Ukrainian forces have recaptured some 50 percent of the territories initially occupied by Russian troops, according to statements made on Sunday by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
In an interview yesterday with CNN, Blinken warned that the counteroffensive was “tough” and would most likely last several more months. “These are still relatively early days of the counteroffensive,” he explained, adding that “it will not play out over the next week or two. We’re still looking, I think, at several months.”
While Ukraine has managed to reclaim certain villages in the south and territory surrounding the devastated city of Bakhmut in the east, a significant breakthrough against the heavily fortified Russian defense lines has not yet been achieved.
Last Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Aspen Security Forum there is a possibility of intensifying the tempo of Ukrainian counteroffensive operations in the near future.
Zelensky explained that the delay in these operations was partly attributed to the limited availability of military resources, including mine-clearing equipment.
Today is day 516 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Source: Polskie Radio, Reuters
A forest fire raging on the Greek island of Rhodes over the weekend has forced the evacuation of thousands of people, including many tourists.
The fire reportedly spread to the so-called tourist zone on Sunday morning when the wind changed, forcing thousands to evacuate, with local authorities transporting some 16,000 people by land and another 3,000 by sea to safer areas.
A spokesperson for the Greek police told reporters from AFP it is “the biggest fire evacuation ever in Greece.” Greek TV showed crowds of tourists walking down the road with their luggage as part of the evacuation, with thick smoke in the background.
A Polish tourist from Wejherowo told the Polish Press Agency (PAP) that evacuees from one hotel spent the night camped out in the conference room or sleeping on lawns and deckchairs by the pool as the current hotel had no additional spaces available.
Firefighters, supported by firefighting planes and reinforcements from Croatia, France, Slovakia, Turkey, and Poland, battled new fires over the weekend, which were fanned by extreme heat and wind gusts of up to nearly 50 km/h (30mph).
Greek authorities have warned of a very high risk of further fires in Rhodes and elsewhere across the country; temperatures of up to 45°C (113°F) were expected across Greece yesterday. Meteorologists warn that the current heatwave in Greece may last until the end of the month.
Source: PAP, Polskie Radio, Reuters
The Polish men’s volleyball team is celebrating after their 3-1 victory over the United States in the final of the Nations League at Ergo Arena in Gdańsk last night.
The Polish team made history on Sunday after winning their first-ever victory in the prestigious tournament, defeating last year’s runner-up and the favorite going into the finals last night.
The Poles started off strong in the first set (25:23), lost game point (24:26) in the second set, and then dominated (25:18) in the third and fourth sets to win the match.
The white-and-reds took third place at the VNL tournament in 2022 and were runners-up in 2021.
In the other VNL finals match, Japan defeated Italy 3-2 (25:18, 25:23, 17:25, 17:25, 15:9) to take the remaining spot on the podium.
Source: Radio Gdańsk, Polskie Radio, PAP, volleyballworld.com
This Atelier Theatre is celebrating its 30th year providing summer theatre performances in Sopot, including a weeklong set of performances and workshops focused on Jewish culture.
The 18th International Encounters with Jewish Culture festival kicked off last night in Sopot with a performance by Polish/Israeli singer Olga Avigail Mieleszczuk and the “Kol Ishe” Trio, featuring songs from the Jewish musical heritage of Ukraine.
The international festival continues all this week, with film screenings, dance performances, klezmer concerts, and workshops on the Hebrew and Yiddish languages.
The regular Summer Theatre program will return on August 3rd with “Bona,” a musical performance and jazz poem about Bona Sforza, the Renaissance Queen of Poland and wife of Zygmunt Stary.
The complete theatre program is available at http://teatratelier.pl/.
Source: Radio Gdańsk, teatratelier.pl
Weather
Today will start off sunny with clouds and a good chance of rain showers rolling in later in the afternoon, accompanied by winds coming from the southwest. Temperatures will be noticeably warmer than yesterday, with a daytime high of 25°C or 77°F, dropping to a low of 16°C or 61°F overnight. Slightly cooler weather is expected tomorrow, with an increasing chance of rain overnight and again in the afternoon.
Elizabeth Peck/aKa
