Key Takeaways from the ISW:
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov rejected the peace conditions recently proposed by Ukraine and its European partners on June 7, demonstrating the Kremlin’s continued disinterest in peace proposals that do not accept Russian demands for Ukraine’s capitulation.
- Lavrov reiterated that the Kremlin’s unchanged negotiating position remains based on Russia’s maximalist demands. Lavrov also asserted that Russia seeks to fulfill alleged agreements achieved during the August 2025 US-Russia Alaska Summit, despite the absence of any official documentation of any agreement achieved at the summit.
- Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov acknowledged the Ukrainian June 18 strikes on Moscow City and started to set information conditions to continue and intensify strike packages against Ukraine.
- The Russian Central Bank reduced its key interest rate to 14.25 percent as the bank’s leadership continues to advocate for a more cautious monetary policy.
- The reduction of the key interest rate amidst the Russian Central Bank’s leadership’s push for a more cautious monetary policy may indicate that the Kremlin is eroding the independence of the Russian Central Bank.
- Ukraine’s intermediate- and long-range strike campaign against Russian fuel infrastructure continues to strain gasoline supplies. Russian authorities continue to impose fuel rationing in Russia and occupied southern Ukraine while some authorities deny that Russia is facing fuel supply shortages.
- Ukrainian forces recently advanced in the Hulyaipole direction.
- Russian forces launched 90 drones against Ukraine on the night of June 18 to 19.
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