Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine

A Russian general who has not been seen publicly since the attempted mutiny by the Wagner Group is “resting” and “not available,” a defense official told local media.

Sergei Surovikin had been serving as commander-in-chief of Russia’s Aerospace Forces and was previously the country’s top commander in Ukraine.

Dubbed by some as “General Armageddon” for his brutal battlefield tactics, he was known to have close ties with Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of Wagner, a Russian private mercenary force. There are unconfirmed reports that Surovikin knew in advance about the uprising attempt by Prigozhin and his forces against the Russian government.

When Russian media outlet “Shot” asked retired general Andrei Kartapolov, a member of the country’s lower house of parliament, if he had seen Surovikin, he replied, “No. He is resting now. Not available,” before quickly walking away from the camera. The exchange was posted by the outlet to Telegram.

— Natasha Turak

Ukrainian parliament member Oleksiy Goncharenko on Twitter thanked British Defense Minister Ben Wallace, a day after the U.K. politician urged Kyiv to show more gratitude to invite further donations from Western politicians.

“I want to say that we are really grateful to @BWallaceMP for everything he has done for Ukraine. The United Kingdom has always supported us, they are one of our most important allies. They helped us with weapons (a lot of weapons) and provided humanitarian aid. Unfortunately, such words were said yesterday. But Ben Wallace did a lot for our country,” Goncharenko said.

The U.K. has been a steadfast supporter and aid supplier for Kyiv since Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine last year.

“Whether we like it or not, people want to see gratitude,” Reuters reported Wallace as saying on July 12, at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. His comments came against the backdrop of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s criticism that the U.S.-led military alliance had yet to extend Kyiv a membership invitation.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed what he called a “good result” from this week’s NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, pointing to security guarantees from the G7 countries and news weapons packages.

“For the first time since independence, we have formed a security foundation for Ukraine on its way to NATO,” Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter. “These are concrete security guarantees that are confirmed by the top 7 democracies in the world. Never before have we had such a security foundation, and this is the level of the G7. On this foundation, we will build a new, legally binding architecture of bilateral security treaties with the most powerful countries.”

The Ukrainian leader’s positive tone was a significant change from Tuesday, when he lashed out at NATO for not providing a timeline for Ukraine to join the alliance, calling it “absurd.” Leaders of NATO member states made clear that Ukraine has a future place in NATO, but that no action could be taken on this front while the country is still at war.

Zelenskyy on Wednesday accepted this, calling it “understandable” and expressing confidence that Ukraine would join the alliance when the war is over.

“Never before have the words “you are equal among equals” for Ukraine from other NATO members sounded truly meaningful,” his post read.

— Natasha Turak

Russia launched airstrikes against the Ukrainian capital Kyiv for the third consecutive night, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv city military administration, said in Google-translated comments on Telegram. Roughly a dozen Russian targets were destroyed.

“Tonight, a massive attack by Iranian drones took place,” a post by Popko said.

The offensive led to falling debris in five districts. One person was found dead at one of the affected regions, Podilsky, Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said on Thursday on Telegram, according to a Google translation. Popko separately reported a 19-year-old girl and a 23-year-old man were injured.

Russian troops deployed 20 Iranian-made Shahed drones in attacks from the northeastern and southeastern directions of Ukraine, the Ukrainian air force said on Telegram, according to a Google translation.

“All 20 attack drones were destroyed, mainly in the Kyiv region,” it reported.

Moscow resumed attacks against Kyiv at the start of the week, coinciding with the beginning of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, which focused on aid for Ukraine.

CNBC could not independently verify developments on the ground.

— Ruxandra Iordache

The Kremlin slammed developments from the NATO leader summit held in Lithuania’s capital saying the alliance has returned to “Cold War schemes.”

“Taking into account the identified challenges and threats to the security and interests of Russia, we will respond in a timely and appropriate manner using all means and methods at our disposal,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry wrote in a statement, according to a Google translation.

“In addition to the decisions already taken, we will continue to strengthen the military organization and the country’s defense system,” the statement added.

— Amanda Macias

President Joe Biden reaffirmed U.S. commitment to NATO and Ukraine following a two-day summit of the alliance’s leaders in Lithuania’s capital.

Biden, who faces re-election next year and has committed the lion’s share of security assistance for Ukraine, described support for Kyiv’s democracy as “the calling of our lifetime.”

The U.S. has secured a war chest worth more than $41 billion for Kyiv since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion last year.

“We did what we always do. The United States stepped up, NATO stepped up and our partners in the Indo-Pacific stepped up,” Biden said in an address in Vilnius. “We will not waver,” he said.

Read the full story here.

— Amanda Macias