????Live: On last day of NATO summit, frustrated Zelensky hopes for strong commitments

Issued on: 12/07/2023 – 07:37Modified: 12/07/2023 – 07:45

00:37am: Russia’s Medvedev says NATO’s military aid to Ukraine brings World War III closer

Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy secretary of Russia’s powerful Security Council chaired by President Vladimir Putin, said late on Tuesday that the increase in military assistance to Ukraine by the NATO alliance brings World War III closer.

Commenting on the first day of the summit of the US-led alliance in Lithuania, where a number of countries pledged more weaponry and financial support, Medvedev said the aid would not deter Russia from achieving its goals in Ukraine.

“The completely crazy West could not come up with anything else … In fact, it’s a dead end. World War III is getting closer,” Medvedev wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

“What does all this mean for us? Everything is obvious. The special military operation will continue with the same goals.”

1:09:am Russia launches drone attack on Kyiv for second night in row

Russia launched a wave of drone attacks on Kyiv and its region a second night in row, with air defence systems engaged in repelling the strike, a Ukraine military official said.

“The air raid alert is on! Air defence systems engaged in the region on approach to Kyiv,” Serhiy Popko, head of the military administration for the Ukrainian capital said on the Telegram messaging app.

The Kyiv military administration urged on its Telegram channel that people stay in shelters until the raids are over.

Reuters witnesses in Kyiv heard blasts resembling the sound of air defence systems intercepting air objects.

1:52am: Ukraine, Russia report heavy fighting in east, south

Ukraine’s military on Tuesday reported heavy fighting in the east and southeast, the main theatres of its drive to recapture land seized by Russian invaders, saying its forces had repelled dozens of enemy attacks.

Russian accounts from the front line outlined clashes, including a successful defence of areas near the devastated city of Bakhmut, where Ukraine says its forces are recovering ground.

A spokesperson for Ukraine’s General Staff, Andriy Kovaliov, said Ukrainian troops had beaten back a Russian advance backed by artillery strikes near two towns north of Bakhmut – captured by Russian mercenary forces in late May.

The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces had repelled nine attempted Ukrainian advances in eastern Donetsk region, including one drive near Kliishchivka.

10:13pm: Biden, Erdogan discuss transfer of F-16s to Turkey, Ukraine priorities during meeting

US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed defence and economic priorities during a meeting on Tuesday, the White House said, a day after Ankara backed Sweden joining the NATO military alliance.

The Biden administration will move ahead with the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey in consultation with Congress, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said earlier.

“They also discussed regional issues of shared interest, including their enduring support for Ukraine and the importance of preserving stability in the Aegean,” the White House said in a statement after their meeting.

Key developments from Tuesday, July 11:

NATO leaders meeting in Vilnius agreed that Ukraine’s future lies within the alliance but stopped short of handing Kyiv the invitation or timetable for accession that the country has been seeking.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky described the lack of a time frame as “absurd”.

Russia, meanwhile, again warned against an expansion of the alliance, and said that moving NATO infrastructure towards Russia’s borders would be a “mistake”.

France on Tuesday also began delivering long-range SCALP cruise missiles to Ukraine which will be integrated into non-Western warplanes. The Kremlin warned the move will have “consequences for the Ukrainian side”.

Read yesterday’s live blog to see how all the day’s events unfolded.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)