Belarus serves Russia as a deployment and training ground in the war against Ukraine.Image: IMAGO/ITAR-TASS/ Sipa USA
Ukraine blog
Almost ten months after the start of the war in the Ukraine Has Russia intensified its attacks on the country again. The fighting is raging mainly in the east of the country. But the capital Kyiv is also a frequent target of drone attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was last week in the United States flown and gave a historic speech before the US Parliament. US President Joe Biden has promised to deliver the Patriot air defense system to Ukraine.
December 29th
4:50 p.m .: Ukrainian missile in Belarus possible pretext for new attacks
State media in Minsk reported that a missile launched by the S-300 air defense system fell on Belarusian territory. The reasons are currently under investigation. Accordingly, ruler Alexander Lukashenko was also informed. The state agency Belta reported that the rocket may have reached Belarusian territory as part of the operation of the Ukrainian air defense system. That would be a similar incident as in November when Polish territory was hit.
Concerns are growing in Ukraine that Russia could launch a new attack from Belarus. Such a find could be used as a pretext by Minsk and Moscow.
11:48 a.m .: According to Ukraine, Russia fires over 120 rockets
The Ukrainian military reported “massive” Russian rocket attacks on several cities in the country on Thursday morning. Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podoliak said the Russian army had “launched more than 120 rockets to destroy vital civilian infrastructure and kill masses of civilians.”
Mykhailo Podoljak advises the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj. Image: AP / Nicolae Dumitrache
Most of the missiles have been intercepted, the Ukrainian side said. In the capital Kyiv, three were attacked people been injured, said Mayor Vitali Klitschko. “At the moment there are three injured, including a 14-year-old girl. All are in the hospital,” he wrote on the online service Telegram. A number of explosions were also reported in the cities of Kharkiv and Lviv.
10.05 a.m .: Habeck predicts Russian defeat – and avoids Patriot commitment
According to Economics Minister Robert Habeck, Russia is heading for a military defeat in the war against Ukraine. “Nobody would have thought that the year 2022 would end like this,” said the Green politician of the German Press Agency in Berlin. “Putin is losing this war on the battlefield,” he said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. This is because the Ukrainian army weapons from Europe, the NATO countries and the USA and uses these weapons “skillfully and strategically, cleverly and heroically”.
Habeck also spoke out in favor of further arms deliveries to Ukraine, but also emphasized that these “must be discussed in conjunction with the Allies”. Whether too Germany will deliver the powerful Patriot air defense system to Ukraine, as will the United States, the Vice-Chancellor left open.
Economics Minister Robert Habeck is optimistic about Ukraine’s military successes. Image: dpa / Kay Nietfeld
7:23 am: Kamikaze drone attack in southern and eastern Ukraine
According to Ukrainian information, Russian military launched a new wave of attacks with so-called kamikaze drones against Ukraine on Wednesday evening. The drones were aimed at various targets in the south and east of the country, said the command center of the Ukrainian air defense south Facebook with. Five drones were shot down in the Dnipro region.
The arrival of several groups of drones was also reported from the Donetsk region, Zaporizhia and Kharkiv. Observers also reported on flights towards Odessa. According to reports from the Unian agency, numerous unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down. Most recently, the Russian military used so-called kamikaze drones made in Iran against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. The supply of water and electricity across the country was severely affected.
The Russian air raids repeatedly cause power and water supply failures in Kyiv.Image: SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire / Sergei Chuzavkov
6:21 a.m .: Lavrov wants to interrupt Ukrainian supplies
According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the supply routes for weapons and ammunition for the Ukrainian army from abroad will soon be interrupted. “We are observing that Ukraine is getting more and better Western weapons,” Lavrov said on Russian television. Therefore, there are calls among military experts to interrupt these delivery routes. “Railway lines, bridges and tunnels” are being considered, said Lavrov. “I assume they’re making professional decisions about how to make those deliveries more difficult or, ideally, stop them altogether.”
(with material from dpa and afp)
An epochal turning point for the Arab world began twelve years ago: on December 17, 2010, the 26-year-old greengrocer Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in the Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid. Previously, his mobile sales stand and other work equipment had been taken away from him by the police – allegedly due to a lack of permits.
