Category: War in Ukraine

Successful tests of a new Ukrainian missile, dubbed Ruta (Rue), are underway, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Dec. 10.

Speaking at the Borys Paton National Prize presentation, Zelensky provided no additional details about the missile’s characteristics.

The president highlighted Ukraine’s progress in missile and drone development, noting that the Palianytsia, a lightweight missile-drone hybrid, has entered mass production, while the Peklo (Hell) hybrid has already been successfully deployed in combat.

Zelensky confirmed on Dec. 6 that the first batch of Peklo had been delivered to Ukraine's Armed Forces.

In August, Zelensky announced that Ukraine had also tested its first home-grown ballistic missile.

These advancements reflect the rapid growth of Ukraine's missile program since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

While Ukraine continues to develop indigenous missile capabilities, Western partners have only recently approved the use of foreign-made missiles for strikes on Russia’s Kursk Oblast.

70% of Ukrainians support ‘West German’ model for NATO accession, survey showsA key difference is that the invitation would encompass the entire Ukraine, but the alliance’s defensive “umbrella” would extend to the occupied territories only after their future liberation.The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek

Energy Minister Galushchenko initiated an emergency meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors due to the Russian drone attack on the mission's vehicle. The meeting will be held on December 12 in Vienna.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko has initiated an emergency meeting of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency in connection with the Russian drone attack on the IAEA mission vehicle. He announced this on Facebook, UNN reports.

Details

Galushchenko noted that the meeting will be held on December 12 in Vienna.

The attack by a Russian UAV on the IAEA mission vehicle is yet another crime and manifestation of Russia's unprecedented cynicism. The enemy deliberately uses its terrorist methods and intimidation

– the Minister noted.

He also emphasized that the international community must respond decisively to the actions of the aggressor country, Russia, against the Ukrainian energy sector.

Recall

In Zaporizhzhia region, a Russian FPV drone attacked an IAEA convoy, damaging one of the vehicles. President Zelensky called on international partners to respond decisively to the incident.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced on Dec. 10 that it will provide $20 billion in loan assistance to Ukraine, marking its contribution to a broader $50 billion initiative supported by G7 countries.

The loan will be repaid using proceeds from frozen Russian assets.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen emphasized the significance of the funding, stating, “The $50 billion collectively being provided by the G7 through this initiative will help ensure Ukraine has the resources it needs to sustain emergency services, hospitals, and other foundations of its brave resistance.”

The funds will be channeled to Ukraine through the World Bank’s Facilitation of Resources to Invest in Strengthening Ukraine Financial Intermediary Fund (F.O.R.T.I.S. Ukraine FIF), ensuring immediate availability for critical needs.

The U.S. contributed $20 billion of the total loan, matched by European Union countries, including France, Germany, and Italy, which will provide $19.4 billion together.

Additional contributions include $3.7 billion from Canada, $3.07 billion from Japan, and $2.9 billion from the United Kingdom.

While Western countries have frozen $300 billion in Russian assets, only the annual income generated — approximately $3.2 billion — is accessible.

These proceeds will back the $50-billion loan, with the majority of the frozen assets located in Europe.

Speaking at the G7 summit in June, President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a mechanism to fully confiscate the frozen Russian funds, highlighting their potential to bolster Ukraine’s long-term recovery.

According to October reports, the G7 plans to keep these Russian assets immobilized even after the war ends.

70% of Ukrainians support ‘West German’ model for NATO accession, survey showsA key difference is that the invitation would encompass the entire Ukraine, but the alliance’s defensive “umbrella” would extend to the occupied territories only after their future liberation.The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek

In Zaporizhzhia, rescuers rescued two women from the rubble of a destroyed building after they called 101. The strike on the private clinic killed 5 people and injured 19, and rescue operations are ongoing.

In Zaporizhzhia, rescuers pulled two women from the rubble of a destroyed building who had called the 101 line. This was reported by the State Emergency Service of Zaporizhzhia, according to UNN.

Details

During the search and rescue operations, two women called the 101 Rescue Service Line, who reported that they were under the rubble of the destroyed building.

During the conversation, rescuers professionally found out the details in order to determine their exact location.

Having received important information, emergency workers with the help of special equipment released the victims. For more than seven hours, the women were under the rubble, waiting for help. Thanks to the well-coordinated work of rescuers, they were removed from the trap and handed over to doctors. After being examined by ambulance doctors, both women were hospitalized in a medical facility,

– the statement said.

addition

As of 22: 30, as a result of the impact on a private clinic , 4 people were killed, 19 people were injured, including 1 child. Unfortunately, one victim died in hospital. Units of the State Emergency Service rescued 4 people.

Emergency rescue operations continue.

75 rescuers and 18 pieces of equipment were involved from the State Emergency Service.

Zelensky on the strike on Zaporizhzhia: we reiterate that air defense should save lives, not gather dust in storage basesDec 10 2024, 08:17 PM • 8442 views

The number of barges Russia has deployed in the Kerch Strait to protect the illegal Crimean Bridge against Ukrainian maritime drones has halved in a month, the Center of Journalistic Investigations reported on Dec. 10.

Satellite images from Nov. 8 showed 34 barges arranged in two rows near the shipping channel in the Kerch Strait, installed between July 27 and Aug. 8.

Recent Sentinel-2 satellite images from Dec. 8 reveal only 18 barges remaining between Tuzla Island and the Kerch Peninsula. The fate of the other 16 vessels is unclear.

On Sept. 30, it was reported that barriers intended to protect the bridge from attacks were washed ashore after a storm, with plastic and metal barrels connected by frames scattered on Kerch beaches.

The 19-kilometer-long Crimean Bridge, constructed following Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea in 2014 and completed in 2018, serves as a vital supply route for Russian forces.

The bridge has been targeted by Ukraine multiple times, suffering heavy damage in strikes in October 2022 and July 2023.

The Crimean bridge remains a focal point of the conflict and is also the subject of a legal dispute between Ukraine and Russia at the Permanent Court of Arbitration.

Confusion over Russian advances in Sumy Oblast, authorities deny border breachThe map changes showed Russian forces occupying 2 square kilometers (0,8 square miles) in Sumy and advancing in the Kursk Oblast. These developments are reflected as of December 10.The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy

As a result of an enemy attack on Zaporizhzhya, 4 people were killed and 20 others were wounded. 13 victims were hospitalized, among the wounded is a 5-year-old girl.

As a result of the strike on Zaporizhzhia, the death toll has risen to 4 people, and 20 people are currently known to be wounded. This was reported by the head of the Zaporizhzhya RMA Ivan Fedorov, UNN reports.

"Unfortunately, the number of deaths as a result of the enemy strike has increased. the Russians killed 4 people, " Fedorov said.

He also noted that the number of Russians wounded due to the strike on Zaporozhye has increased to 20.

"13 people are in the hospital, seven refused to be hospitalized, including a 5-year-old girl. The child was treated by doctors on the spot," the head of RMA added.

Recall

Earlier it was reportedthat the death toll as a result of the strike on Zaporozhye increased to 3 people , rescuers pulled the body out from under the rubble.

Doctors were able to resuscitateone of the victims, who was found dead during the search operation as a result of the strike on Zaporozhye.

Russia may have transferred MiG-29 and Su-27 fighter jets to North Korea in exchange for North Korean soldiers, Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, said on Dec. 8, according to Aviation Week Network.

Paparo also noted that North Korea likely seeks additional military capabilities from Russia, including ballistic missile technology, reentry vehicles, submarine technology, and air defense systems.

Aviation Week highlighted that the transfer of MiG-29s and Su-27s would significantly upgrade North Korea’s air force, which currently relies on aging Soviet-era aircraft.

Defense Express says North Korea possesses 18 MiG-29s, 34 Su-25s, and a variety of older MiG models, many of which may be non-operational.

According to the publication, the extent of Russia’s aircraft transfers will depend on its current inventory, which reportedly included 185 MiG-29 and Su-27 as of early 2024.

North Korea’s strengthening military ties with Russia have drawn international scrutiny. During a Nov. 30 meeting with a Russian defense delegation, Kim Jong Un reaffirmed North Korea’s "invariable support" for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

This cooperation has also included the deployment of North Korean soldiers.

The Ukrainian National Resistance Center reported that North Korean troops, numbering between 10,000 and 12,000, have been stationed at observation posts and checkpoints in Russia's Kursk Oblast.

Chinese exports to Russia decrease for first time in 4 months, Reuters reportsThe decrease of 10.5% compared to November 2023 marks the first drop since July, Reuters writes.The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek

The president said that 10-12 additional Patriot systems would be able to fully protect Ukraine's skies. He proposed to purchase them at the expense of frozen Russian assets worth 30 billion.

10-12 additional Patriot systems will ensure Ukraine's life and make the war meaningless for Putin, and they can be purchased at the expense of frozen Russian assets. This was stated by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, UNN reports.

"The main security guarantees for us today, if we are not talking about strategy, but about tactics, about what will now save lives, first of all for Ukrainians – and as you can see, they are hitting everyone, not just Ukrainians – these are certainly air defense systems. Everyone understands that 10-12 Patriot systems will additionally provide us with life for Ukraine and make the war meaningless for Putin. Because if our sky is completely protected, they have no advantage in the sky. No cockpit missiles – any ballistic missiles, etc. – will be able to hit the civilian infrastructure of Ukraine, nor the energy sector, nor our hospitals, schools, universities," Zelensky said.

He noted that he does not understand why partners cannot take funds from frozen Russian assets in order to purchase such systems for Ukraine.

"I really sometimes don't understand whether one system costs 1.5 billion rubles. Please take this money from Russian assets – 30 billion rubles. It will cost 30 billion rubles, but completely, finally, close our sky," Zelensky added.

Recall

Doctors were able to resuscitate one of the victims, who was found dead during the search operation as a result of the strike on Zaporozhye.

As a result of the strike on Zaporozhye, it is now known about 16 victims, they receive medical care. At least eight more people are under the rubble of the building destroyed as a result of the impact.

German Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz would closely coordinate the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine with the U.S. and European partners, he said in an interview with Bild on Dec. 9.

According to Merz, training the Ukrainian personnel for these missiles would take at least four months and would not be completed before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

"And that is why I advocate answering these questions together with the Americans. Not alone, not in Germany, but together with Europe and America," Merz told Bild during his visit to Kyiv.

Trump's return to the White House is causing concern among Kyiv's partners in Europe as the president-elect signaled a decrease in military support for Ukraine.

Merz, whose conservative CDU/CSU alliance is leading in the polls ahead of the February elections, arrived in Ukraine's capital for talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, promising a more decisive strategy on long-range strikes against Russia.

"We want your army to be capable of hitting military bases in Russia. Not the civilian population, not infrastructure, but the military targets from which your country is being attacked," Merz said.

Merz previously voiced support for providing Ukraine with the Taurus missiles, a step Chancellor Olaf Scholz refused to take, fearing it would draw Germany into war.

Talking to Bild, Merz nevertheless said that the Swedish-German cruise missiles with a range of 500 kilometers (310 miles) would not be a "miraculous" game-changer in the war.

The politician also stressed he agrees with Scholz that Germany must not become a party at war, but he pointed out that neither the U.K. nor the U.S. became belligerents when lifting restrictions on the weapons they provided.

Ukraine fields U.S. ATACMS and the SCALP/Storm Shadow missiles from France and the U.K., with Washington and London only recently permitting strikes within Russian territory.

German opposition leader vows Ukraine won’t fight one-handedDuring his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Friedrich Merz, the leading contender to become Germany’s next chancellor, condemned the German government’s hesitance to provide long-range weaponry like Taurus cruise missiles.The Kyiv IndependentOlena Goncharova

A Russian missile strike on Zaporizhzhia injured 14 people. Three of the dead were killed, a private clinic was hit.

As a result of the Russian strike on Zaporizhzhya, the number of victims increased to 14, said the head of Zaporizhzhya RMA Ivan Fedorov, reports UNN.

"… as of now, the number of victims has increased to 14 people," Fedorov said.

In addition, the head of the RMA showed what the center of Zaporozhye looks like after the Russian strike.

The number of wounded in Zaporizhzhia is growing due to the Russian strike: two doctors were injuredDec 10 2024, 02:20 PM • 7322 views

Earlier it was reported that as a result of a Russian missile strike on a private clinic in Zaporozhye, three people were killed from.