Saturday, December 30

Russia’s war against Ukraine

A damaged building is seen after the Russian missile attack on one of Kyiv’s districts, Dec. 29, 2023. (Olena Zashko/The Kyiv Independent)

Zelensky visits Ukrainian positions in Avdiivka amid fierce fighting. President Volodymyr Zelensky has visited the positions of Ukraine’s 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade in embattled Avdiivka as Russia tries to encircle the eastern town just kilometers from Russian-occupied Donetsk.

US ambassador: Ukraine urgently needs funding after massive Russian attack. “Ukraine needs funding now to continue to fight for freedom,” U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said in a social media post on Dec. 29, following a massive wave of Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities.

Air Force: Ukraine downed 114 of 158 Russian drones and missiles. Ukraine shot down 114 of the 158 drones and missiles fired by Russia on Dec. 29, the Air Force reported.

Polish military official: Russian missile likely entered Polish airspace during mass attack on Ukraine. The aerial object that entered Polish airspace amid Russia’s mass attack against Ukraine in the early morning of Dec. 29 was likely a Russian missile, Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the general staff of the Polish armed forces, said at a press conference.

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Government to submit Ukraine Facility plan to European Commission. The Ukraine Facility is designed to support Ukraine, its recovery, and its path to European Union accession, allocating up to 50 billion euros ($55.3 billion) from 2024 to 2027.

Ukrainian hackers claim Ukrainian strike on Russian ship killed 74 soldiers. The Ukrainian hacker group Cyber Resistance claimed on Dec. 29 that it intercepted an email from the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s press service saying that Ukraine’s strike on the Russian Novocherkassk ship killed 74 and injured 27 Russian soldiers.

Russia claims 32 Ukrainian drones downed overnight. Russia claimed it had downed 32 Ukrainian drones over Bryansk, Orel, Kursk, and Moscow regions overnight on Dec. 30, Russian Defense Ministry reported. The Kyiv Independent could not verify the information.

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Ukraine war latest: Russia’s largest air attack on Ukraine kills 30, injures over 160

Russia unleashed its largest air attack on Ukraine on Dec. 29, targeting multiple Ukrainian regions with 158 missiles and drones. The attack killed 30 people and injured over 160 as of 7:30 p.m., according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.

Photo: Ozge Elif Kizil/Anadolu via Getty Images

‘Hit the Kremlin:’ Kyivans don’t hold back after Russia’s mass attack kills 9, wounds 30 in the capital

Russia unleashed a barrage of 158 attack drones and missiles across Ukraine, one of its biggest air attacks since the start of the full-scale invasion. The Air Force later released a report, which said Ukraine shot down 114 of the 158 drones and missiles fired by Russia.

Photo: Sergei Chuzavkov/AFP via Getty Images

Deputy defense minister plans to transform ministry – here’s how

Stanislav Haider was hired to fix the defense ministry’s institutional problems just as Ukraine entered the most difficult period of the war to date.

Photo: Press Service/Defense Ministry of Ukraine

Human cost of war

Police: 18 civilians killed, 132 injured in Russia’s morning attack on Ukraine. As of 1:00 p.m. local time, the morning wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine killed 18 people and wounded 132 others, Ukraine’s National Police reported on Dec. 29.

Governor: Russian attacks on Nikopol injure 3 people. Russian attacks on Nikopol in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on Dec. 29 injured three people, regional governor Serhii Lysak reported. A 49-year-old man was reportedly hospitalized, and two 29-year-old men sustained minor injuries.

Russia targets maternity hospital, shopping center in Dnipro, kills 4. A maternity hospital and a shopping center were hit in a Russian missile attack on Dnipro, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal confirmed on Dec. 29.

Russia attacks Odesa, kills 2, injures 15. Russia’s missile attack killed two civilians and injured 15 others, including two young children, Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper reported on Dec. 29.

Russia attacks Cherkasy Oblast, at least 9 injured. Russian forces struck a residential area in Smila, Cherkasy Oblast, in the afternoon of Dec. 29, injuring at least nine people, including a child, according to the latest information published by Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.

International response

UN Security Council criticizes Russia’s air assault on Ukraine. Russia faced strong criticism during the UN Security Council session on Dec. 29 following the largest air attack against Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war.

Polish Foreign Ministry summons Russian charge d’affaires over missile incident. The Polish Foreign Ministry reported on Dec. 29 that it has summoned Russian charge d’affaires Andrei Ordasz after a Russian missile entered the Polish airspace during the morning mass attack against Ukraine.

UK announces new air defense aid package for Ukraine after Russia’s mass attack. The U.K. will send Ukraine “hundreds of air defense missiles“ to restock air defense systems provided by London earlier, U.K. Defense Minister Grant Shapps announced on Dec. 29 after Russia launched a mass air attack against Ukraine.

Western leaders condemn Russia’s mass attack on Ukraine, Zelensky urges world to respond. Western leaders condemned Russia’s Dec. 29 mass attack on Ukraine that killed at least 30 people and wounded over 160 as President Volodymyr Zelensky urged the world to react to Russia’s “latest act of terror.”

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Oleg Sukhov, Elsa Court, Teah Pelechaty, Dinara Khalilova, and Olena Goncharova.

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