the essential
The inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States on January 20 could be a key date in the war in Ukraine. While waiting to know the intentions of the Republican who had promised to resolve the conflict “in 24 hours”, Ukrainians and Russians are throwing all their strength into the battle to be in a position of strength during hypothetical negotiations.
The war in Ukraine is not weakening, on the cusp of a year 2025 which could constitute a major turning point with the arrival in the White House of Donald Trump. The fighting even seems to be intensifying and cannot tolerate the slightest truce, we just saw it at Christmas. Russia launched more than 70 missiles and more than 100 explosive drones at Ukraine on the morning of Wednesday, December 25, targeting its energy system, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, denouncing an “inhumane” attack on Christmas Day. from his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
“Today Putin consciously chose Christmas for his attack. What could be more inhumane? » launched Mr. Zelensky on Telegram. “More than 50 missiles” and some drones were shot down but some strikes led to power cuts in certain regions, he added.
International emotion after Russian strikes on Christmas Day
This attack sparked strong international reactions. From the Vatican, Pope Francis called for “silencing the guns in martyred Ukraine”, inviting in his Christmas message “gestures of dialogue” to “achieve a just and lasting peace”.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer denounced “Putin’s bloody and brutal war machine”, paying “tribute to the resilience of the Ukrainian people and the leadership of President Zelensky. » “The goal of this outrageous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and electricity during the winter and to jeopardize the security of their network,” declared US President Joe Biden, denouncing this “scandalous” Russian attack. »
DDM
Russian strikes over Christmas targeted six Ukrainian regions, leaving at least one dead and six injured and causing widespread heating outages in near-freezing temperatures, according to Ukrainian authorities. In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city located in the North-East and very often targeted, the attack left six people injured and left half a million homes without electricity, heating and tap water, according to the governor of this city. region, Oleg Synegubov.
Since the start of its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has regularly bombed Ukraine and in particular its electricity network, plunging civilians into darkness.
North Korean soldiers on the front line in the Kursk region would suffer heavy losses
On the Russian side, according to interim governor Alexander Khinchteïn, a Ukrainian strike left four dead and several injured on Wednesday in Lgov, a town in the Kursk border region, where Ukraine has been leading an offensive since August. It is in this Russian region that Vladimir Putin is mobilizing his forces and in particular North Korean soldiers who have suffered heavy losses. Between 1,100 and 3,000 North Korean soldiers were killed or injured facing the Ukrainians, according to Seoul and Zelensky. But the fighting could intensify with the sending of new North Korean troops.
With the war almost three years away next February, the fighting is mainly concentrated in eastern and southern Ukraine, with intense clashes in the Donbass and Kherson regions. Both sides suffered significant losses and the front line changed little, indicating a situation of virtual military stalemate. Western allies continue to provide military aid to Ukraine; for example, Italy recently extended its military support until the end of 2025, including advanced air defense systems.
What will Donald Trump want and be able to do against Vladimir Putin?
But the arrival of Donald Trump at the White House on January 20 could be a turning point, because the future president intends to make good on his campaign promise to stop the war “in 24 hours” by obtaining a peace agreement .
It remains to be seen how: favor a rapid resolution even if Ukraine has to concede territories to Russia – which occupies around 20% of the country – or pressure so that a settlement of the conflict does not seem to give a major victory to Vladimir Putin?
The conditions for negotiations are not yet met in any case and, between now and January 20, we can clearly see that each side will do everything to maximize its advantage, especially since at present, between cease -fire, frozen war, military escalation and peace treaty, no one can predict which scenario will come true.
