Ukraine: The Latest

Day 1,615.
After Russia sees another night of Ukrainian drone strikes on a Wildberries warehouse and oil refinery attacks, Francis examines Kyiv’s campaign to disrupt Putin’s logistics and wartime economy. He also looks at encouraging developments in Washington, where Presidents Zelensky and Trump met ahead of the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham, before Graham’s landmark bipartisan sanctions bill took a significant step forward in Congress. Then James Kilner has his regular Russia roundup, as rumours of a fresh mobilisation continue to circulate, before we explore the dramatic downfall of the powerful head of Russia’s international chess federation.

Contributors:
Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley on X.
James Kilner (Russia Analyst). @Jkjourno on X.
Malcolm Pein (Telegraph chess correspondent). @TelegraphChess on X.

Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan
Social Producer: Anita Blay
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles

NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE:
Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly after the release of the audio version. You will find it here: https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest

CONTENT REFERENCED:
Russia explores support for Wildberries after Ukrainian drone attacks, sources say (Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/russia-explores-support-wildberries-after-ukrainian-drone-attacks-sources-say-2026-07-28/

Laura Loomer says she called Trump from Ukraine, plans to brief president on visit (Kyiv Independent)
https://kyivindependent.com/laura-loomer-says-she-called-trump-from-ukraine-plans-to-brief-president-on-visit/

Kremlin Gambit: German FIDE presidential candidate Vadim Rosenstein continues to earn millions in Russia (Ukrainian Independent Information Agency of News, in Russian)
https://sport.unian.net/othersports/kandidat-v-prezidenty-fide-vadim-rozenshteyn-prodolzhaet-vesti-biznes-v-rossii-13451784.html

Russians Form Street Patrol to Shield Men From Forced Recruitment (Kyiv Post)
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/81265

World chess chief faces endgame after EU announces Russia war sanctions (BBC)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cewrk58k2k4o

No contact with political prisoner Andrei Trofimov since April (Memorial)
https://memopzk.org/en/news/no-contact-with-political-prisoner-andrei-trofimov-since-april/

EMAIL US:
Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Ukraine wipes out seventh Wildberries warehouse and major oil refinery
US senate advances key Russia sanctions bill
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Day 1,614.
As Ukraine strikes a target more than 1,300 kilometres from Kyiv, Francis and Alex Nichol assess the significance of President Zelensky’s visit to Washington for Lindsey Graham’s funeral and to meet with President Trump. It comes a day after Ukraine struck a tanker from Iran in the Caspian Sea, something the US president was asked about on Air Force One. Meanwhile, attention is focused on Congress as lawmakers prepare to decide the fate of the bipartisan sanctions bill, which would impose sweeping tariffs on countries continuing to buy Russian energy. Later, we take a deep dive into the Black Sea grain corridor, exploring why it’s returned to the centre of the war after recent attacks on merchant shipping, and what it means for global food security.

Contributors:
Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley on X.
Alex Nichol (Telegraph Journalist).

With thanks to Andrey Sizov, head of SovEcon grain consultancy (@sizov_andre on X).

Producer: Tom Steed
Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan
Social Producer: Anita Blay
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles

NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE:
Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly after the release of the audio version. You will find it here: https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Democrats ‘undermining US support for Ukraine’ (The Telegraph)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/27/democrat-opponents-sanctioning-russia-act-undermine-ukraine/

Life of a Ukrainian draft dodger (Antonia Langford for The Telegraph)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/28/ukraine-hunt-for-draft-dodgers-becomes-battle-on-the-street/

EU hesitates to target Irish plant accused of supplying Russia’s war industry (Financial Times)
https://www.ft.com/content/ef7ff634-b738-4975-91b5-2edffc51da68?syn-25a6b1a6=1

The Sizov Report
http://sizov.report

Wagner’s Remnants Are Running an Opioid Empire in the Center of Africa (Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/world/africa/russia-wagner-africa-opioid-trade-d015c4bc

EMAIL US:
Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:
Crimea 'without power' after deadly raids
Zelensky meets Trump in Washington ahead of Lindsey Graham funeral
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Day 1,613.
As Putin is forced to cancel his annual Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg for the second year in a row – forced to stand by an image of a submarine instead – we report on another major weekend on the battlefield for both Russia and Ukraine, including a strike by Kyiv on an Iranian-linked tanker in the Caspian Sea. Meanwhile Volodymyr Zelensky is in London to meet with new British PM Andy Burnham for the first time, as the Ukrainian president warns of a new mobilisation drive by Moscow amid mounting Russian losses. Then we hear from the WELT offices in Germany about their wargame that caused such a stir, NATO’s Secretary General had to respond.

Contributors:
Francis Dearnley (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @FrancisDearnley on X.
James Rothwell (Berlin Correspondent). @JamesERothwell on X.
With thanks to Caroline Drüten, international security correspondent at WELT.

Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan
Social Producer: Tom Steed
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles

NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE:
‘Ernstfall: What if Russia Attacks NATO? Inside a German Wargame’ (WELT Podcast):
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ernstfall-what-if-russia-attacks-nato-inside-a/id6785429115
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033GHuBrh6zwl1mq4TVeY6

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/21/new-missile-at-centre-of-anglo-german-golden-age-of-defence/

Fabrice Deprez’s Substack describing Kramatorsk:
https://eastradar.substack.com/p/the-long-war-60?triedRedirect=true

Kazakhstan’s Tokayev Urges Putin to Freeze Ukraine War (Kyiv Post)
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/81070

Kremlin Shrugs Off Reports of US-Ukraine Air Truce Plan, Says It’s ‘Too Early’ (Kyiv Post)
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/81124

EMAIL US:
Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:

‘Humiliated’ Putin poses with fake submarine after navy parade cancelled
Ukraine strikes Iranian tanker in Caspian Sea

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Day 1,610.
Today, as Ukraine expands its long-range strike campaign with fresh attacks on Russian logistics hubs and warehouses – including targets in St Petersburg – we examine the growing economic cost to Moscow as Kyiv intensifies its effort to disrupt supply chains and undermine Russia’s war machine. We also explore why American political commentator and Donald Trump ally Laura Loomer has dramatically reversed her position on Ukraine after years of amplifying pro-Kremlin narratives, and what that shift could signal for Republican support for Kyiv. And later, Dom brings you an exclusive interview with Ukraine’s new Veterans Minister, recorded during a visit to Mykolaiv earlier this year.

Contributors:
Adelie Pojzman-Pontay (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @Adeliepjz on X.
Alex Nichol (Telegraph Journalist).
Dominic Nicholls (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @DomNicholls on X.
With thanks to Vitali Kim, the new Veteran Affairs Minister of Ukraine, former frontline mayor of Mykolaiv.

Producer: Rachel Porter
Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: James England
Social Producer: Tom Steed
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles

NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE:
Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly after the release of the audio version. You will find it here: https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest

CONTENT REFERENCED:
Why Russia’s Amazon became Ukraine’s number one target (The Telegraph)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/24/why-russias-amazon-became-ukraines-number-one-target/

Inside Ukraine’s Kill Zone (Reuters):
https://www.reuters.com/graphics/UKRAINE-CRISIS/KILL-ZONE/znpnojmknvl/

EMAIL US:
Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:
St Petersburg burns as new ‘number one target’ revealed
Dom tours a frontline city with its mayor

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Day 1,609.
Today, after Mykhailo Drapatyi is appointed Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, we examine the reaction from Russian soldiers and military commentators as Kyiv reshapes its wartime leadership. We also report on Ukraine’s continuing campaign of long-range strikes, with fresh attacks on a key Russian logistics hub and another strategically important oil refinery as Kyiv seeks to weaken Moscow’s war machine far behind the front lines. Then we assess how Russia’s war against Ukraine is reshaping global grain exports and food prices, before unpacking the European Union’s latest sanctions against Vladimir Putin’s regime, finally agreed after weeks of difficult negotiations.

Contributors:
Adelie Pojzman-Pontay (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @Adeliepjz on X.
Alex Nichol (Telegraph Journalist).

Producer: Phil Atkins
Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan
Social Producer: Tom Steed
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles

NOW IN FULL VIDEO WITH MAPS & BATTLEFIELD FOOTAGE:
Every episode is now available on our YouTube channel shortly after the release of the audio version. You will find it here: https://www.youtube.com/@UkraineTheLatest

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Yesterday’s Ukraine: The Latest, offering a deep dive into Kyiv’s new commander-in-chief:
YouTube – https://youtu.be/xqBiyMPM4jo?si=p1rlhUOodgg781ck
Apple – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ukraines-legendary-new-commander-takes-charge-after/id1612424182?i=1000777916224
Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/episode/3CktsLADyTxmHVesqf6RxW?si=abe2835da3fc4782

Kremlin propagandist Xenia Fedorova escapes EU sanctions targeting Russian figures (Le Monde):
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/07/22/kremlin-propagandist-xenia-fedorova-escapes-eu-sanctions-targeting-russian-figures_6755722_4.html?srsltid=AfmBOopfQv9I8HMURwgR6Hkc7GNY7nqJuYDoS-YXXq1t3JMx29P71kMx

From the Shannon to Siberia: How alumina from a Limerick refinery enters Russia’s weapons supply chain (The Irish Times)
https://www.irishtimes.com/world/europe/2026/03/24/from-the-shannon-to-siberia-how-alumina-from-a-limerick-refinery-enters-russias-weapons-supply-chain/

For more on Caolan Robertson’s investigation into the Auginish aluminium plant, Ukraine: The Latest June 16th episode:
YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mimSeae4Nw&t=1492s
Apple podcast – https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/trump-tells-putin-to-make-a-deal-at-g7-revenge/id1612424182?i=1000772992491
Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/episode/2XXCl4A8oZ871GwjvdXowY

EMAIL US:
Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.

HIGHLIGHTS:

The European Union’s 21st sanction package
Interview with Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.