Ukraine updates: Hungary accuses Kyiv over oil dispute

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are under heavy pressure in the east of the country, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his overnight video address to the nation.

In particular, the situation around Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region has been thoroughly analyzed by the military leadership, Zelenskyy said.

"This area has been and continues to be the focus of Russian attacks," Zelenskyy said. Everything must be done to strengthen Ukrainian defense positions in the region, he added.

The Ukrainian leader expressed "special appreciation" to all units that attacked Russian bases and logistics in the occupied territories, without naming any specific units.

Ukraine said its missile forces struck a Russian military airfield in Crimea used for long-range strikes against it. If confirmed, it would be the latest in a series of blows to the Russian military on the occupied peninsula.

Ukraine has stepped up long-range strikes on Crimea in recent months and says the Russian navy's Black Sea Fleet, based in Sevastopol, has been forced to move its warships to safer ports elsewhere.

The Ukrainian military's General Staff said in a statement that Russia's Saky airfield in western Crimea was the latest target hit and that it was assessing the aftermath.

The statement did not say what weapon was used, but said the attack was carried out by Ukraine's missile forces, among others.

A Ukrainian court has ordered an 18-year-old man to remain in custody for at least 60 days over the murder of nationalist former lawmaker Iryna Farion.

Farion, a divisive hardliner who campaigned against the use of the Russian language, was shot dead near her apartment in the western city of Lviv on July 19.

The suspect was arrested this week in Dnipro, 800 kilometers (500 miles) east of Lviv.

Investigators said they were working to determine the motive for the attack. Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said they were inclined to believe the gunman acted on orders.

Russia has classified the online version of the German newspaper Bild in Russian as a "foreign agent."

According to the Justice Ministry, Bild in Russian published inaccurate information about Russian politics. In addition, inaccurate information aimed at "painting a negative picture of the Russian Armed Forces" was disseminated, it said.

The categorization of Bild in Russian as a "foreign agent" is "an ineffectual attempt to prevent free journalism and the exposure of state propaganda," a spokesman for the Bild group said.

Media outlets and rights groups have slammed Russia of using the "foreign agent" classification to try to  attach a certain stigma to many international organizations or media. This categorization is often the first step towards a complete ban on their work.

As the dispute over Russian oil deliveries escalates, senior Ukrainian official Mykhailo Podolyak rejected the claims that Kyiv was trying to blackmail Hungary and Slovakia. The two EU countries are against sending weapons to Ukraine and have repeatedly criticized sanctions against Russia.

Ukraine and Russia continue to cooperate on delivering energy shipments to some EU nations despite the full-scale war, as both sides still reap financial benefits. Recently, however, Kyiv imposed sanctions on Russia's Lukoil and then halted its oil deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia, in a move which could spark dire fuel shortages.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an influential aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, told the Reuters news agency that the move to restrict the oil flow has nothing to do with blackmail.  At the same time, however, he also said Budapest and Bratislava were not working toward peace in Ukraine and were insisting "solely on concessions to Russia."

Multiple terrorism cases in Russia culminated with courts passing lengthy sentences to four suspects after finding them guilty of plotting to help Ukraine.

In Moscow, a military court sentenced a man to up to 22 years in prison for allegedly planning to attack the city's Sheremetyevo Airport. Another person was sentenced to 15 years in the same case. The court ruled that the duo was offered $2,000 (€1,842) by Ukrainian intelligence to use a drone to blow up airplane fuel tanks at the airport.

The defendants fully admitted to the charges, according to the court.

One of the suspects decided not to go with the plan due to fear of civilian casualties, SOTAvision media outlet reported.

Separately, a trans man named Vyacheslav Lutor was convicted for attempting to join the far-right Freedom of Russia Legion, which opposes the current Russian government and President Vladimir Putin. Lutor is also said to have financially supported Ukrainian armed forces and worked for the OVD-Infor rights watchdog. He will reportedly serve his sentence in a women's penal colony.

Another military court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced a 23-year-old to 11 years for plotting to commit treason and join the same militia, which Russia sees as a terrorist organization.

The 2022 invasion of Ukraine prompted a massive crackdown on critical voices in Russia, including prosecuting dissidents.

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Friday urged China to prevent its companies from supporting the Russian military.

Lammy spoke to his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on the sidelines of an ASEAN Foreign Ministers event in Laos.

"The Foreign Secretary underlined the UK's ironclad commitment to Ukraine and urged China to prevent its companies supporting Russia's military industrial complex which poses a material threat to international security and prosperity," a statement from the UK foreign ministry said.

Lammy "set out that the government would cooperate where we can, compete where needed and challenge where we must," the statement continued, before adding that the foreign secretary "made clear the UK would always stand firm in prioritizing our national security, as well as supporting human rights."

A statement issued by China said Wang had told Lammy Beijing and London should "establish the right policy orientation, (and) uphold a balanced, pragmatic, open and cooperative attitude."

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal thanked European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for the contribution of €1.5 billion ($1.63 billion) towards "Ukraine's defense and reconstruction."

"Together, we are turning adversity into strength and building a safer, more resilient Europe," he added on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Earlier on Friday, Von der Leyen said: "The EU stands with Ukraine. Today we transfer €1.5 billion in proceeds from immobilized Russian assets to the defense and reconstruction of Ukraine. There is no better symbol or use for the Kremlin’s money than to make Ukraine and all of Europe a safer place to live."

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has called on Hong Kong leader John Lee to prevent Russia from using Hong Kong as a way to circumvent sanctions imposed on Moscow by the West for its invasion Ukraine.

Both Hong Kong and China are seen by the United States as key routes for Russia to source materials for its military.

"Dmytro Kuleba ... called on the Hong Kong administration to take measures to deprive Russia and Russian companies of the opportunity to use Hong Kong to circumvent restrictive measures imposed for Russian aggression against Ukraine," the Ukrainian ministry said in a statement.

Chinese Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui is to visit Brazil, South Africa and Indonesia for talks on Ukraine, China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

The trip will begin July 28.

Li will "exchange views with important members of the Global South on the current situation and peace talks process, explore ways to cool down the situation, and accumulate conditions for restarting peace talks," spokesperson Mao Ning said.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba visited China for the first time after being invited by his Beijing counterpart, Wang Yi.

Ukraine is "blackmailing" Hungary and Slovakia by stopping oil deliveries, an aide to the Hungarian prime minister said on Friday. 

Russian group Lukoil has brought to a halt oil deliveries to the two countries and Viktor Orban's aide Gergely Gulyas told reporters at a press conference: "Ukraine is blackmailing the two countries that are standing for peace and cease-fire."

"If the situation is not resolved, there will be a fuel shortage... a solution must be found by September."

Hungary and Slovakia earlier this week asked the European Commission to mediate a consultation procedure with Ukraine, Hungary's foreign minister said. 

Hungary receives 2 million metric tons of oil from the Russian group annually, around a third of its total oil imports, according to Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.

jsi/rm (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)