NATO leaders will approve a multi-year support package for Ukraine during the upcoming meeting in Vilnius on July 11-12, which will bring it closer to the alliance, the military bloc's chief said

☦️ Ukrainian Orthodox Church monks feel threatened by non-canonical OCU, Bishop told Sputnik

The Ukrainian authorities are not simply trying to drive the canonical UOC out of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra — their task is to transfer the Lavra to the schismatic OCU, the bishop added.

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Ukraine has officially applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Japanese media reports.

The issue will be discussed at a ministerial meeting of member countries in mid-July.

Currently, the trading agreement includes 11 countries - Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Japan, Mexico, Chile, and Peru. The United States withdrew from the agreement during the Trump administration.

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Moscow Region’s prosecutor to audit multinational candy manufacturer Mars for bankrolling Ukrainian army

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❗️Russian MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️In the Donetsk direction, Russian forces destroyed over 420 Ukrainian troops, three tanks, seven infantry fighting vehicles, one Polish Krab self-propelled howitzer, one D-20 howitzer, as well as several ammunition depots;

▪️In the South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Russian troops neutralized up to 200 Ukrainian soldiers, two infantry fighting vehicles, two armored fighting vehicles, two Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers, a UK-made AF-90 self-propelled artillery system, a Msta-B howitzer, as well as one ammunition depot;

▪️In the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces destroyed up to 25 Ukrainian troops, one D-20 howitzer, a Giatsint-B towed gun, one US-made M777 artillery system, and one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, the actions of a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group were thwarted. Russian forces neutralized up to 95 Ukrainian personnel, one tank, four infantry fighting vehicles, one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, and one D-30 howitzer;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 80 Ukrainian soldiers and two Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers;

▪️Russian air defenses shot down one Su-25 aircraft, 21 HIMARS and Uragan rockets, as well as 31 unmanned aerial vehicles in the DPR, LPR, and Kherson region.

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🇵🇰 Pakistan Muslims Rally Against Sweden's Quran-Burning Stunt

Organized by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on Imran Khan’s call, a protest demonstration against the desecration of Holy #Quran in 🇸🇪 Sweden took place at Mingora Nishat Chowk.

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🗣️ “Russia is out-producing the Collective West combined in terms of artillery, ammunition, drones, and even long range precision weapons like missiles,” former US Marine and geopolitical analyst Brian Berletic (@brianlovethailand) told the New Rules Podcast, commenting on why the Ukrainian counteroffensive was “doomed to fail” from the very beginning.

👉 The Ukrainian counteroffensive, the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius, the looming showdown between the US and China in Asia: You can find the full interview on Rumble or YouTube

🇦🇹 Austria opposes cluster munition supplies to Ukraine due to long-term dangers to civilians

🇩🇪 Earlier today, Germany announced that it was not possible to supply such ammunition as Berlin is a party to a convention that bans cluster munition.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that the alliance does not have a single position: individual countries make their own decisions on the matter.

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UK government plans to shake up sick note system to cut benefits bill

Downing Street hopes to expand the workforce through changes to the system of medical fitness notes issued by doctors.

Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government is considering changes to the 'fit note' system. 'Fit notes' were brought in the final months of the last Labour government of Gordon Brown in 2010, replacing the old sickness note system.

They give general practitioners (GPs, the UK's family doctors) have the option of signing off patients as either "not fit for work" or "may be fit for work" — meaning they can negotiate a gradual or supported return to the workplace with their employers.

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Russia's low-orbit satellite constellation to provide broadband internet

Russia is building its own constellation of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites that will start providing high-speed, low-latency internet to users from 2027, the Communications Ministry said Friday.

Three LEO satellites were launched in the Russian Far East as part of a pilot mission that will pave the way for Russia's own constellation of hundreds of LEO satellites delivering internet services to users in 75 countries. The current transmission speed is 12 Mbps and latency… is 41 milliseconds, the ministry said.

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French 'democracy' shows true colors by shutting down social media during riots

"The French government's actions show us that so-called Western democracies can and will shut down internet access. They will shut down free speech and free expression when they feel threatened because this sustained rebellion against the police, terror and racism in France is threatening the entire French establishment at this point," tech commentator Chris Garaffa told Sputnik.

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🌏The geography of in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership will expand if Ukraine is accepted into the union.

Look at #SputnikInfographic: looks as though continental drift has gone a bit too far if Ukraine is going to have a pacific coast...🤔

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NATO allies have pledged 500 million euros in support equipment for Ukraine, including fuel and medical supplies, to help the country meet its critical needs, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday.

He added that the alliance would also help Ukraine upgrade its defense sector to NATO standards.

Stoltenberg will meet with NATO leaders in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius from July 11-12 to discuss further support for Kiev.

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Poll: Americans are inclined towards a younger president

Nearly half of Americans think a president should be in his or her fifties, a recent Pew Research Center poll reveals, although 24 percent preferred a president in their sixties and 17 percent believed someone in their forties would be desirable.

The study further showed that only three percent of the respondents thought a president can be in his or her seventies or older, and another three percent believed someone in his or her thirties is best suited to the role.

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How could Ukraine become part of the Pacific?

Sputnik readers offer their suggestions 🤗

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⚡️ The US recognizes that cluster bombs put civilians at risk from unexploded ordnance and has therefore delayed in providing these to Kiev for as long as possible. Cluster munitions the US would provide to Ukraine have dud rates on more than 2.5 percent. The US consulted with allies about whether to provide Ukraine with cluster munitions and they understood Washington’s decision, the White House's National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan said.

⚡️ Ukraine will not join NATO coming out of Vilnius summit, Sullivan said

⚡️ Cluster bombs for Ukraine was a difficult decision: the US National Security Team unanimously recommended it, Biden decided to move forward, Sullivan said

⚡️ Pentagon confirms new drawdown package for Ukraine includes dual-purpose improved conventional munitions or cluster bombs

⚡️New US military aid for Ukraine includes $800 million worth of weapons from Defense Departament stocks, Blinken says

⚡️ Russia's response to the decision of the United States to provide cluster munitions to Ukraine will be very serious, Grigory Karasin, the head of the Russian upper house's foreign affairs committee, told Sputnik on Friday.