Russia’s armed forces will see “what our true anger looks like,” warns Zelensky
ZDF team injured when Russian rocket hits hotel
According to ZDF, a German television team was hit in a rocket attack on a hotel in Kharkiv. A translator was seriously injured and a security guard was slightly injured. Russia confirmed the attack, which would have eliminated “representatives of the main intelligence services.”
At the turn of the year, the Ukrainian president urged his compatriots not to lose sight of the future of their homeland. “We Ukrainians know better than anyone that a better tomorrow does not come by itself,” said Volodymyr Zelensky. He sent a warning to Russia.
Dhe Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj warned Russia about the power of “domestic” weapons production in his New Year’s address. Ukraine will have at least “a million” additional drones in its arsenal by 2024, Zelensky said on Sunday. There are also F-16 fighter jets supplied by Western partners.
“Our pilots have already mastered the F-16 fighter jets and we will definitely see them in our skies,” said Zelensky, whose televised address was accompanied by images of Ukrainian artillery and fighter jets. Moscow’s forces would see “what our true anger looks like,” he assured.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gives his New Year’s address
Source: picture alliance/ZUMAPRESS.com/Adrien Fillon
Ukraine will enter its third year of war in 2024. Despite having Western weapons worth billions of dollars, Kiev failed to make a significant breakthrough against Russian troops in the counteroffensive launched in the summer. On Friday, at least 39 people were killed in one of the most massive waves of Russian attacks since the start of the war.
In recent months, Zelensky has repeatedly called on his Western partners to maintain their support. “Ukrainians are stronger than all intrigues, all attempts to weaken global solidarity and undermine the coalition of our allies,” the Ukrainian president said in his New Year’s address.
At the turn of the year, he asked his compatriots to shape the new year according to their own ideas and not to lose sight of the future of their homeland. “We Ukrainians know better than anyone that a better tomorrow does not come by itself, because we defend each of our tomorrows with our own hands,” Zelensky said in his video address, in which his wife Olena also appeared at his side. “That’s why our new year will be exactly how we want it and how we will design it.”
“Responsible and efficient”
Zelenskyj also pointed out that a new year is also associated with active action: “Not only are you the New Year’s miracle, but also the year-round miracle: determined, responsible, caring and efficient.” At the same time, Zelenskyj wished his compatriots strength and confidence. “Life and strength to the people who defend a free and secure future – not just their own, but that of the entire world.”
Meanwhile, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin assured in his New Year’s speech that his country would “never” back down. Russia “hardly defended” its interests in 2023, he said. He did not explicitly mention Ukraine.
According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia carried out renewed attacks on the Mykolaiv, Odessa and Dnipro regions early on New Year’s morning. On Sunday night, the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv was again the target of a drone attack. The Ukrainian air force said on Sunday it had intercepted 21 of 49 drones fired by the Russian military into the country. 28 people were injured in Kharkiv, said Governor Oleh Synjehubov. A hotel, residential buildings, a kindergarten, shops and administrative buildings were damaged.
Russia accused Ukraine of “heavy shelling” in the center of Donetsk on Sunday. Three people were killed by the shelling, wrote the Russian-appointed head of the expanded Donetsk region, Denis Pushilin, on the Telegram messenger service. Seven people were injured.