Lavrov widens Russia's stated war aims

What did Russia say it wanted from the war on 20 July 2022? According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, its military goals were no longer limited to the Donbas region. He said they now also covered the Kherson region, the Zaporizhzhia region and a number of other territories.

The statement came as Russia was building an administrative presence in occupied areas. On 18 July 2022, Russia announced Anton Koltsov, former Prime Minister of Vologda Oblast, as the new Prime Minister in the Zaporizhzhia Military-Civilian Administration. His appointment probably took place some days earlier.

Sanctions tighten

On the same day, the European Union banned imports of gold from Russia and froze the assets of Sberbank. Both steps were part of the wider set of international sanctions imposed during the war.

Fighting in Donetsk Oblast

On the front line, Russian shelling killed six civilians in Toretsk, Donetsk Oblast, on 18 July 2022. Ukraine said at the time that Russia appeared to be preparing a new ground offensive near Sloviansk.

Shake-up in Kyiv

Also on 18 July 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova and Ivan Bakanov, the top security official of the Security Service of Ukraine. More than 60 officials from the agencies were alleged to be working with Russia. In addition, 651 cases of alleged treason and collaboration were opened against prosecutorial and law enforcement officials.

Taken together, the reports from 18 to 20 July 2022 show a war being fought on several levels: shelling and preparations for offensives in Donetsk Oblast, Russian efforts to set up administrations in occupied territory, new economic pressure from the EU, and a purge of security and prosecution leadership in Kyiv. Lavrov's remarks on 20 July 2022 placed Kherson and Zaporizhzhia explicitly among the territories Moscow named as objectives.