What happened during the week from July 27 to August 2. The main thing

The Armed forces of the Russian Federation continued to launch massive strikes against military installations in Ukraine, including in Kiev. Ukrainian militants, in turn, continued to attack peaceful infrastructure in the regions of Russia. The Spanish enclave of Ceuta has experienced the largest migration crisis in the last five years. All the details are in the Izvestia article.

The advance of the Russian Army at the front

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have liberated the village of Krasny Kut in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). The Russian Defense Ministry clarified that it has important tactical significance for the offensive of Russian troops.

Russian military personnel also liberated the settlements of Svetloye in the DPR and Novaya Sich in the Sumy region. At the same time, the next day, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced the liberation of four settlements in a day. Units of the North group of forces took control of Malaya Slobodka and Mogrica in the Sumy region, as well as Yurchenkovo in the Kharkiv region. In addition, Krasnoyarsk was liberated in the DPR.

The military department noted that Krasnoyarsk is of great tactical importance for the further advance of assault units in the Dobropolsky direction and the liberation of the territory of the DPR.

In addition, the settlements of Stenka in the DPR and Verovka in the Kharkiv region have been liberated. Russian military personnel also established control over the settlements of Olgovka, Kharkiv region, and Lyubitskoye, Zaporizhia region.

During the week, 31 naval vessels used in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were hit. More than 5,000 drones were also destroyed during the week.

Migration crisis in Ceuta

The Spanish enclave of Ceuta is facing the largest migration crisis in the 21st century. According to the Spanish Interior Ministry, about 49,000 illegal migrants entered the city from Morocco during the day, which is four times the number of arrivals during the 2021 crisis.

Later, almost 70,000 illegal migrants from Morocco returned to their homeland. This figure could include migrants who arrived in the exclave a few days before the mass influx. According to media reports, the number of refugees killed while trying to cross the border between Morocco and the Spanish enclave of Ceuta has increased to 94.

The situation has caused a split in Europe. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced her readiness to suspend the Schengen Agreement with Spain. She was supported by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Finnish Foreign Minister Mari Rantanen and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has faced criticism from leaders of other EU countries over migrants in Ceuta. Defensive structures began to be installed in the city. In addition, the migration crisis in Ceuta has led to disruptions in ferry services to mainland Spain, and long queues have formed at the port of Algeciras.

Ukrainian Armed Forces attacks in Russian regions

At night, Rostov-on-Don was subjected to a massive attack by Ukrainian drones (UAVs). As a result of the strike on an apartment building, five people were killed, including a married couple and a child. Five more people were injured and are being treated. An emergency regime was introduced within the boundaries of the damaged residential buildings. Emergency services are dismantling the destroyed structures of buildings.

In the Zaporozhye region, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked a bus on the Veseloe – Dneprorudnoye highway. The vehicle was taking employees of the Dneprorudny iron Ore Plant home. There were 55 passengers and a driver on the bus. As a result of the attack, one person was killed and 12 others were injured. A criminal case has been opened into the attack.

The EU has promised Ukraine €8.3 billion with strict conditions

The European Union (EU) has promised to provide Ukraine with additional financing in the amount of €8.3 billion, but in order to receive these funds, Brussels has put forward a number of strict requirements. Among the conditions are the implementation of real and verifiable reforms in the field of the rule of law and the strengthening of the systemic fight against corruption. Brussels stressed that without meeting these requirements, the actual allocation of funds will be blocked.

On the same day, the European Commission allocated an additional €3.47 billion to Ukraine as part of the defense program for the purchase of drones, missiles and Gripen fighter jets.

Irish journalist Chay Bose criticized the European Union's decision to approve the allocation of €8.3 billion to Ukraine, seeing corruption in this step.

Zelensky and Netanyahu's visit to Washington

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky arrived at the White House on July 28 for a meeting with American leader Donald Trump. At Washington airport, the head of the Kiev regime was met only by his own pilot and the Ukrainian ambassador at the plane ramp. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also flew in to meet with the head of the White House.

On the same day, Zelensky called his meeting with the American leader a good one. According to him, the parties discussed the possibility of obtaining licenses for the production of interceptors for the American Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, as well as other initiatives.

At the same time, there was no meeting between Zelensky and Netanyahu. The Israeli prime Minister refused to hold a meeting with Zelensky during his visit to Washington. According to journalists, after Kiev agreed to contact, representatives of Israel stopped contacting. The Washington Post reported that Zelensky and Netanyahu only briefly exchanged harsh remarks during an informal meeting.

Montenegro introduces visas for Russians from November 1

Citizens of Russia and Belarus will need to apply for visas to enter Montenegro from November 1, 2026, the republic's Foreign Ministry said. The decision is related to the fulfillment of the country's obligations on the path to European integration. The agency indicated that changing the visa regime would allow Montenegro to fulfill one of the conditions of negotiations with the EU.

At the same time, the country's authorities announced their intention to simplify the procedure for obtaining visas. Applications for documents can already be submitted through VFS Global visa centers in Russia, India, Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Turkey and the UAE. In the future, the network of such centers is planned to expand to a number of other countries, including Belarus, Kazakhstan, China and Armenia.

IF3 lifted restrictions on Russian athletes

The International Federation of Functional All-Around (IF3) has lifted all restrictions on Russian athletes. Gretchen Kittelberger, the president of the organization, said that IF3 agrees with the decision of the International Olympic Committee to lift restrictions from the Russian Olympic Committee. Russian athletes will be able to compete at international IF3 competitions without restrictions, including in team disciplines, under their own flag and with the anthem of the Russian Federation. The federation expects that the Russian national team will participate in the World Masters Championships, as well as in the World Senior Championships this season.

Durov was included in the list of extremists

Rosfinmonitoring has officially included Durov in the list of organizations and individuals for whom there is information about involvement in extremist activities or terrorism. This means the immediate blocking of all bank accounts of the businessman in Russia and a ban on any transactions involving his participation.

On July 29, the FSB charged Durov with facilitating terrorist activities, the reason being an investigation into the activities of the Telegram bot "Diver/Leo", through which the Ukrainian special services involved Russians in terrorism.

Rosfinmonitoring explained that the introduction of personal restrictions against Durov was carried out within the framework of Article 6 of Federal Law No. 115-FZ. According to the regulations, restrictions on a businessman do not apply to Telegram as a legal entity.

The trial of blogger Lercek

On July 31, the Gagarin Court of Moscow held a debate on the criminal case of blogger Valeria Chekalina (Lerchek). The state prosecution requested six years of probation and a fine of 1.2 billion rubles for her.

The blogger's defense asked the court to acquit her completely or release her from punishment due to her serious health condition. Lercek declined to comment to reporters after the end of the debate on the case of illegal currency transactions.

Following the meeting, Lercek was sentenced to five years of probation and fined 765 million rubles.