Description: Russian air forces targeted the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with more than 600 drones and 60 ballistic missiles which caused the deaths of more than 23 civilians and damaged the headquarters of the European Union in the city. The attacks drew strong criticism from European leaders with Ukraine’s President Zelensky emphasizing that Russia’s response to peace was missiles and drones once again. The Kremlin remained open to the idea of a leaders summit, however, Foreign Minister Lavrov has repeatedly stated that conditions for such meeting are not yet present under the current diplomatic circumstances and realities on the ground. EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen is set to meet leaders from the Baltic states in the upcoming period where she is expected to announce EU’s 19th package of Russian sanctions. President Zelensky has announced that foreign Ukrainian officials would be in Washington on 29 Aug to discuss military and economic aspects of the security guarantees for Ukraine.
Impact: Russia has continued its aerial warfare campaign and small-scale ground incursions in Ukraine, indicating no modifications or preparedness to engage diplomatically towards resolving the conflict. Ukraine and its western partners are pushing an unconstructive narrative of conceptualizing security guarantees despite Russia’s defiance and reluctance to engage in potential resolutions. Russia evidently remains committed towards enforcing its demands for the end of the war under its conditions which signals that despite substantial diplomatic overtures the conflict remains stagnant and unresolved for the time being. The US is still calculating over imposing sanctions which stipulates that backchannel negotiations are still taking place as Trump attempts to draw Putin closer to the negotiating table.