live blog
The Junge Union wants to withdraw the protection status in Germany from Ukrainian men of military age. Ukrainian President Zelenskyj has visited the frontline region of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. All developments in the live blog.
The trial of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has begun in Russia. Journalists were initially allowed into the courtroom in Yekaterinburg for a few minutes before the proceedings took place behind closed doors.
The 32-year-old Gershkovich, who is accused of spying for the USA, faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years if convicted. It is considered almost certain that he will be found guilty. Gershkovich, his employer and the US government deny the allegations. The next court date has been set for August 13, according to court officials.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has traveled to the frontline region of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. “I started this day in the Donetsk region, together with our soldiers, together with Commander-in-Chief (Oleksandr) Syrsky and the new commander of the joint forces, General (Andriy) Gnatov,” Zelenskyy said in a video published on online services.
In it, he is standing in front of the town sign for the city of Pokrovsk. Gnatov is a young man, but “his knowledge of the front line and his experience are exactly what we need,” added Zelensky. According to Ukrainian sources, the Russian army is currently attacking particularly heavily in the Pokrovsk area.
According to Russian sources, a radiation control post in the region around the occupied Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhia was destroyed by Ukrainian shelling. “Specialists from the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant took a number of measures to control the radiation situation in the region,” the nuclear power plant management appointed by Russia said on Telegram. The radiation levels did not exceed the limit values. No comment was initially received from Ukraine.
Justice Minister Marco Buschmann has rejected the proposal by CSU regional group leader Alexander Dobrindt to send unemployed war refugees back to certain areas of Ukraine. “I have doubts as to whether Mr. Dobrindt had in mind what is possible under constitutional and European law. We should rather look at how we can integrate Ukrainians who seek protection with us into the labor market more quickly and in greater numbers,” said the FDP politician.
The chairman of the Junge Union (JU), Johannes Winkel, wants to withdraw protection status from Ukrainian men of military age – and thus state support in Germany. It is fine to support Ukrainian women and their children with social benefits, he told the “Welt”. However, Ukrainian men of military age “should not have any right to protection in Germany, but should defend their country”. Supplying Ukraine with weapons on the one hand, but at the same time denying it its own soldiers is “downright cynical”, the JU head continued.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has spoken to his Russian counterpart Andrei Belousov in a rare exchange. Austin stressed that it was important to maintain communication in light of the war, said Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder. The Russian Defense Ministry also announced that both sides had exchanged views on the war. In connection with the ongoing US arms deliveries to Ukraine, Belousov pointed to the increasing risk of an escalation of the situation in the country. Other issues were also discussed, but no details were given.