Tensions in the Black Sea region have intensified as Romania announced it is summoning the Russian ambassador after its military successfully intercepted a third drone in three days. Defense Minister Radu Miruță confirmed that a Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down the drone over the Black Sea just five minutes after it breached national airspace. Foreign Minister Oana Țoiu formally condemned the repeated incursions. President Nicușor Dan noted that an investigation identified a drone downed on Friday as a Shahed model, a type utilized by the Russian Federation in its ongoing aggression against Ukraine. Investigations into the drones intercepted on Saturday and Sunday remain ongoing.
Meanwhile, the international cargo vessel Golden Leo sank off the coast of Odesa on Sunday, one week after Ukrainian officials reported it was struck by Russian forces. The vessel, which had departed from the port of Chornomorsk with a load of corn on July 19, suffered an attack that claimed the lives of nine crew members, while eight others were successfully evacuated. The Russian defense ministry claimed on Sunday that its forces had targeted Ukrainian shipping and ports, alleging that the container terminal at Chornomorsk handled military cargoes.
Overnight into Sunday, the Ukrainian air force reported that Russia launched 136 drones and seven ballistic missiles. In Chernihiv, a drone strike on a supermarket resulted in two fatalities, including a nine-year-old child, and left 25 others wounded. In Kharkiv, Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported that a daytime drone attack killed one person and injured 16. Additionally, a glide bomb strike in Zaporizhzhia killed one person and wounded six, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov. In Kyiv, a missile attack ignited a fire on the seventh and eighth floors of an apartment building, leaving three people wounded, said Mayor Vitali Klitschko. In the Donetsk region, Naftogaz reported that two employees were killed in a Russian attack while attempting to assist residents following an earlier strike.
Russia reported its own casualties, stating that four people were killed in a Ukrainian drone strike in the Russian-occupied city of Horlivka. Furthermore, regional authorities in the Russian city of Belgorod reported that 12 people, including two children, were injured in a drone attack early Monday. Ukraine continues to deny that it targets civilians.
Amid these developments, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to meet UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham at a naval base where Ukrainian forces are currently training. This trip marks Burnham's first visitor as prime minister, highlighting the UK's ongoing support for Ukraine. Government statistics indicate that total UK assistance since February 2022 has reached £25bn, with £16bn allocated to military aid. The two leaders are expected to discuss collaborative projects, including the Stone Cloak electronic jammer system, which allows Ukrainian forces to neutralize Russian drones. The UK has shared the intellectual property for this technology, and it is slated to be integrated into new British weaponry, including cruise missiles.
Romania summons Russian ambassador after shooting down three drones; Zelenskyy to meet Andy Burnham in UK. What we know on day 1,615
Volodymyr Zelenskyy will become Andy Burnham’s first overseas visitor as prime minister, in a visit that Burnham said underlined Britain’s “unwavering” backing for Ukraine, Peter Walker writes. Less than two weeks after Keir Starmer travelled to Kyiv for the final foreign visit of his prime ministership, Zelenskyy will
