Welcome to this edition of What about Ukraine?, a newsletter that helps you keep updated about what has been said recently about Ukraine in Ukraine, and in the international media.

As the EU Presidency switched to Hungary on 1 July, prime minister Viktor Orbán surprised the bloc with a visit to Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, which was the premier’s first time in Ukraine since the start of the Russian full-scale invasion. In this edition you will find insights from the Hungarian media on this twist in the rocky relations between the two neighbours. This visit happened a week after the Spanish minister of economy travelled to Ukraine, to explore opportunities for collaboration between Madrid and Kyiv.

Another leader in the news is the newly elected patriarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, who is known for his opposition to measures to fight Russian influence in the country. In France, where the far right party Rassemblement National is in a strong position to win a majority at the National Assembly on 7 July, an article details potential conflicts between Marine Le Pen’s movement and President Macron on foreign politics, especially regarding support for Ukraine.

An article from Germany analyses the impact of the launch of a new app by Ukrainian authorities to recruit soldiers abroad, calling it "a means of exerting pressure" on Ukrainian men in foreign countries to return home. Also, an Italian village is mobilising to prevent Ukrainian orphans from going back to their country at war.

At the same time, many Ukrainians living at the frontline are refusing to leave their houses, even if the buildings have been damaged by Russian shelling, and their neighbours have fled. What is their motivation to stay? An article from the Ukrainian media Reporters gives ten reasons why.

Have a good read.

Sarah-Lou Lepers
Editor of this week's edition

Over the last few days the Russian army has become significantly more active near Toretsk in the Donetsk region. They have increased the number of missile and air strikes, causing destruction to towns. In the rural settlement New York (Ukrainian: Нью-Йорк), a recent report shows devastating footage of the bodies of a grandmother and a grandson left in the streets. Both were killed by drone. The ambulance refused to collect their bodies, as it did not want to risk a missile attack if no one could be saved. A neighbour buried the victims in a nearby yard.

Stories of people living and dying in villages and towns just a few kilometres from the frontline have often appeared in the Ukrainian media, which raises the question among readers: why do they stay in places like these? In a piece, translated by n-ost this week, war correspondent Nataliia Nahorna states that rational arguments are not always applicable. She cites different conversations with civilians and the Ukrainian military, whom she met during the Russo-Ukrainian war, and suggests at least ten reasons why people tend to stick to their homes under the threat of occupation, torture or death.

Nahorna recalls a conversation with a Danish journalist who filmed the war in Syria before coming to Ukraine. He said to her:

"Just imagine, people's houses [in Syria] were destroyed, with one wall left; they got out a table from the debris and had lunch on it. I asked them why they returned, and they said it was their home. I argued there was no house, just a wall, but they would show me a door and a window still intact. I said: ‘But you are alone here!’ And they persuaded me that their neighbours would return soon and they would all live as before. And, imagine, they told me all that as if it was normal. I didn't publish that account. Because in Denmark, people would think I had filmed someone who was crazy."

This piece was originally published by Reporters, an online and print publication which specialises in long-form reportage from the ground.

Translated by Olesia Storozhuk.

Hungary

Zelensky-Orbán meeting: the beginning of the road to better relations?

Prime minister Viktor Orbán visited Kyiv for the first time since the outbreak of the full-scale war in 2022, and met Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky on 2 July. Orbán is one of the few leaders who has failed to so far make this trip. "The meeting may have been prompted in part by Orbán's isolation from potential allies in the EU due to his policy on Ukraine," Telex explains, "as well as Hungary's six-month presidency of the EU, for which to be successfully completed, he needs to improve his image in the EU, as he is currently seen as mostly pro-Russian." (Telex English)  

Viktor Mikita, the governor of the western Ukrainian region of Transcarpathia, which neighbours Hungary, expressed his optimism after the meeting. "It is very important that both sides now use positive rhetoric. We have already achieved so much that there is trust between the two parties," he said in an interview. (Hvg)  

Viktor Orbán’s visit is an "encouraging sign", says analyst András Rácz, an expert on foreign and security policy. In his opinion, the fact that Orbán did not take along his foreign minister Péter Szijjártó - who is known to have good relations with Moscow - could be a sign of his willingness to settle the relations. (Magyar Hang) On the day of the Zelensky-Orbán meeting, Szijjártó had a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, according to a statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry. They stressed that, "bilateral relations are steadily developing in a spirit of healthy pragmatism and mutual benefit." (444.hu)

The Hungarian news site 444.hu is proud to find itself on a list of news outlets prohibited in Russia for its coverage of the war in Ukraine. "It's like a wall of glory," comments 444.hu. According to the portal’s information, the EU planned to issue a joint statement condemning the Russian ban on media, but the Hungarian government has blocked this initiative. (444.hu)

Spain

A summer break from the war 

Spain’s economy minister travelled to Kyiv on June 26 with representatives from 23 Spanish companies to explore opportunities for collaboration beyond the military industry. Key sectors such as transport, energy, infrastructure and health were highlighted. During the trip, they also met with Ukrainian business leaders to "establish local contacts" and collaborate on "future reconstruction projects". Since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, Spain has become Ukraine's eighth-largest importer, and aims now to increase its exports to Ukraine. (La Vanguardia)

A charitable initiative that started in 1995 to help and protect children after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster has now become a refuge for minors from the war. This week, 108 Ukrainian children arrived in Spain to spend their summer away from the Russian invasion. Kids will be hosted by families from the Basque Country and Navarre, two northern regions, thanks to the efforts of the NGO Chernobyl Elkartea, which has been organising two-month stays in Spain for 30 years. (Onda Cero)

Spanish troops assumed command from the Czech Republic's military to lead a NATO mission in Slovakia on 1 July. This marks the first time Spain has led a battlegroup since the mission's inception in the country, and has deployed 800 soldiers to Ukraine’s neighbour. This deployment is part of broader NATO efforts on its eastern front to deter Russian aggression in Europe. Spain also maintains a presence in Latvia, Lithuania and Romania. In September, Spain will send a Nassams anti-aircraft battery and 100 soldiers to Estonia. (El Mundo)

Bulgaria

New Orthodox head has pro-Russian sympathies

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church has chosen as its new patriarch the Metropolitan of Vidin, Danail, who has expressed positions close to those of Moscow in recent years. Danail, elected on 30 June, protested in September 2023 against the closure of the Russian church in Sofia. In a letter to his faithful in November 2022, the new patriarch denounced the "fomenting of hatred towards one of the parties to the conflict [in Ukraine], presented as the sole unprovoked aggressor", with clear reference to Russia. Danail also spoke out against the decision by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (the spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church) to recognise the autonomy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, a decision opposed by the Russian branch of the church. (Svobodna Evropa)

The Bulgarian, Turkish and Romanian navies began a joint mine-clearing operation in the waters of the Black Sea on 1 July. The initiative, led by Turkey, aims to clear the maritime corridors through which Ukraine exports its products - especially grain - despite continued Russian attacks on Ukrainian ports and maritime infrastructure. Even though Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey are all NATO member countries, the mine clearance operations will take place outside the structures of the North Atlantic Alliance, to avoid increasing tensions with Russia. (Bloomberg Bulgaria)

The Sofia government is considering inviting Ukrainian minors affected by the Russian full-invasion of Ukraine to spend part of their summer holidays in Bulgarian sea resorts. This move was announced by the minister of social policies Ivaylo Ivanov, during a meeting with the Ukrainian ambassador to Bulgaria. The minister reiterated the effort to protect Ukrainian minors who are now refugees in Bulgaria and their families in terms of social assistance, integrating handicapped people and securing job placements for Ukrainians. (BTA)

France

Kremlin has become "one of the worst threats ever"

A cohabitation between the centrist President Emmanuel Macron (Ensemble) and the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) First Minister would be the first time that two heads of the executive will have profound differences on foreign policy. The RN has a history of positions against NATO, the EU and the euro, although these have since been revised, and are now obscure. The Russian war in Ukraine is a case in point. RN is historically close to Moscow, and has only paid lip service to supporting Ukraine since 2022, whereas the French President has consistently taken a firm line in support of Kyiv. These opposing stances could quickly become sources of conflict at a state level. (Les Echos)

Russia has been exploiting the crises in France for months by spreading disinformation to divide society, says an article by the weekly Le Nouvel Obs. The report mentions contentious issues such as bedbugs, a farm crisis, and riots in the suburbs which Russia uses to create conflict. "We are facing one of the worst threats ever," says historian David Colon, in the context of France supporting Ukraine. "Foreign interference threatens not only national cohesion and the defence of our country, but also the very future of our political system and our freedom," he adds. For this specialist in propaganda issues, the Kremlin is waging "a permanent informational war against democracies that it perceives as threats to the survival of its autocratic regime". (Nouvel Obs)

The number of persons under surveillance in France has reached record levels in 2023, according to a new report by the National Commission for the Supervision of Intelligence Techniques (NCSIT), says Le Figaro. Drug trafficking is an explanation, but also foreign interference, and especially spies from Russia. "Some of those [spies] who were administratively known [by French authorities] have certainly left [since the start of full-scale invasion of Ukraine], but the services are now looking elsewhere," warns the NCSIT. For example, foreign journalists suspected of being "in the pay of authoritarian powers" could be in the crosshairs. (Le Figaro)

Germany 

Military economist anticipates Russia’s defeat

"Time is running out against Russia," according to military economist Marcus Keupp, in an interview with FAZ. Keupp provides a rational estimation of Russia's chances in the war against Ukraine using "open-source intelligence" from Ukrainian, Russian and external sources, which allows real-time war analysis through photos, videos and data from frontline reports and GPS imagery. Keupp has calculated Russia's tank losses: "Russia can build between 300 and 500 new tanks a year. But [...] lose four a day," meaning sustaining the war effort becomes infeasible and can be expected to end by late 2025 to mid-2027. For that to happen, Ukraine has to continue receiving foreign aid. (FAZ)

Obstacles to Ukraine's path to EU membership are discussed by Nicolas Freund, political editor at Süddeutsche. With "the fight against bribery, corruption and fraud making little progress," compounded by a weak economy and ongoing war, meeting the EU requirements remains "ambitious", he argues. Despite President Volodymyr Zelensky's persistent efforts and support from many east European countries, Germany and France "remain sceptical," given that "more than 100,000 pages of EU laws need to be transposed into national Ukrainian law," making EU membership "hardly feasible" before 2030. (SZ)

With Ukraine's rising demand for more soldiers, a new app intends to ease the recruitment of men of fighting age from abroad, including Ukrainians living in Germany. However, Tagesschau describes the "Reserve+" app as "a means of exerting pressure” on such citizens. To receive new documents from their embassy, Ukrainians will need to download this app. "Men between the ages of 18 and 60 can only use consular services if they have a military registration document," a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian embassy in Berlin told ARD studio. While foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said "he hoped that other governments would share Ukraine's view". (tagesschau)

Italy

Dispatch of a Samp-T battery to Kyiv moves ever closer 

Italian minister of defence Guido Crosetto reported details about the country’s ninth aid package to Ukraine to a parliamentary committee on 27 June, before its final publication. The contents of this package, like previous ones, is classified, but it’s in the public domain that Italy will send a defensive missile launcher, the Samp-T battery, to Kyiv. Formiche outlines how minister of foreign affairs Antonio Tajani, before the Foreign Affairs parliamentary committee, highlighted the importance of bolstering Ukraine’s defensive capabilities, but was opposed to providing long-range missiles that could target Russian territory, as well as sending western troops to Ukraine. (Formiche)

63 Ukrainian orphans who had been hosted by several villages in the northern valley Imagna, in the province of Bergamo, will have to return to their country by the next school year, Ukrainian authorities demand. But the families hosting the kids have launched a petition against their repatriation, while the war is ongoing. They argue that Kyiv’s move undermines two and a half years of community efforts to integrate the children and express concerns about the inadequate conditions in the designated centres which will house the minors. The decision will have to be made by a Juvenile Court on the basis of safety assurances given by the Ukrainian consulate. (Il Corriere)

Many Ukrainians in Kharkiv have a recurring nightmare: air raid sirens that wake them up, and then a failure to understand if the sound was real or not. Either way, they are ready to rush to the bunkers for safety. Il Foglio reports about Bohdan Liashenko, a child psychologist expert, who works with people living in liberated areas, like Balakliya and Tsyrkuny. Children and some adults present symptoms such as aggression, insomnia, avoidance of strangers and dissociation, have stopped dreaming for over two years and have started bedwetting. A study reveals that half of Ukrainians suffer from PTSD. (Il Foglio)

The Europe-Ukraine Desk curated this newsletter. This week's edition has been composed by our team all over Europe: Marika Ikonomu, Kornelia Kiss, Katarina Kukla, Sarah Lou Lepers, Oksana Mamchenkova, Francesco Martino, Antonina Rybka and Fermin Torrano.
Michael Bird was our proofreader. 

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