War in Ukraine: ATACMS missile fire, the Russians are getting closer to Pokrovsk, ceasefire at Christmas… an update on the situation

Moscow says kyiv attacked Russian airfield with 6 US ATACMS missiles

The Russian military said Ukrainian forces attacked an airfield in Taganrog in southern Russia using US ATACMS missiles on Wednesday, promising “a response.”

“It has been established with certainty that six American-made ATACMS ballistic missiles were used,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement, specifying that two had been “shot down” and “the others (…) diverted by electronic warfare equipment. Vladimir Putin presented Ukrainian attacks against Russian soil with Western weapons as a red line.

Orban’s call to Putin undermines European “unity”, accuses Zelensky

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday accused Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban of undermining “unity” European Union in the face of the Russian invasion of Ukraine with its telephone call to Vladimir Putin.

“No one should promote their own image to the detriment of unity” et “unity in Europe has always been the key” to put an end to the Russian invasion, launched Mr. Zelensky. “There can be no discussions about Russia’s war against Ukraine without Ukraine”he added, in a message on Telegram.

Ukraine says it did not ‘discuss’ Christmas ceasefire with Orban

kyiv said on Wednesday that it did not have “discussed” with Viktor Orban of a possible Christmas ceasefire with Russia, as well as a major exchange of prisoners, refuting the Hungarian Prime Minister’s remarks according to which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “rejected” this idea.

“As always, the Hungarian side did not discuss with Ukraine. And as always, Hungary did not warn (Ukraine, editor’s note) of its exchanges with Moscow”lamented Dmytro Lytvyne, an advisor to the Ukrainian presidency, in a written message to the media.

Russian assets: American financial aid to kyiv is a “theft”, denounces Moscow

The $20 billion in aid released Tuesday by the United States for Ukraine, which will be financed by interests from Russian assets frozen due to sanctions, is a “vol”denounced Russian diplomacy on Wednesday, which promised reprisals.

“The granting of another loan announced by the United States Treasury Department is trivial theft”declared the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a press release, castigating “the Russophobic impulse” of the Joe Biden government, a few weeks before the end of his mandate. “No pseudo-legal trick, largely seasoned with hypocrisy and double standards, will go unanswered”at-il having you.

Russian troops less than 3 km from Pokrovsk

The Ukrainian army said on Wednesday that Russian troops destroyed or captured several of its positions near the eastern town of Pokrovsk, a strategic logistics and railway hub for kyiv and also home to the country’s only coke mine. from Ukraine.

Russian forces have advanced towards Pokrovsk at an accelerated pace and are now 3 kilometers from the southern outskirts of the city, according to DeepState, a Ukrainian organization that maps front lines from open sources. “Due to the prolonged clashes, two of our positions were destroyed and one was lost. Currently, measures are being taken to restore the positions”Nazar Volochyn, Ukrainian army spokesman for the Eastern Front, said in televised comments.

Pokrovsk, located about 18 kilometers from the border, between the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk, has for months been the scene of intense fighting, among the most violent since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine . US President-elect Donald Trump, who prepares to take office on January 20, has called for an immediate ceasefire and a quick end to the war.

Ukraine announced on Monday its intention to organize a summit in December bringing together its main European allies to coordinate a common position and ensure that Ukraine is in a strong position on the battlefield for possible negotiations. Russia, which Ukraine says has deployed more than 70,000 troops to the Pokrovsk front, has rapidly advanced toward Shevchenko, south of the city, in recent weeks.

Its forces are currently trying to take control of the village and are sending reconnaissance and sabotage groups, said Nazar Volochyn, who added that Ukraine is containing them for now. The fall of Pokrovsk, an important logistics center for the Ukrainian army in the east of the country, would constitute the biggest military setback for kyiv in months.

The city is also home to the only domestic supplier of coking coal to Ukraine’s once-large steel industry. The mine, which was still active on December 6, is located 10 km west of Pokrovsk, opposite the Russian advance.