US President Joe Biden has ordered an increase in arms supplies to Ukraine following a major Russian attack on Christmas Eve.
The Ukrainian military said on December 26 that Russia launched 31 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to attack during the night, of which 20 were shot down and the remaining 11 did not hit their targets.
However, Governor Sergiy Lysak of Dnipropetrovsk province said a Russian UAV attacked the central market of the town of Nikopol in the early morning, injuring eight people, seven of whom had to be hospitalized for treatment.
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A day earlier, Russia launched its 13th large-scale attack this year on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Ukraine said more than 70 missiles and more than 100 drones were launched, killing one person and injuring many others.
Ukrainian artillery forces launch rockets towards Russian forces from Zaporizhzhia province on December 25.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack "inhumane" because it was carried out on Christmas Eve and caused power outages and affected heating systems in the middle of a bitterly cold winter. US President Joe Biden also condemned the incident and directed the Department of Defense to increase the delivery of weapons aid to Ukraine.
Ukraine attacks Russian military factory
The Ukrainian Air Force announced on December 26 that it had attacked a factory producing solid fuel for ballistic missiles in Kamensk-Shakhtynsky, Rostov Oblast (Russia). The Kyiv Independent quoted the announcement as saying that missiles produced from that fuel were used to attack civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, including hospitals, apartment buildings and power plants.
The attack was part of a campaign to weaken the Russian armed forces’ ability to attack Ukraine. Kyiv did not say when the attack took place. On December 25, Russian long-range drones attacked an ammunition depot at the Kadamovsky military training center in Rostov.
A day earlier, UAVs had crashed at the Millerovo military base in the same province. On December 19, the Navy and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) launched a coordinated attack on the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in Rostov.
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On December 26, four airports in Russia's Moscow region were temporarily closed for a short time to ensure flight safety and then resumed operations, according to Reuters. Russia did not specify the reason for this action.
On the same day, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had taken control of the village of Hihant in Donetsk province in eastern Ukraine.
Russia warns Ukraine leaders, opposes ceasefire
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov gave an interview to domestic and foreign media on December 26, in which he accused Ukraine of repeatedly using Western missiles and UAVs to attack civilian targets in Russia, threatening to retaliate. The diplomat affirmed that Russia only attacked military facilities and that bombing civilian targets was not part of Russia's rules.
Earlier, Russian officials announced that four people were killed and five others were injured by Ukrainian shelling of the town of Lgov in Kursk province (Russia).
"We select targets for strikes on the territory of Ukraine, conducting strikes only against threats to Russia. These can be military and defense facilities. Decision-making centers in Kyiv can also be such targets," Lavrov said, according to TASS.
An apartment in Bilozerka village, Kherson province (Ukraine) was burned by Russian artillery fire on December 26.
Also at the press conference, Foreign Minister Lavrov opposed the idea of establishing a ceasefire agreement in Ukraine because he said it would "lead nowhere". The diplomat said the purpose of the ceasefire was to buy time for Ukraine to restock weapons and mobilize troops.
"The ceasefire is a dead end. We need final legally binding agreements, which include conditions to ensure Russia's security and the legitimate interests of our neighbors, but which must be based on international law, so that violations are impossible," Lavrov proposed.
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The Russian foreign minister said the agreements must address two core causes of the Ukraine crisis. The first is the broken promise that NATO would not expand eastward. The second is Ukraine's actions, such as establishing a policy of "destroying everything Russian, including language, media, culture."
Ukraine has not commented on Mr Lavrov's statement.
Besides, Mr. Lavrov said Russia is ready to cooperate and consult with the administration of US President-elect Donald Trump to improve relations and resolve the conflict in Ukraine.
Russia foils plot to assassinate military officials
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on December 26 that it had foiled several plots to assassinate senior military officials using bombs hidden in power banks and file folders.
Four Russian citizens involved in the plots, which were directed by Ukrainian intelligence, have been detained, according to the FSB. Ukraine has not commented on the allegations.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/chien-su-ukraine-ngay-1037-ukraine-tan-cong-nha-may-quan-su-nga-phan-doi-ngung-ban-185241226231135804.htm
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