Russland also launched an aerial attack on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv at the beginning of the new year. About half an hour after midnight (local time, 11:30 p.m. CET), the Russian attacks hit two districts of the city, as Mayor Vitali Klitschko explained on Sunday in the online service Telegram. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced in his New Year’s language that the Ukrainians would continue to fight until victory against Russia.
“We are fighting and will continue to fight. For the sake of the one important word: victory,” Zelenskyj said. In his emotional speech, he showered his compatriots with praise. “I want to tell you all: Ukrainians, you are amazing. Look what we have done and what we continue to do!”
“Each of us is a fighter,” Zelenskyy continued. “Each of us is the basis of defense.” Ukrainians “fight as one team – the whole country, all regions. I admire you all. I want to thank every invincible region of Ukraine.”
Zelenskyy also announced in a New Year’s message on Telegram that he was expecting a win against Russia in 2023. “Today there is only one wish. And this will not come about through a miracle, but through our work, our struggle, mutual aid and humanity,” he wrote. “Happy New Year! The year of our victory!”
Ukrainians celebrate the New Year from their balcony during the curfew in Kyiv. Half an hour after the beginning of the New Year, the sirens for Luf sounded in the capital…tattacks
Source: dpa/Felipe Dana
Throughout New Year’s Eve, Russia launched a massive aerial attack on Ukraine. As AFP reporters reported, Kyiv was shaken by several detonations on Saturday afternoon, Ukrainian officials reported attacks on other parts of the country. Zelenskyy warned Moscow that a “terrorist state” would “not be forgiven”. Those who ordered and carried out the attacks would be held accountable.
According to Mayor Klitschko, one man was killed and at least 20 others injured in the attacks on Kyiv. A detonation tore a gaping hole in a four-star hotel in the Ukrainian capital, an AFP reporter reported. The sidewalks in the area were littered with broken glass.
At 12:35 a.m. (local time, 11:35 p.m. CET) Klitschko reported renewed attacks in the Telegram online service: “Explosion heard in the capital. Air defense works.”
According to the authorities, several other regions were also fired upon. Attacks were reported from the southern Mykolayiv region and from the Khmelnytskyi region in the west, among others. According to the authorities, six people were injured in Mykolaiv. According to Mayor Oleksandr Sjenkyevych, a fire broke out and several residential buildings were damaged.
According to Governor Serhiy Gamalij, at least seven people were injured in the Khmelnytskyi region. Parts of the city are without power because of the attacks.
According to the Ukrainian army, Russia fired 20 cruise missiles at targets in Ukraine, 12 of which were intercepted. “War criminal Putin ‘celebrates’ New Year’s Eve by killing people,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.
All developments in the live ticker:
01:57 – Lula calls for peace between Russia and Ukraine
Brazil’s President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has called for an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine. Lula, who will be sworn into office this Sunday, met with representatives from both countries ahead of the celebrations. “In Brazil we have a tradition of defending the integrity of nations and we will speak to anyone who can work for peace,” Lula said.
Left-wing populist Lula has already sought proximity to Beijing and Moscow in the past. He also supports far-left dictatorships in Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, where opposition is violently repressed.
10:27 pm – New Russian drone attack
Shortly before the turn of the year, the arrival of so-called kamikaze drones from Russia was reported in Ukraine. Air alerts were sounded for the cities of Odessa and Mykolaiv in the south, and Dnipro in the center of the country, Unian agency reported. Mykolayiv military administrator Vitali Kim reported two formations of drones sighted in his area. The air defense opened fire on the Iranian-made Shahed drones.
8:55 p.m. – Macron pledges help to Ukraine until victory
France has pledged support for Ukraine until victory. In the new year, the country stands unreservedly with Ukraine, said President Emmanuel Macron in his New Year’s speech.
18:34 – Zelenskyy to Russia: Ukraine will never be forgiven
After the recent Russian rocket attack on Ukrainian cities with new destruction, Head of State Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the Russian people directly in his video message. “A terrorist state will not be forgiven,” he said in his somewhat premature daily video appearance on Saturday afternoon. “And those who order such attacks and those who carry them out will not be forgiven, to say the least.”
In Russian, Zelenskyy declared that Russia was not at war with NATO “as your propagandists lie”. The war is also not for something historical. “It (the war) is for a person who stays in power until the end of his life,” he said, referring directly to Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. “And what’s left of all of you, citizens of Russia, is none of his business.”
Putin wants to show that he has the military behind him and is ahead. “But he’s just hiding,” Zelenskyy said. “He hides behind the military, behind rockets, behind the walls of his residences and palaces, he hides behind you and burns your country and your future.” No one will ever forgive Russia for terror, Zelensky said. “No one in the world will forgive you for that. Ukraine will never forgive you.”
“Kick-off Politics” is WELT’s daily news podcast. The most important topic analyzed by WELT editors and the dates of the day. Subscribe to the podcast at Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music or directly via RSS feed.