► North Korean soldiers used as cannon fodder, according to Washington
“More than a thousand” North Korean soldiers deployed to Russia to fight against Ukraine were killed or injured in assaults “hopeless” in Kursk and used as troops “can be sacrificed”said a White House spokesperson, John Kirby, on Friday, December 27.
“North Korean forces are carrying out massive assaults (…) against Ukrainian positions in Kursk. These human waves were not very effective (…) We estimate that to date, more than 1,000 people have been injured” or killed, said the spokesperson for the National Security Council.
“It is clear that Russian and North Korean military leaders view them as troops that can be sacrificed”he added. “A thousand people were killed or injured in the space of seven or eight days. So I hope » that their “commanders (have) a lot of coffins, because they are clearly going to need them”he insisted.
► Russia: five years in prison for criticizing the war
A Russian court has sentenced a Russian singer, Edouard Charlot, to five and a half years in prison for criticizing the offensive against Ukraine in videos posted online.
The court in Samara, on the Volga, the 26-year-old’s hometown, found him guilty “public insult to the religious feelings of believers” and of “rehabilitation of Nazism”reported the state news agency Ria Novosti.
This singer, popular among young people, published a video in June 2023 in which he burned his Russian passport, as a sign of protest against the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
► Ukraine received its first delivery of American gas
Ukraine has received its first batch of liquefied natural gas from the United States, as a major deal allowing the transit of Russian gas to Europe via Ukraine expires.
Despite the war, Moscow continued to ship gas through Ukraine under a multibillion-euro deal, which kyiv said it refused to renew after it expired at the end of the year.
This cargo of approximately 100 million cubic meters of gas was the first American delivery to Ukraine, whose energy network has been hit hard by several waves of Russian bombing.
► Death of a North Korean soldier captured by the Ukrainian army
A North Korean soldier, deployed in support of the Russian army and captured Thursday by Ukrainian forces, died from his injuries, the South Korean intelligence agency announced.
“It has been confirmed, through an allied intelligence agency, that the North Korean soldier captured alive on December 26 has just succumbed to his worsening injuries”the intelligence agency said in a statement.
► Slovakia ready to host talks
Slovakia has confirmed it is ready to host peace talks on Ukraine, with Russian President Vladimir Putin previously ruling « acceptable » that she becomes a ” platform “ dialogue.
“We offer Slovak soil for such negotiations”Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar declared on Facebook on the night of Thursday to Friday, almost three years after the start of the Russian assault.
► Russia accuses Ukraine of being responsible for plane crash in Kazakhstan
Russia’s civil aviation agency Rosaviatsia said Ukrainian drones attacked Grozny, the capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, on the day the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed, which twice attempted to landing there without success.
“At that time, Ukrainian military drones were carrying out terrorist attacks against civilian infrastructure in the cities of Grozny and Vladikavkaz”Rosaviatsia boss Dmitri Yadrov said on Telegram. According to him, the situation was then “very difficult” at Grozny airport, where there was also a “thick fog” which prevented all visibility “at an altitude of 500 meters”.
Ukraine, for its part, claims that Russia “must be held responsible” drama. Many articles blame a Russian air defense missile. The Kremlin said it would not comment until the investigation is complete.
