live blog
As of: 12/26/2022 3:23 a.m
Russian military bombed cities in Ukraine on Christmas Day, according to Ukrainian sources. According to media reports, there was at least one explosion at the Russian air force base in Engels. The developments in the live blog.
3:11 a.m
Russia continues shelling Ukrainian cities on public holidays
According to Ukrainian sources, Russian forces bombed numerous cities in Ukraine on Christmas Day. Russia launched more than 10 rocket attacks on the Kupiansk district of the Kharkiv region on Sunday, shelled more than 25 cities along the Kupiansk-Lyman front line and hit almost 20 cities in the Zaporizhia region, the Supreme Military Command of Ukraine said.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.
2:59 a.m
Belarus: Russian missile systems operational
According to official information, the Russian missile and air defense systems that Russia had transferred to Belarus are operational. “Our soldiers have fully completed their training at the joint combat training centers of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus,” said Leonid Kasinsky, head of the main directorate for ideology at the ministry, in a video published on Telegram. The systems are “fully prepared to fulfill the tasks intended for them”.
The mobile Iskander-M’s two guided missiles, codenamed “SS-26 Stone” by NATO, have a range of up to 500 kilometers and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads. The Russian S-400 mobile interceptor system is capable of combating aircraft, drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles. The Kremlin is putting increasing pressure on the government in Minsk to support Russia in the war against Ukraine.
1:31 am
Media: Explosion at Russian military airfield
At least one explosion has occurred at the Russian air base in Engels, hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian border, according to Ukrainian and Russian media reports. The RBC-Ukraine news agency reports two explosions. Russian news agency Baza, citing local residents, reports that air-raid sirens wailed and an explosion was heard. The base is one of two Russian strategic nuclear forces air bases. There is no official confirmation yet and the reports cannot be independently verified.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.
12:54 a.m
Medvedev: Only nuclear weapons keep the West from participating in the war
According to former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, only Russia’s nuclear power is keeping the West from declaring war on Russia. “The only thing stopping our enemies today is the realization that Russia will be guided by the principles of state policy (…) of nuclear deterrence. And in the event of a real threat, it will act accordingly,” Medvedev writes in an article in the Russian official gazette “Rossijskaja”.
The West vacillates between a “burning desire to humiliate, insult, dismember and destroy Russia as much as possible and the desire to avoid a nuclear apocalypse.” According to experts, Russia has the largest nuclear arsenal in the world with almost 6,000 warheads.