“It is a great honor and at the same time an extraordinary responsibility for me to lead the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in a difficult time for our country,” Hennadii Shapovalov said in a statement.

Russian forces recently infiltrated a small settlement, establishing a foothold within one of the local buildings. This posed a significant threat to the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) positions and risked the entire settlement falling into Russian hands.

The situation in Zaporizhzhia saw Ukrainian Defense Forces compelled to withdraw from a position due to the overwhelming strength of Russian forces. However, reinforcements were soon deployed, and Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive to reclaim the village from Russian troops. reports the Special Operations Forces (SSO).

As reported by SSO fighters, the frequency of Russian assault attempts escalated, increasing fears of losing critical positions and the settlement itself, with the Russians breaching village boundaries: “Our allies retreated, and the adversaries began moving into the village while exerting pressure on our infantry.”

Ukrainian forces were tasked with holding the line, even as they maneuvered in an armored vehicle—compromised by a roadside mine strike—before entering the settlement. Russian troops had meanwhile fortified within a building where Ukrainian defenders began targeting them. SSO drivers initially engaged the Russiana with machine gun fire before supporting allied infantry deployment to the contested positions.

“We transported infantry throughout the day and evacuated the injured and concussed,” one soldier recounted.

Thanks to well-executed strategic actions, the mission was completed without Ukrainian casualties, maintaining control over the village and safely evacuating the wounded.

As of today, the Pokrovsk front remains one of the hottest battle zones on the front line. On July 21, reports emerged of Russian troops advancing towards the village of Zvereve, which borders the outskirts of Pokrovsk city. Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces have moved closer to Pokrovsk from the settlements of Peshchane and Shevchenko, creating a "gray zone" in Zverev. This is evidenced by updated cartographic data from DeepState.

The direction of the Russian forces' offensive suggests they are advancing through the lowlands towards Zvereve, moving in the direction of two spoil heaps. While the adversary finds itself in a disadvantageous position, the area south of Zelenivka also borders Pokrovsk. This higher ground could potentially be used to establish firing positions targeting Pokrovsk.

Despite being marked as a "gray zone" on maps, there have been reports from Ukrainian military sources about Russian sabotage groups' attempts to infiltrate this section of the front line. However, it remains unclear whether the presence of the "gray zone" is linked to the actions of Russian saboteurs on this front. On July 20, the press service of Operational Groupp "Donetsk" reported that small groups of Russian assault forces attempted to infiltrate the city only to be eliminated before reaching their objective.

The situation remains under full control, as Russian attempts to penetrate the city end in failures, with sabotage groups being neutralized at the approaches to Pokrovske.

On the northern flank of the Pokrovsk front, the Russians have amassed more troops and resources. According to Viktor Tregubov, spokesperson for the Operational Group "Khortitsa," the Russians are attempting to push towards Kostiantynivka and potentially flank Pokrovsk from the sides through Myrnohrad, posing the risk of creating a semi-encirclement on a large section of the Pokrovsk front.

This analysis is corroborated by international sources as well. French OSINT analyst Clément Molino suggests that the most significant threat to Ukrainian defense is the Russian attempts to seize control of Pokrovske's supply routes. This involves taking control of the settlements of Udachne and Rodynske, which would allow the enemy to sever the logistics of the garrison defending the city.

Military analyst Oleksii Hetman commented on the situation, asserting that despite Russian propaganda's claims of a "main assault on Pokrovsk," Russian forces have not achieved either an operational or tactical encirclement of the city.

Hetman has also voiced skepticism over the choice of Pokrovske as the main target for advancement. In his view, from a military standpoint, an offensive on Kostiantynivka with its vital railway line would make more sense.

Due to Russia’s push on the eastern front, the Pokrovsk direction is facing a challenging situation. Ukrainian troops report that the Russians are advancing on a 50-kilometer section and threatening to cut off two critical logistic roads important for Ukrainian defense efforts.

“In the morning, after briefings from military and interior officials, I met with the foreign minister and our (Presidential) Office team. We finalized the long process of selecting ambassadorial candidates,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram.

The body of 61-year-old Ihor Hrushevskyi, a former senior officer in Ukraine’s Department for Combating Organized Crime, was discovered floating face down in the swimming pool of the Cala Alta residential complex in Villajoyosa.

“This is the largest such plant in the world and the most secret,” Timur Shagivaliev, CEO of the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, said.

The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched 450 aerial threats overnight, including 426 Shahed drones and various types of missiles, including Kinzhal, Kalibr, and Kh-101.

As London pushes a “50-day drive” to support Ukraine, the U.K. and Germany are set to pledge new air defense systems to Kyiv, media reported on July 20.

Explosions were heard in Kyiv, and a fire was reported in the city amid a Russian drone attack overnight on July 21.

Amid reported Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia, a fire broke out at a train station in the village of Kamenolomni in Rostov Oblast overnight July 21 as Moscow faced drones for the fifth straight night, Mayor Sergey Sobyanin reported.

Ukraine's largest music event, the Atlas Festival, took place in Kyiv over the weekend. This is the second time the festival has been held during Russia's full-scale invasion.

Once one of the biggest music festivals in Eastern and Central Europe, featuring many international acts, it was

Russian independent media outlet Mediazona, in collaboration with the BBC Russian service, has confirmed the identities of 119,154 Russian military personnel killed in Ukraine.

The publications' latest report covers the period of February 24, 2022 to July 17, 2025. Since it was last updated at the start of

It was recently revealed that the 21st Army Corps, which was formed within the Territorial Defense Forces in early 2025, has been transferred to the Ground Forces and is now…

Source

The 424th “Svarog” Battalion of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) published a video on July 20 showing Ukrainian drone operators successfully targeting and destroying an experimental “KOP-2” Russian electronic warfare system.