The White House has devised a last-minute strategy to bolster Ukraine’s war efforts through significant military aid and sweeping new sanctions on Russia, according to a security briefing.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan committed to delivering hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of rockets, and hundreds of armoured vehicles by mid-January, during a meeting with Ukrainian presidential office head Andrii Yermak on Thursday.
The United States also plans to train Ukrainian troops outside the country and finalise $20bn in loans backed by frozen Russian assets, according to the briefing shared with the Guardian.
The strategy includes a final push of sanctions on Russia before US president-elect Donald Trump renters the White House. The move aims to weaken Russia’s war effort and enhance Ukraine’s leverage in future negotiations.
Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov has said his country would be “ready to use any means” so that Moscow does not suffer “strategic defeat” against Ukraine.
Mr Lavrov also said the West should abandon any notion that Russia had no “red lines” and laid out conditions for peace in Ukraine, during the interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson.
Key Points
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Top Biden aide pledges massive Ukraine military aid surge
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Russia’s Lavrov suggests using any means in war to avoid ‘strategic defeat’
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Russia’s autumn offensive cost over 50 soldiers per square km
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Russia reportedly keeping North Korean troops out of direct combat
In pictures: Russian strikes in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia and Kryvyi Rih kill 12
04:18 , Shahana Yasmin
Russia’s autumn offensive cost over 50 soldiers per square km
04:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian forces suffered about 53 casualties per square kilometre as they advanced in Ukraine in autumn 2024, according to an Institute for the Study of War (ISW) report.
From September to November 2024 Russian soldiers lost about 125,800 personnel as they captured approximately 2,356 square kilometres of territory including the Kursk Oblast, the report said.
Zelensky may meet Trump at Notre-Dame Cathedral reopening in Paris
03:45 , Shahana Yasmin
President Volodymyr Zelensky may meet US President-elect Donald Trump during his visit to Paris at the Notre-Dame Cathedral’s reopening, reported AFP citing an unnamed senior Ukrainian official.
“The Ukrainian president will attend celebrations to mark the restoration of Notre-Dame Cathedral. He will meet with President (Emmanuel) Macron. Other meetings are also possible, including with President-elect Donald Trump, who will also attend the event,” the source told AFP.
Around 50 heads of state and government are expected to attend the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral on Saturday, five years after the iconic cathedral was badly damaged by a fire.
Russian strikes kill 12, wound 40 in Ukraine’s southeast
03:30 , Shahana Yasmin
Russian attacks on the southeastern Ukrainian cities of Zaporizhzhia and Kryvyi Rih killed at least 12 and wounded over 40, according to regional officials.
A strike on a car repair shop in Zaporizhzhia killed 10, said the regional governor. Reuters reported that a local official said 24 were injured, including two children.
President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown Kryvyi Rih saw a missile attack on an administrative building that killed two people and injured at least 19, including a child.
Scholz says a joint Ukraine strategy can be found with Trump
03:15 , Shahana Yasmin
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said he is confident that he will be able to decide on a joint strategy for Ukraine with US President-elect Donald Trump after speaking with him on the phone, Scholz told the Funke group of newspapers, reported Reuters.
“I am confident that we can develop a joint strategy for Ukraine. My guiding principle remains that nothing can be decided without giving the Ukrainian people a say,” he told the paper, adding that he spoke with the future US president “in detail” and his team was in a direct exchange with Trump’s security advisers.
On Monday, Scholz announced new military aid for Ukraine during a visit to Kyiv, and said he had sent a message to Vladimir Putin saying Germany would stand by Ukraine.
Top Biden aide pledges massive Ukraine military aid surge
03:00 , Steffie Banatvala
The White House has devised a last-minute strategy to strengthen Ukraine’s war efforts through significant military aid and sweeping new sanctions on Russia, according to a security briefing shared with the Guardian.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, during a meeting with Ukrainian presidential office head Andrii Yermak on Thursday, committed to delivering hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of rockets, and hundreds of armoured vehicles by mid-January.
The United States also plans to train Ukrainian troops outside the country and finalise $20bn in loans backed by frozen Russian assets, according to the briefing.
The strategy includes a final push of sanctions on Russia before US president-elect Donald Trump renters the White House. The move aims to weaken Russia’s war effort and enhance Ukraine’s leverage in future negotiations.
Russia’s artillery advantage over Ukraine slashed, Western officials say
02:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia’s capacity to outpace Ukraine’s artillery barrages has reduced to just 1.5 Russian rounds for each Ukrainian shell fired, Western officials said.
Previously Russia has been able to launch at least five times as many rounds as Ukraine could, with ratios higher at times.
Anonymous Western officials said the narrowing gap was down to a “wide variety of factors”, including limitations on Russian production lines, disruptions to arms rail transportation, Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian and North Korean ammunition stockpiles inside Russia, and Western supplies bolstering Ukraine’s armoury.
But large numbers of Russian glide bombs may be compensating “to devastating effect” for the reduced artillery front, the Western officials warned.
EU’s failed sanctions package against Russia includes oil tankers
01:00 , Steffie Banatvala
A failed package of the latest EU sanctions against Russia included sanctions on tankers carrying Russian oil, as well as an extension for the Czech Republic to import Russian oil-based products coming mainly through Slovakia, diplomats said.
Two member states blocked the passage over a disagreement about extending the time given to European companies disinvesting from Russia, diplomats said. EU members will come back to the package later.
While the Czechs have said they were not looking for an extension allowing the import of Russian oil-based fuels, Slovakia has sought to keep the arrangement, which expired on Thursday, in place.
Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary gained exemptions to sanctions from an EU ban on Russian oil imports because of lack of alternative supply.
But the Czech Republic has been upgrading a pipeline from Italy to Germany to transport more oil that way and wean itself completely off Russian crude by the second half of 2025.
Putin says new Oreshnik hypersonic missile could be deployed in Belarus
00:00 , Steffie Banatvala
President Vladimir Putin said that Russia could deploy its new Oreshnik intermediate-range hypersonic missile on the territory of its ally Belarus in the second half of next year.
Putin was responding to a request from Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko at a summit in Minsk, where the two leaders signed a mutual defence pact.
“Since we have today signed an agreement on security guarantees using all available forces and means, I consider the deployment of such systems as the Oreshnik on the territory of the Republic of Belarus to be feasible,” Putin said on Friday.
Russia first fired the Oreshnik at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro on November 21, in what Putin cast as a response to Ukraine‘s first use of US ATACMs ballistic missiles and British Storm Shadows to strike Russian territory with Western permission.
Russian missile kills two, wounds thirteen in Ukraine
Friday 6 December 2024 23:00 , Steffie Banatvala
A Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s Kryvyi Rih damaged an administrative building, killing two people and wounding at least 13 others, the regional governor said.
A six-year-old child was among those wounded and was hospitalised, the governor said on Telegram messenger.
One of the injured died in hospital, the governor added.
Rescuers continued searching at the site as one person was missing, he said.
Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of president Volodymyr Zelensky, is frequently targeted by Russia.
It comes as a separate attack in Russia’s Zaporizhzhia region killed at least seven people. The toll may rise.
Romanian election annulled over Russian meddling claims
Friday 6 December 2024 22:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Romania’s top court annulled the result of the first round of the country’s presidential election after the surprise win of a far-right pro-Russian candidate led to accusations of Russian meddling.
The second round, which was due for Sunday, would have pitted frontrunner Calin Georgescu against pro-European Union centrist leader Elena Lasconi.
A win for Mr Georgescu, who wants to end Romanian support for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion, would have upended the EU and NATO member state’s pro-Western politics.
President Maia Sandu of neighbouring Moldova, who herself won re-election in October despite what her pro-Western camp said was heavy Russian meddling, met Ms Lasconi in Bucharest late on Thursday and endorsed her bid for Romania’s presidency.
“In Moldova we know well the world promised by those who despise the West,” said Ms Sandu.
Romania has been the strongest supporter of its small neighbour’s efforts to join the EU and the votes of Moldovans with dual Romanian citizenship carry weight in Moldovans elections.
Ukraine says Syrian collapse shows Russia can’t fight two fronts
Friday 6 December 2024 21:00 , Steffie Banatvala
The collapse of Russia’s ally Syria in the face of an assault from rebel groups shows Moscow cannot fight on two fronts, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said on Thursday while reiterating denials that Kyiv was involved in the fighting there.
“We can see that Russia cannot fight on two fronts — this is clear from the events in Syria,” ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi told reporters at a weekly news conference.
After years locked behind frozen frontlines, Syrian rebels have burst forth to mount the swiftest battlefield advance by either side since a rebellion against president Bashar al-Assad descended into civil war 13 years ago.
Mr Tykhyi was responding to a question about accusations from Iran, another ally of Mr Assad, that Ukraine was supporting what Tehran called terrorist groups.
Ukrainian casino heads suspected of Russian collaboration
Friday 6 December 2024 20:00 , Steffie Banatvala
The top managers and Russian owners of a popular online casino in Ukraine have been suspected of collaboration with Russia, according to Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) and the Prosecutor General’s Office.
The owners allegedly collected data about the location of users, including Ukrainian military personnel.
The agencies did not confirm the name of the company but the head of Ukraine’s Asset Recovery and Management Agency, said the suspects are the representatives of Pin-Up.
The associated individuals operate in Russian-occupied Luhansk Oblast, contributing to the Russian state budget, military-industrial complex and war efforts against Ukraine, according to the DBR.
One suspect who “controls the online casino’s work” has allegedly been financing an organisation supporting Russian veterans have fought in the war in Ukraine.
ICYMI: Canada bans more types of firearms and proposes donating guns to Ukraine
04:27 , Shahana Yasmin
Canada said it is outlawing another 324 firearm varieties — guns the public safety minister said belong on the battlefield, not in the hands of hunters or sport shooters.
Ottawa also said it is working with the government of Ukraine to see how the guns can be donated to support the fight against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The move follows the May 2020 ban of 1,500 makes and models of firearms, a number that grew to more than 2,000 by November of this year as new variants were identified.
Canada bans more types of firearms and proposes donating guns to Ukraine
Ukrainian group in US opposes Russian-linked Starlink expansion
Friday 6 December 2024 19:00 , Steffie Banatvala
A Ukrainian non-profit in the United States has filed a petition to block tech company SpaceX from placing nearly 22,500 Starlink satellites into low-earth orbit.
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) said it was converned over SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s Russian contacts and “the alleged use of his Starlink system by Russian forces in Ukraine”, CNBC reported.
As well as making controversial statements about the war in Ukraine, Mr Musk is alleged to have held secret calls with Putin and Kremlin officials.
The UCCA filed the petition with the US Federal Communications Commission on December 4, calling on the agency to conduct a review.
Ukraine boasts new ‘rocket-drone’ to boost long-range strikes
Friday 6 December 2024 18:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Ukraine showed off a new locally-produced “rocket-drone” on Friday which it said could fly 700 km (430 miles) – more than twice the longest range attributed to missiles supplied by Western allies.
The unmanned craft, called “Peklo” – which means hell in Ukrainian – is the second “rocket drone” unveiled by Kyiv as it tries to increase its ability to strike deep into Russia.
Ukraine‘s arms production minister told Reuters in November the “rocket-drone” could be viewed as something akin to a cruise missile, which flies low on a guided path to its target, usually below the speed of sound.
Ukraine has released few details of its arms industry, citing concerns about giving useful information to Moscow.
Russia scrambling for plane scraps after sanctions
Friday 6 December 2024 17:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia’s largest airline Aeroflot plans to buy five Boeing cargo planes to use for spare parts, Russian media reported, as its aviation industry struggles following Western sanctions.
The planes will be transferred to Aeroflot’s budget subsidiary Pobeda to be disassembled rather than converted for passenger use due to financial constraints, Russian state media Kommersant reported.
Western sanctions have piled pressure on Russia’s aviation industry, putting bankruptcies on the table for several airlines.
China says Ukraine-Russia peace talks need ‘positive energy’ from international players
Friday 6 December 2024 16:40 , Steffie Banatvala
China has called on the international community to “create conditions” for direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
China’s foreign ministry said on Friday that dialogue and resolution would only come if major powers showed “positive energy”, according to Ukrinform news agency.
“In our opinion, the only possible way to resolve the ‘crisis’ is through dialogue and negotiations, so the international community should help create conditions for the resumption of direct talks between the two sides of the conflict,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
“Only when all major powers demonstrate positive energy can we see hope for a quick ceasefire,” he added.
China has deepened ties with Russia since the war in Ukraine but denied allegations of bolstering Russian war efforts.
Putin to sign deal guaranteeing Russian security to ally Belarus
Friday 6 December 2024 16:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian president Vladimir Putin visited Belarus to sign a treaty offering security guarantees to Moscow’s closest ally.The planned signing of the document follows the publication of a revised version of Russia‘s nuclear doctrine, which for the first time placed Belarus under the Russian nuclear umbrella amid the tensions between Moscow and the West over the Ukrainian conflict.
“I’m sure that the treaty will ensure the security of Russia and Belarus,” Putin said in televised remarks.
Speaking alongside Belarus’ president Alexander Lukashenko, Putin emphasized that the new document includes a potential use of Russian tactical nuclear weapons deployed to Belarus in response to an aggression.
Mr Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron hand for more than 30 years and has relied on Russian subsidies and support, allowed Russia to use his country’s territory to send troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and to deploy some of its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.
Putin replaces Kursk governor over ‘chaos’ after Ukraine incursion
Friday 6 December 2024 16:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian president Vladimir Putin has fired Kursk Oblast governor Alexei Smirnov because of management “chaos” after Ukraine’s invasion of the region, local media reported.
Mr Smirnov reportedly faced widespread protests among displaced residents and clashes with local leaders.
Putin appointed state duma deputy Alexander Khinshtein as interim governor of the oblast on Thursday.
The Kremlin started looking for Mr Smirnov’s replacement in early November, but only finalised Mr Khinshtein’s appointment on Tuesday, opposition outlet Verstka reported.
Ukraine launched a bold offensive into Russia’s Kursk oblast in August, but Russia has since reclaimed about half of the territory seized.
Russian rouble rebounds after Putin’s gas payment decree
Friday 6 December 2024 15:40 , Steffie Banatvala
The Russian rouble has rebounded past 100 to the US dollar, trading at 99.50 on Friday, after a decree by president Vladimir Putin which opened new payment options for European buyers of Russian gas, allowing foreign currency flows to resume.
The rouble strengthened by 1.5 per cent against the dollar, according to bank data.
Putin’s decree meant that European buyers of Russian gas, including Hungary and Slovakia, who previously used Gazprombank for their transactions, could now convert their currency into roubles in other banks that are not under sanctions.
The US sanctions imposed on Gazprombank on November 22 disrupted Russia‘s foreign currency market, leading to a 15 percent fall in the rouble exchange rate against the dollar.
Ukraine air, sea drones launched on Russian-controlled Kerch
Friday 6 December 2024 15:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Ukraine launched air and seaborne drones on the Russian-controlled Crimean port city of Kerch, the Russian military confirmed on Friday.
Traffic on the Crimean Bridge has been temporarily stopped, according to the Telegram channel Crimean Wind.
Residents told local media they heard explosions, but Ukrainian and Crimea’s Russian-installed authorities have not commented.
Top Estonian tech firm to test AI-guided anti-drone missiles in Ukraine
Friday 6 December 2024 15:00 , Steffie Banatvala
A leading Estonian defence firm has said it will start testing anti-drone missiles in Ukraine in 2025.
The tests intend to check the system’s effectiveness in real combat conditions, Frankenburg Technologies said.
Recognised as Europe’s top technology startup, Frankenburg Technologies has developed missiles to intercept Iranian Shahed drones at altitudes of two kilometres using artificial intelligence for autonomous targeting.
“The technology is promising, and we will start testing it in Ukraine in the new year,” the company’s CEO Kusti Salm told Estonia’s public broadcaster ERR.
Production will start increase from a few dozen units per week to hundreds by the third quarter of 2025.
Ukraine’s key coal mine still operating as Russians advances
Friday 6 December 2024 14:40 , Steffie Banatvala
A coal mine in the eastern Ukrainian town of Pokrovsk, the sole domestic supplier of coking coal to the steel industry, continues to operate as Russian troops approach, an industry source has said.
Ukrainian military analyst DeepState said Russian troops were less than 7 km (4.4 miles) from Pokrovsk’s outskirts. The mine lies 10 km (6.2 miles) west of the town, a strategic supply hub, in the opposite direction to the advancing Russian forces.
It’s unclear at what point the mine’s owner, metallurgical group Metinvest, might be forced to halt operations and evacuate staff.
The authorities have been carrying out a mandatory evacuation of civilians from Pokrovsk since September 24 and about 11,500 people remained in the city as of December 2.
Putin changes Russian gas payment laws after fresh US sanctions
Friday 6 December 2024 14:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian president Vladimir Putin has altered laws on how international buyers can pay for Russian gas following fresh US sanctions.
Putin’s new law decouples gas payments from Gazprombank, as the previous law required buyers to buy gas products exclusively through the bank.
It comes after the Financial Times reported that Russia used Gazprombank to pay soldiers, buy military equipment, and provide compensation to the families of those killed in the Ukraine war.
Russia puts out feelers to Trump despite ‘red lines’
Friday 6 December 2024 14:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia is open to talks with US President-elect Donald Trump but will use “any means” to prevent Washington and its allies from defeating it in Ukraine, foreign minister Sergei Lavrov told US journalist Tucker Carlson.
In an 80-minute interview released late on Thursday, Mr Lavrov spoke positively of Mr Trump, who returns to the White House next month, despite urging the West to take Russia’s “red lines” seriously.
Mr Lavrov said Mr Trump was “a very strong person, a person who wants results” and said he saw no reason why the two countries could not “cooperate for the sake of the universe”.
Mr Lavrov’s comments were part of a pattern of Russian signals designed to deter Washington from further escalation in support of Ukraine while displaying openness to negotiations.
Read more on the interview here:
Tucker Carlson returns to Moscow to interview another Russian leader
EU envoys fail to agree 15th package of sanctions on Russia
Friday 6 December 2024 13:40 , Steffie Banatvala
Representatives of European Union countries have failed to agree a 15th package of sanctions on Russia, which included an extension for the Czech Republic to import Russian oil-based products coming mainly through Slovakia, diplomats said.
Two member states blocked the passage over a disagreement about extending the time given to European companies disinvesting from Russia, diplomats said. EU members will come back to the package later.
EU announces €25mn funding for Ukrainian NGOs
Friday 6 December 2024 13:20 , Steffie Banatvala
The EU Ambassador to Ukraine announced €25mn (£20.7mn) in funding for Ukrainian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society work to support Ukraine’s eventual integration into the European Union.
Katarina Mathernova announced the funding at the Civil Society Development Forum in Kyiv, including €15mn for small NGOs over the next three years and €10mn for civil society work on integrating Ukraine into the EU.
“Ukraine’s civil society is not only a pillar of democracy but also a source of unbelievable strength and resilience in the face of Russia’s brutal aggression,” Ms Mathernova said.
“I am proud that, with EU funding, smaller local organisations will continue their critical work for Ukraine’s victory and our shared European future.”
Ukraine applied for EU membership days after Russia invaded and was granted candidate status in June the same year. EU leaders then agreed in December 2023 to open accession negotations with Ukraine.
Russian forces seize two villages in eastern Ukraine, TASS reports
Friday 6 December 2024 13:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian troops took control of the settlements of Pustynka and Sukhi Yaly in eastern Ukraine, the TASS state news agency reported on Friday, citing the defence ministry.
Separately, the defence ministry said the Russian navy destroyed six Ukrainian naval drones in the Black Sea on Friday.
Ukraine says Russia has lost more than 750,000 troops since invasion
Friday 6 December 2024 12:40 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia has lost 750,610 troops in Ukraine since its invasion started in February 2022, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported.
This figure includes 1,660 Russian casualties in the past day alone, the report said.
Russia has also lost 30,899 vehicles and fuel tanks, 21,043 artillery systems, 20,023 drones, 19,518 armoured fighting vehicles, 9,514 tanks, 1,253 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,020 air defence systems, 369 airplanes, 329 helicopters, 28 ships and boats, and one submarine, the report added.
Ukraine partisan group claims Moscow, Kursk railway sabotage
Friday 6 December 2024 12:20 , Steffie Banatvala
A Ukranian military partisan group has claimed it sabotaged a key railway line between Moscow and Kursk, disrupting Russian supply lines.
An operative set fire to a relay cabinet near the village of Chekhov in Moscow Oblast, the Atesh group posted on Telegram on Friday, along with an undated video of the alleged sabotage.
The railway line has been partially occupied by Ukrainian forces since August.
Norway says wealth fund can sell Russian stocks
Friday 6 December 2024 12:00 , Steffie Banatvala
Norway’s $1.8tn sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, can start selling stocks it holds in Russian companies, as long as it complies with international sanctions, the deputy finance minister told Reuters on Friday.
“Permission to sell the fund’s Russian stocks is given on the condition that the sale can be done in line with applicable sanctions,” Ellen Reitan said in an email.
The Norwegian finance ministry ordered a halt to all transactions in the fund’s Russian assets shortly after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and said at the time that the ultimate goal was to divest its holdings.
The fund has so far been unable from offloading Russian assets because it is not permitted to sell to counterparties under US or EU sanctions.
Russia’s artillery advantage over Ukraine slashed, Western officials say
Friday 6 December 2024 11:40 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia’s capacity to outpace Ukraine’s artillery barrages has reduced to just 1.5 Russian rounds for each Ukrainian shell fired, Western officials said.
Previously Russia has been able to launch at least five times as many rounds as Ukraine could, with ratios higher at times.
Anonymous Western officials said the narrowing gap was down to a “wide variety of factors”, including limitations on Russian production lines, disruptions to arms rail transportation, Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian and North Korean ammunition stockpiles inside Russia, and Western supplies bolstering Ukraine’s armoury.
But large numbers of Russian glide bombs may be compensating “to devastating effect” for the reduced artillery front, the Western officials warned.
Ukraine captures 12 Russian troops in latest Kursk advance
Friday 6 December 2024 11:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Ukrainian special forces said it captured 12 Russian soldiers in the latest attack in the Kursk border region.
The special forces shared footage on Telegram showing intense close-quarters combat between Russian and Ukrainian troops in a wooded area.
Ukraine claimed that 17 Russian soldiers were killed in the assault targetting Kursk, an area Kyiv had invaded in a bold incursion back in August.
This fresh Kursk advance follows Ukrainian advances during a counterattack south of Korenevo, near the Ukrainian border, according to the Institute for the Study of War.
Russia is believed to have reclaimed about 40 per cent of the Kursk region originally taken by Ukraine. Soldiers told the BBC they had been instructed to hold their position “until Trump’s inauguration and the start of negotiations.”
Top Biden aide pledges massive Ukraine military aid surge
Friday 6 December 2024 11:00 , Steffie Banatvala
The White House has devised a last-minute strategy to strengthen Ukraine’s war efforts through significant military aid and sweeping new sanctions on Russia, according to a security briefing shared with the Guardian.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, during a meeting with Ukrainian presidential office head Andrii Yermak on Thursday, committed to delivering hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of rockets, and hundreds of armoured vehicles by mid-January.
The United States also plans to train Ukrainian troops outside the country and finalise $20bn in loans backed by frozen Russian assets, according to the briefing.
The strategy includes a final push of sanctions on Russia before US president-elect Donald Trump renters the White House. The move aims to weaken Russia’s war effort and enhance Ukraine’s leverage in future negotiations.
Crimean Bridge closed after reported Ukrainian strikes
Friday 6 December 2024 10:40 , Steffie Banatvala
The Crimean Bridge was closed on Friday morning following reports of Ukrainian drone activity in the region.
Explosions were heard near Zaliv shipyard in the city of Kerch, according to the pro-Ukrainian Crimean Wind Telegram channel. Air defence systems were also activated, according to news outlet Krym.Realii.
Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed Friday to have downed a Ukrainian drone over Crimea and destroyed two uncrewed boats heading to Crimea in the Black Sea.
Russia’s autumn offensive cost over 50 soldiers per square km
Friday 6 December 2024 10:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian forces suffered about 53 casualties per square kilometre as they advanced in Ukraine in autumn 2024, according to an Institute for the Study of War (ISW) report.
From September to November 2024 Russian soldiers lost about 125,800 personnel as they captured approximately 2,356 square kilometres of territory including the Kursk Oblast, the report said.
Putin’s cousin accidentally reveals secret figure relating to Russian losses
Friday 6 December 2024 10:03 , Jabed Ahmed
Putin’s cousin accidentally reveals secret figure relating to Russian losses
Russia’s foreign currency reserves hit lowest level since 2008
Friday 6 December 2024 09:46 , Steffie Banatvala
Russia’s foreign currency reserves, accumulated over a decade through its raw materials sector, are now nearly depleted, according to local reports.
Three years of war has slashed Russia’s National Welfare Fund from $140bn in liquid assets to nearly one-third of its former size, the Moscow Times reported.
Russia’s Sberbank to open offices in Russian-controlled Ukrainian regions
Friday 6 December 2024 09:32 , Jabed Ahmed
Russia’s largest lender Sberbank SBER.MM plans to open offices in Russian-controlled parts of the Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia this month, Alexander Vedyakhin, first deputy chairman of Sberbank’s board has said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin moved to annex Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in September 2022, following what Ukraine said were sham referendums.
Russian forces do not have full control of any of the four regions though are close to gaining that in Luhansk.
Sberbank opened partner offices in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in July 2024. Vedyakhin said the first full-size offices would open in December and start serving clients, including companies, from the first quarter of 2025.
Ukraine’s air force says it shot down 32 drones launched by Russia overnight
Friday 6 December 2024 09:04 , Jabed Ahmed
The Ukrainian air force has said that Russia launched 53 drones to attack the country overnight.
Of 53 drones, it shot down 32 and “lost track” of 16, likely due to electronic warfare. Two drones left Ukraine-controlled airspace and headed to Belarus, according to the statement.
White House’s Sullivan and Zelensky aide discuss improving Ukraine’s war position
Friday 6 December 2024 08:37 , Jabed Ahmed
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Andriy Yermak, a top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, discussed improving Kyiv’s position in its war with Russia and ensuring it enters any future negotiations from a position of strength, a White House spokesperson said.
Putin appoints new governor for partly occupied Kursk region
Friday 6 December 2024 08:00 , Shweta Sharma
Russian president Vladimir Putin appointed Alexander Khinshtein acting governor of the Kursk region on Thursday, saying “crisis management” was needed in the area, which has been partly occupied by Ukrainian forces since August.
Mr Putin was shown in a clip posted on the Kremlin website offering the post to Mr Khinshtein, a journalist and veteran member of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament.
“I would like to offer you the position of acting governor of Kursk region, as at this time crisis management is needed there, in view of the situation occurring there,” Mr Putin told Mr Khinstein.
“And as the territory is being liberated from the enemy, of course much will have to be done to restore housing and communal services and to restore the economy of the territory as a whole as well as that area now being liberated by our troops.”
Mr Putin said Mr Khinshtein, in addition to his experience in the legislature, had acted for two years as an adviser to Russia’s National Guard and that experience in the security forces “will have to be used to achieve the tasks that lie before you”.
Canada expands list of firearms outlawed and proposes to donate guns to Ukraine
Friday 6 December 2024 07:30 , Shweta Sharma
Canada said it is outlawing another 324 firearm varieties — guns the public safety minister said belong on the battlefield, not in the hands of hunters or sport shooters.
Ottawa also said it is working with the government of Ukraine to see how the guns can be donated to support the fight against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The move follows the May 2020 ban of 1,500 makes and models of firearms, a number that grew to more than 2,000 by November of this year as new variants were identified.
The latest restriction, announced Thursday by public safety minister Dominic LeBlanc, follows expressions of concern from gun-control advocates that many assault-style firearms were not included in the 2020 ban.
“This means these firearms can no longer be used,” Mr LeBlanc said.
Defence minister Bill Blair said Canada approached Ukrainian authorities, who expressed interest in some of the guns.
“Every bit of assistance we can offer to the Ukrainians is one step toward their victory,” Mr Blair said.
Senior UK military commander warns of a ‘third nuclear age’
Friday 6 December 2024 07:00 , Shweta Sharma
The head of Britain’s armed forces has warned that the world stands at the cusp of a “third nuclear age,” defined by multiple simultaneous challenges and weakened safeguards that kept previous threats in check.
Admiral Tony Radakin, chief of the defence staff, said Britain needs to recognise the seriousness of the threats it faces, even if there is only a remote chance of Russia launching a direct nuclear attack on the UK or its Nato allies.
While the Cold War saw two superpowers held at bay by nuclear deterrence and the past three decades were characterised by international efforts to restrict the spread of nuclear weapons, the current era is “altogether more complex,” Mr Radakin said Wednesday in a speech to the Royal United Services Institute.
“We are at the dawn of a third nuclear age—” he said. “It is defined by multiple and concurrent dilemmas, proliferating nuclear and disruptive technologies and the almost total absence of the security architectures that went before.”
Challenges faced by the West include Russia’s threat to use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine,
China’s drive to build up its nuclear stockpiles, Iran’s failure to cooperate with international efforts to limit its nuclear program, and “erratic behavior” by North Korea, Mr Radakin said.
All of this comes against a backdrop of increasing cyberattacks, sabotage and disinformation campaigns aimed at destabilizing Western countries.
Senior Biden officials pledge heavy military assistance to Ukraine in final plan before exit
Friday 6 December 2024 06:30 , Shweta Sharma
The White House is mulling providing a huge tranche of military assistance to Ukraine in its last-minute strategy to boost Ukraine’s position in the war before the transition to Trump’s administration.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan held a meeting with Andriy Yermak, a top aide to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, for more than an hour yesterday.
Mr Sullivan committed to issuing hundreds of thousands of additional artillery rounds, thousands of rockets and hundreds of armored vehicles to Ukraine in the first month of next year, Guardian reported, citing the briefing from the meeting.
The US will also impose a slew of new sanctions on Russian entities in the coming weeks and also support its troops in war by offering to train soldiers.
According to a Reuters report, the president-elect’s team is discreetly crafting a peace plan for Ukraine that would exclude Nato membership and could involve conceding substantial territory to Russia, marking a significant departure from current US policy.
Mr Trump, meanwhile, has frequently claimed he could end the war between Ukraine and Russia within 24 hours.
Ukraine’s air force says it shot down 32 drones launched by Russia overnight
Friday 6 December 2024 06:18 , Shweta Sharma
The Ukrainian air force said that Russia launched 53 drones to attack the country overnight in its latest update today.
Of 53 drones, it shot down 32 and “lost track” of 16, likely due to electronic warfare. Two drones left Ukraine-controlled airspace and headed to Belarus, according to the statement
‘Impossible to treat’ superbugs on rise in Ukraine, scientists warn
Friday 6 December 2024 06:00 , Shweta Sharma
Scientists have sounded a warning about the alarming rise of “extremely pathogenic” multi-drug resistant bacteria in war-torn Ukraine.
Researchers tested samples from 150 war-wounded people and found several types of bacteria resistant to broad-spectrum antibiotics, with six per cent resistant to all tested antibiotics.
They narrowed in on samples of the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae to assess if it had the ability to cause disease in a wider context.
‘Impossible to treat’ superbugs on rise in Ukraine, scientists warn
Russian disinformation targets US support for Ukraine
Friday 6 December 2024 05:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian disinformation has been trying to undermine US support for Ukraine since the US election in November, analysts have said.
The Kremlin is using state media, fake news sites and social media accounts to push divisive narratives about the war and US president-elect Donald Trump before he returns to the White House next month.
Analysts said the content is aimed at turning sentiment against Ukraine at a crucial time, to reduce US military aid and ensure a Russian victory.
Clips from fake videos purporting to show Ukrainian soldiers burning effigies of Trump and his supporters have circulated among Trump supporters and believers in QAnon, a conspiracy theory that claims Trump is waging war against a satanic cabal of powerful world leaders.
Russia’s Lavrov accused of rebuilding Russian empire during first EU visit
Friday 6 December 2024 04:27 , Shweta Sharma
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov faced heavy criticism as he arrived at an annual meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in Malta.
The Russian diplomat walked out of the hall before US secretary of state Antony Blinken arrived as the two traded accusations in a heated annual gathering.
The Polish foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski, said: “My message to the Russian delegation is the following: We are not taken in by your lies. We know what you’re doing. You’re trying to rebuild the Russian empire and we will not let you. We will resist you every inch of the way.”
Mr Lavrov hit back by accusing Nato and the EU of politicising the OSCE.
He accused the West of the “reincarnation of the cold war, only now with a much greater risk of a transition to a hot one”.
Western states criticise Russia’s FM over Ukraine at OSCE meeting
Friday 6 December 2024 04:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Western countries including the United States assailed Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov over the war in Ukraine at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in Malta.
“My message to the Russian delegation is the following: We are not taken in by your lies. We know what you’re doing. You’re trying to rebuild the Russian empire and we will not let you. We will resist you every inch of the way,” Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said.
Poland and Ukraine’s foreign ministers were amongst those who left the room for Mr Lavrov’s speech, which is common for international meetings. Mr Lavrov was also absent when US secretary of state Antony Blinken spoke.
Mr Lavrov’s attendance at the meeting marks his first trip to a European Union country since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Russia’s Lavrov suggests using any means in war to avoid ‘strategic defeat’
Friday 6 December 2024 03:58 , Shweta Sharma
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said the use of a hypersonic missile in the Ukraine war was to make the West understand that Moscow was ready to use any means to ensure no “strategic defeat” would be inflicted on Moscow.
Russia deployed the Oreshnik hypersonic missile against the Ukrainian city of Dnipro last month in what Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin described as a test of a missile he said could not be brought down.
He said Russia could bring other such missiles into action in “combat conditions” if required.
“The message is that you, I mean the US and the allies of the US, who also provide these long-range weapons to the Kyiv regime – they must understand that we would be ready to use any means not to allow them to succeed in what they call a strategic defeat of Russia,” Mr Lavrov told US journalist Tucker Carlson.
“They fight for keeping their hegemony over the world, on any country, any region, any continent. We fight for our legitimate security interests.”
In his 80-minute interview, Mr Lavrov also said that the West should abandon any notion that Russia had no “red lines” that it would bar anyone from crossing in defending its interests.
“If they are following the logic which some Westerners have been pronouncing lately, that they don’t believe that Russia has red lines, they announced their red lines, these red lines are being moved again and again, this is a very serious mistake,” he said.
Ukrainian intelligence hackers claim Russian bank disruption
Friday 6 December 2024 03:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) carried out a successful cyber-attack against one of Russia’s largest banks, disrupting services for hundreds of thousands of customers, a source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent.
The website for Gazprombank was reportedly inaccessible in France and Germany, and the mobile application also experienced outages. Russian state media on Wednesday confirmed problems accessing the bank’s website.
The source said the agency directed excessive traffic to the bank’s website and mobile application, overloading its servers in what is known as a distributed denial of service attack.
The attack comes after the United States imposed sanctions on Gazprombank earlier in November.
Both Ukraine and Russia have used cyber warfare during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russia’s Lavrov and Blinken spar over Ukraine during a security meeting in Malta
Friday 6 December 2024 03:19 , Shweta Sharma
Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov walked out from an annual security meeting in Malta before US secretary of state Antony Blinken arrived as he accused the West of reviving the Cold War.
Speaking at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe ministerial meeting in Malta, Mr Lavrov said the West was provoking a direct conflict with Russia.
He said the US actions were driven by a desire to “return Nato to the political spotlight.”
“After the Afghan disgrace, there was a need for a new common enemy,” Mr Lavrov said during his first stop in an EU nation since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.“The result is the reincarnation of the Cold War, but now with the far greater risk of its escalation into the hot phase.”Mr Blinken, who spoke after Mr Lavrov left the room, put the blame for escalation in the region back on Russia, noting that the Russian foreign minister, the fourth speaker, did not stick around to listen to other speakers.
“Let’s talk about escalation,” Mr Blinken said, citing the deployment of North Korean forces in Europe, the use of an intermediate-range ballistic missile to attack Ukraine, Russia’s move to lower the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, and attacks on Ukraine‘s energy infrastructure.“Mr Lavrov spoke about the sovereign right of every member-state to make their own choices,” Mr Blinken said. “That’s exactly what this is about: the sovereign right of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people to make their own choices about the future, not to have those choices made in and by Moscow.”
Ukraine chief of staff met Trump aides to secure US support
Friday 6 December 2024 02:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Ukraine’s Chief of Staff visited the US to meet with senior officials from the incoming Trump administration in an effort to secure continued support for Ukraine, according to
Andriy Yermak held talks on Wednesday with Mike Waltz, Mr Trump’s pick for national security adviser, and retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, named as an envoy for Ukraine, a person familiar with the meeting said. The person was not authorised to publicly discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Neither side gave immediate details of the session. It was one of many meetings that Mr Trump’s aides are having with foreign representatives before Trump returns to the White House.
Mr Trump, a longtime admirer of Putin, has called for bringing a quick end to fighting in Russia’s nearly 3-year war against Ukraine’s Western-aligned government. He has given few details of his plans.
Poland gets $4bn US loan for defence purchases, minister says
Friday 6 December 2024 01:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Poland signed a $4bn loan under the United States’ Foreign Military Financing program that will help finance the transformation of its armed forces, the Polish defence minister has said.
“This is another proof of enormous trust and strong alliance between Poland and the United States of America,” Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz posted on X.
Mr Kosiniak-Kamysz said that in total the United States has provided Poland with over $11bn to finance armament programs, including Patriot air defence systems and Apache helicopters.
Spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Poland became NATO’s top spender in terms of the proportion of its national wealth devoted to defence.
Russia FM makes first EU visit since Ukraine invasion for security meeting
Friday 6 December 2024 00:20 , Steffie Banatvala
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov attended the annual meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Malta, marking his first visit to a European Union nation since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha were also present, with Ukraine dominating the agenda.
Mr Lavrov, who is under EU sanctions but not subject to a travel ban, accused the West of escalating the Ukraine conflict during his remarks but left the meeting before Mr Blinken and others could respond.
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