Day dawns in Europe and a 1016th day of armed conflict begins in Ukraine after the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022.
This Wednesday, a Ukrainian delegation visited the United States, where it met with future members of President-elect Donald Trump's administration.
In Russia, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said a Ukrainian drone had hit Chechnya's capital, Grozny.
We take stock of the events that have marked recent hours.
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North Korea-Russia defense deal comes into force: official North Korean news agency
The official North Korean state agency KCNA announced on Wednesday the entry into force of the defense agreement sealed between North Korea and Russia. According to KCNA, the documents ratified after the agreement signed in June by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin were exchanged in Moscow between the two countries.
The formalization of the treaty comes as the United States and South Korea accused nuclear-armed North Korea of sending more than 10,000 troops to help Russia fight Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un wants to acquire advanced technologies from Moscow and combat experience for his troops in return, experts say.
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the strategic partnership agreement during the Kremlin leader's visit to Pyongyang.
This agreement obliges the two states to provide military assistance without delay
in the event of an attack against the other and to jointly oppose Western sanctions.
Telephone conversation between the American and Russian chiefs of staff
US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force General Charles Quinton Brown spoke by telephone with Russian Armed Forces Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov last week , the American army announced this Wednesday.
Charles Quinton Brown had never previously spoken with his Russian counterpart.
“(They) discussed certain issues relating to regional and international security, including the conflict currently taking place in Ukraine,” said a spokesperson for Charles Quinton Brown in a statement.
The call, which took place on November 27, was organized at the request of the Russian Defense Ministry, the spokesperson said.
First trip to the EU by the head of Russian diplomacy since 2021
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will make his first visit to a European Union country since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022 in Malta, where his Ukrainian counterpart will also be, on Thursday.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will also attend the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) meeting in Ta'Qali, Malta, but he has no plans to meet Sergei Lavrov.
The Russian diplomat, sanctioned by the European Union, has not visited the EU since a trip to Stockholm in December 2021, again for an OSCE meeting, according to Russian media.
Ukraine had demanded that Russia be excluded from the organization and had boycotted the summit in Skopje, Macedonia, last year, due to the presence of Sergei Lavrov.
On Wednesday, however, kyiv declared that its Foreign Minister, Andriï Sybiga, would participate in discussions in Malta, which come at a delicate moment for the country.
Ukrainian drone attack in Chechnya
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said Wednesday that a Ukrainian drone struck Chechnya's capital, Grozny. Quoted by the Russian agencies TASS and Ria Novosti, he indicates that the drone hit the premises of a police special forces unit, claiming that several civilians were injured.
“They hit the center of the city today with a drone. They destroyed the roof of the building. Civilians were injured,” he said.
Ukraine has not yet commented on this drone attack.
Ukrainian delegation meets with members of the future Trump administration
According to the Reuters news agency, a Ukrainian delegation met on Wednesday with advisors to newly elected American President Donald Trump. Citing a source close to the meeting, Reuters confirms that the Ukrainian delegation was led by Andriy Yermak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The group met in Washington with Donald Trump's chosen White House national security adviser, Mike Waltz, and his envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, the source said, without providing further details.
Mr. Trump's transition team did not respond to a request for comment on the meeting.
