From: Transform Ukraine By Douglas Landro / July 17, 2025
As US Senators Condemn State Department Layoffs of Russia Experts, Ukraine’s Intelligence Eliminates Drone Crews While Parliament Reshapes Government Amid Escalating Russian Terror
Summary of the Day – July 16, 2025
The mechanisms of modern warfare revealed their dual nature on July 16, as institutional knowledge was systematically dismantled in Washington while tactical innovation flourished on Ukrainian battlefields. US senators erupted in fury over State Department layoffs that eliminated experienced Russia and Ukraine analysts just as Moscow intensified its terror campaign with 400 overnight drones. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s parliament voted to dismiss Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal’s government, setting the stage for a major cabinet reshuffle that could see the longtime premier become defense minister. Across the war zone, Ukrainian intelligence operatives eliminated Russian drone crews in occupied territory while civilians in multiple regions faced the latest wave of Russian bombardment, underscoring the deadly contradiction between diplomatic retreat and military necessity.
Institutional Vandalism: America Guts Its Russia Expertise as War Intensifies
Democratic senators unleashed withering criticism of the State Department during a Foreign Relations Committee hearing, condemning recent mass layoffs that eliminated seasoned intelligence analysts specializing in Russia and Ukraine. The controversy stems from a “reduction in force” that gutted the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), the department’s intelligence arm responsible for guiding US diplomacy.
Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) questioned the administration’s priorities, highlighting the abrupt termination of personnel actively engaged in countering Russian propaganda and investigating war crimes in Ukraine. “Promoting Russian propaganda is not a value that our State Department should be promoting,” Merkley declared. “Our value is now that we don’t care about war crimes? I don’t think that’s an American position.”
Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) lamented the loss of approximately 1,300 professionals, specifically “intelligence analysts with decades of experience on Russia and Ukraine.” Coons described the reorganization as “sloppy, rushed,” emphasizing that it has “cost us decades of relevant, critical experience.”
Voice of Ukraine 