Dec 26, 2023 at 6:14 PM Update: 19 minutes ago
NU.nl regularly gives you an overview of the situation in Ukraine. This time: the first Ukrainian fighter pilots have completed F-16 basic training. At the same time, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, once again opened up the book.
Developments in Ukraine are following each other in rapid succession. We therefore regularly list recent events. Subscribe to the tag ‘Ukraine update’ to receive a notification when we post another overview.
The Ukrainian pilots cannot immediately participate in the war with F-16 fighter planes after completing basic training. The next step in the training process is actually flying F-16s. That’s what the pilots learn in Denmark.
It concerns a group of six fighter pilots, the British Ministry of Defense reports. Ten other trainee pilots are currently receiving language lessons and conducting flight simulations in the UK. They also become accustomed to G-forces, roughly speaking, the pressure exerted on your body while flying.
Ukrainian pilots need the training because they fly older aircraft in their own air force. Piloting an F-16 is complicated and different from what they are used to. The Netherlands is one of the countries that has agreed to supply F-16s to Ukraine. Our country will supply at least 18 aircraft.
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Ukrainian commander-in-chief disappointed with recruitment
In Ukraine, Tuesday is mainly about the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, Valerii Zaluzhnyi. During a rare press opportunity, he said he was disappointed with efforts to expand the army. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wants to recruit at least half a million people.
But so far this has not been particularly successful, says Zaluzhnyi. He wants military agencies to work more effectively.
Zaluzhnyi made his comments a day after the Ukrainian cabinet announced its intention to lower the conscription age from 27 to 25. That decision was received with mixed feelings on social media, writes Reuters.
Ukraine is already planning to overhaul the recruitment of new people for the army. For example, the government wants to work with commercial recruitment companies. It should also be made clearer what role ordinary Ukrainian citizens can play within the armed forces.
Ukrainian President Zelensky is looking for around 500,000 new soldiers. Photo: AFP
Commander-in-chief seems to have been clashing with Zelensky for some time
Zaluzhnyi also looked back on the Ukrainian counter-offensive, which was carried out under his leadership. He had hoped to achieve more. “We had ambitious goals this year. I am not disappointed with the foreign assistance we received. It was not everything we asked for, but it did allow us to conduct military operations.”
Zaluzhnyi also briefly discussed the situation surrounding the destroyed city of Marinka. Russia reported on Monday that it had captured the city in eastern Ukraine. According to Zaluzhnyi, his troops have indeed withdrawn. But there are also units that have dug in on the edges of the city. Ukrainian soldiers are also present a little further away.
More remarkable was his statement about Zelensky’s goal: the 500,000 soldiers the president hopes for. Zaluzhnyi said he had not publicly mentioned those figures.
Things seem to have been going on between him and Zelensky for some time. For example, Zaluzhnyi was critical of Zelensky’s decision to fire a large number of recruitment staff as part of a corruption investigation.
Earlier, the two Ukrainian leaders also clashed after Zaluzhnyi warned that the war appeared to end in a stalemate. Zelensky’s team is generally more positive about the progress of the war. “At first people criticized me, but over time they also saw that I was right,” Zaluzhnyi says.
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Ukraine hits Russian landing ship in attack on Crimea
There was also a lot of attention on Tuesday for the major air raid that the country carried out in Crimea. The port city of Feodosia on the Russian-occupied peninsula came under fire. Ukrainian sources soon reported that a Russian ship had been destroyed.
Russia later confirmed that a ship had been hit and damaged. It concerns a landing ship that was moored at Feodosia. The airstrikes killed one person and injured two people.
Russia has cordoned off the port area. According to the regional governor, local residents are being evacuated. Train traffic was stopped “for technical reasons”. About 69,000 people live in the port city on the Black Sea.
Russia is also said to have carried out an airstrike itself on the night from Monday to Tuesday. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, nineteen drone strikes were spotted, thirteen of which were destroyed. No announcements have been made about casualties or damage.
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Unverified footage shows attack on Russian landing ship
2023-12-26 17:14:00
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