A so-far-unsubstantiated report that former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has died:
Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council (click to enlarge):
Ukraine PM Predicts EU Membership Within 10 Years
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Hroysman has predicted Ukraine will join the European Union within the next 10 years.
In an interview with a German newspaper published on July 1, Hroysman said Ukraine's Association Agreement with the EU will serve as a catalyst for reforms in Ukraine.
"We are going the European way and that means for us: freedom, human rights, and a strong economy," Hroysman told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
"We should bring our norms in compliance with EU norms. A lot has been already done, especially in battling corruption. For example, we have created a transparent public procurement system," he added.
Hroysman said his country still believed strongly in the bloc, despite Britain's recent vote to leave.
"I respect the right of a sovereign state to take such a decision," he said. "But I still think that achievements should be protected."
Based on reporting by AFP and Ukraine Today
Ukraine Soldier Killed In Fresh Fighting In East
One Ukrainian soldier has been killed and four wounded in attacks over the past 24 hours by Russia-backed separatists in the east of the country.
Speaking to reporters on July 1, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko did not disclose further details on the fresh casualties.
The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 9,300 people since April 2014 and NATO warned last week that the internationally monitored cease-fire there was barely holding.
Under the cease-fire agreement reached last year in Minsk, the Belarusian capital, both the separatists and Ukrainian government forces pledged to pull back heavy weaponry as well as take other steps toward a peace settlement.
In a statement on June 29, Ivan Simonovic, head of the UN Human Rights chief's office in New York, warned of a possible "reescalation of wide-scale hostilities if urgent action is not taken to separate sides and remove heavy weaponry."
Based on reporting by Interfax and AP
EU Extends Sanctions Against Russia
By RFE/RL
BRUSSELS -- The European Union has officially decided to extend its economic sanctions against Russia to January 31, 2017.
The decision to roll over the measures was made by EU ambassadors already last week, but Italy slowed down the confirmation process and insisted that the final decision be taken after the EU summit in Brussels on June 28-29.
The decision was finally taken by a so-called written procedure in which all the EU member states capitals had to approve the prolongation within a specific time frame that ended on July 1.
The decision will now be published in the EU official journal on July 2.
The sanctions, which hits Russia's energy and banking sector and also target specific Russian politicians, were first adopted by Brussels in June and July 2014 after Russia's forcible annexation of Crimea and its intervention in eastern Ukraine.