War in Ukraine: Icy cold, Russian attacks and massive losses

War in Ukraine

Ukraine is suffering from heavy Russian bombardment from the air, but fighting on the ground is also raging with undiminished intensity. The Kiev military leadership visits a dangerous section of the front.

More news about the war in Ukraine

Because of the heavy Russian missile attacks over the New Year, Ukraine is discussing stronger protection with NATO this Wednesday. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg convened the NATO-Ukraine Council at ambassadorial level in Brussels. The NATO countries have already delivered a large number of air defense systems to Ukraine and are determined to further strengthen its defense, it was said before the meeting.

Explosions were heard again in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Wednesday night. The city near the border is being fired at with rockets, wrote Mayor Ihor Terekhov on Telegram. Nothing was initially known about any damage. The Ukrainian Air Force also warned of Russian attacks with combat drones in the south of the country. Ukraine has been fending off a large-scale Russian invasion for almost two years. Wednesday marks the 686th day of the war.

Ukraine hopes for Euro-Atlantic solidarity

The NATO-Ukraine Council was launched in 2023. It is intended to enable closer cooperation until the conditions for Ukraine’s inclusion in the Western defense alliance are met. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote about the extraordinary meeting on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that the central topic would be strengthening Ukraine’s air defense. “An important sign of Euro-Atlantic unity in the face of the escalation of Russian terror.” However, concrete results are not foreseeable.

Russia attacked Ukraine three times before and after the New Year with combined missiles, cruise missiles and combat drones. They were the heaviest air raids to date. Dozens of people died; The attacks also caused severe damage in Kiev and other places. According to the government in Warsaw, a Russian missile briefly violated Polish airspace and thus NATO territory.

States criticize Russian arms deal with North Korea

The security situation is also made worse by the fact that Russia fired missiles from North Korea into Ukraine in two of these attacks. This is based on findings from the USA.

A group of almost 50 countries condemned the alleged arms deal. “The transfer of these weapons increases the suffering of the Ukrainian people, supports Russia’s war of aggression and undermines the international nonproliferation regime,” said a statement released by the US State Department in Washington on Tuesday. Germany and almost all European countries have also joined it, as have Canada, Israel, Australia, Japan and South Korea.

The states criticized the arms purchase as contradicting several UN resolutions that Russia itself supported. They called on all United Nations member countries to condemn the violations by Moscow and Pyongyang.

Ukrainian military leadership visits dangerous section of the front

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umyerov and Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zalushny visited a particularly contested section of the front near Kupyansk. The Ministry of Defense in Kiev announced this on Tuesday. Kupyansk was recaptured by Ukraine in autumn 2022. Russian troops have been trying to take the nearby village of Synkivka for several weeks now.

Despite severe frost, Ukrainian ground troops continue to face many Russian attacks. There were 64 attempted Russian attacks on Tuesday, the Ukrainian General Staff said in its evening report. The number was slightly higher than in previous days. “The operational situation in the east and south of Ukraine remains difficult,” it said.

The General Staff announced that all Russian attacks had been repelled, although this information could not be independently verified. There were ten Russian attacks on the city of Avdiivka alone, plus eleven more on the neighboring towns of Pervomayske and Nevelske.

Zelenskyj: Supplies must reach troops faster

President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke on Tuesday with the heads of the military and the relevant ministries about supplying the units with ammunition and drones. He reported this in his video speech in the evening. “The main thing is that all logistics have to become faster,” said Zelensky.

According to reports from the front, Ukrainian troops are suffering from a lack of ammunition. Given the frequent Russian airstrikes, there are also fears that anti-aircraft defenses are running out of ammunition. In the USA, as the most important supporter, the granting of new military aid is stuck in domestic political disputes.

Zelensky was confident that the troops could be provided with what they needed despite such problems. “We also talked about opening new production lines for weapons and ammunition in Ukraine – in our companies and together with partners,” he said.

That will be important on Wednesday

In addition to the NATO-Ukraine Council, a second international institution is dealing with the attacked country on Wednesday. The UN Security Council in New York will discuss the humanitarian situation in Ukraine. (dpa/tha)

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