Monday’s Mini-Report, 7.6.26

Today’s edition of quick hits.

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* Russia’s latest offensive: “Explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, early on Monday, the eve of a NATO summit, as Russia mounted its second major attack on the city in days. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who is expected to attend the NATO summit, in Turkey, said in a social media post that 12 people had been killed in the attack and 64 others wounded, including two children.”

* In related news: “President Donald Trump, speaking to Russian leader Vladimir Putin by telephone for nearly 90 minutes, offered to help find a solution ⁠to the Ukraine war, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said in comments made public early on Sunday.”

* A closely watched NATO summit: “Fresh off a week of star-spangled celebrations of America’s 250th, President Donald Trump departs for Turkey on Monday to meet with fellow leaders of NATO. They hope he wouldn’t declare independence from them.”

* Hegseth isn’t fully in charge: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was planning to head to Brussels l ast month to deliver what would be a bombshell announcement in a meeting with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s top military chiefs. The U.S., he planned to say, was preparing additional cuts to its forces in Europe that would go beyond the canceled deployment of an armored brigade to Poland and the earlier withdrawal of an infantry brigade from Romania, people familiar with the matter said. But Hegseth’s proposal was nixed after it was shared with Marco Rubio — President Trump’s national-security adviser — and other senior officials, the people said.”