Chinese car company BYD. He also said that he had already submitted his resignation. The position of a former diplomat at BYD will relate to "managing the group's external relations and the development of new business lines." The Chinese carmaker built its first factory in Europe for the production of electric vehicles in the Hungarian city of Szeged (Chongrad-Chanad region), and Szijjarto actively supported the project at the political level.

Bad weather in Russian regions

The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations has warned of heavy rains, thunderstorms and hail in 16 regions of six federal districts of Russia. Later, the subjects were hit by bad weather. Trees fell in eight districts of Yekaterinburg due to strong winds, and 49 traffic lights stopped working. A high-alert regime has been introduced in 23 municipalities of the Sverdlovsk region, and an emergency regime is in effect in five more. In Sochi, a heavy downpour flooded streets, courtyards and driveways at night, making traffic difficult. In the Irkutsk region, due to rising water in the Muya River, the city of Bodaibo was effectively cut off from transport links.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russian President Vladimir Putin receives daily reports from the Ministry of Emergency Situations and other agencies on the flood situation in the Sverdlovsk region and bad weather in other regions. He also assured that the authorities of the Russian regions and the units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations are already involved in the aftermath.

The National Bank of Ukraine will change the design of the banknote due to its associations with Russia

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU, which performs the functions of the Central Bank) will change the design of a new banknote with a face value of 2 thousand hryvnias (about 3.7 thousand rubles) due to the scandal surrounding the font created by a Russian designer. The head of the regulator, Andrey Pyshny, called the decision the only correct one. Experts drew attention to the use of the Cyrillic version of the Bickham Script font on the banknote. It was developed in 2005 by Russian Alexandra Hoffman, who adapted the original Cyrillic script by American designer Richard Lipton. The new money is due to enter circulation on September 4, 2026.

The court rejected Ivanov's complaint about the refusal to send him to his home.

The Moscow City Court has declared lawful the denial of the claim of the former Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia Timur Ivanov, in which he asked to oblige the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation to conclude a contract with him and send him to the zone of a special military operation (SVO). His lawyer Denis Baluyev clarified that Ivanov, who is accused of bribery, did not receive an official refusal of his request from the department when he was in jail. A representative of the Ministry of Defense who was present at the hearing pointed out that the Ministry could indeed consider a person who had a criminal record as a candidate for military service, but this did not mean that he would eventually be sent to the front.

The Interior Ministry will oblige migrants to buy phones when entering Russia

Foreign citizens arriving in Russia for a long term or for employment will be required to purchase mobile phones with an established electronic profile to monitor their location. According to Igor Zubov, State Secretary and Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, the presence of an electronic profile in the device will allow law enforcement agencies to know the location of each foreigner. As a result, migrants will not be able to move from one settlement to another without control. The technical solution should also provide communication channels with foreign citizens.