Ukrainian war, the direct. EU-NATO agreement, Stoltenberg: «More weapons in Kiev»

More military aid to Ukraine, more cooperation between the EU and NATO, greater boost to the defense industry: on the day of the third joint declaration between the European Union and the Atlantic Alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel first of all clarify one point: Volodymyr Zelensky should send the weapons that Kiev deems necessary, including Leopard battle tanks. The axiom of cooperation between the EU and NATO, in the short and medium term, remains this: to help Ukraine without losing sight of the fact that the war could last much longer. In the document that renews the Atlantic Pact, extending it to sectors such as aerospace, strategic infrastructure, hybrid warfare and disinformation, no pause is outlined in the flow of weapons that the West is sending to Ukraine. “The regime in Moscow wanted to divide us and it failed. We must continue on our transatlantic alliance, on EU-NATO cooperation and strengthen our support for Ukraine», the Alliance secretary general said, announcing a new meeting of the Contact Group in Ramstein for next week. Where the Allies will hear from the Ukrainians themselves what weapons they need. The hesitations leaked in recent days by Berlin about sending Leopard are not explicitly mentioned. However, the message from NATO, but above all from the EU, is very clear. “Ukraine must be supported with all the armaments it needs to defend its territory and international law, including advanced air defense systems, but also other categories of advanced military equipment,” von der Leyen stressed. Her words which, probably, will not have gone unnoticed even in Italy grappling with the sixth package of weapons to be sent to Kiev. Of course, as the war continues, the supply emergency increases. “It’s true, we’ve run out of them,” admitted Stoltenberg, however assuring that the stocks are already being replenished. “In the long run – she explained – the solution is to increase production”. An ad hoc task force, in coordination with the European defense agencies, “to understand how to fill stocks and what the defense industry needs”, explained von der Leyen, assuring how, in parallel, Brussels’ pressure on the Kremlin will remain high . And by announcing new sanctions for Iran and Belarus, “which support Moscow militarily”. The third joint declaration, made up of 14 points and signed in Brussels at NATO headquarters, underlines in no uncertain terms that “this is a key moment for Euro-Atlantic stability”. The project of strategic autonomy of the EU, in the military field, can only suffer from this. “NATO remains the bedrock of collective defense for its allies and is essential to Euro-Atlantic security,” the document reads.

US and Ukrainian officials told CNN that Russian artillery fire has dropped sharply since its peak, by as much as 75% in some areas. There is speculation that Russia may be rationing artillery fire due to supply shortages, or the decision could be part of a broader reassessment of tactics in the face of a successful Ukrainian counter-offensive. In any case, the marked drop in artillery fire is further evidence of Moscow’s increasingly weak position on the battlefield nearly a year into the invasion, the sources noted.

Ukrainian soldiers are to begin Patriot training in the United States next week. Two US officials told CNN. The training will take place at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where US forces typically conduct their air defense system training programs.

The training of Kiev soldiers on the Patriots will last “several months”, according to Laura Cooper, US undersecretary of defense with responsibility for Russia and Ukraine. Joe Biden announced the dispatch of the defense systems during the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington on December 21st.

US and Ukrainian officials told CNN that Russian artillery fire has dropped sharply since its peak, by as much as 75% in some areas. There is speculation that Russia may be rationing artillery fire due to supply shortages, or the decision could be part of a broader reassessment of tactics in the face of a successful Ukrainian counter-offensive. In any case, the marked drop in artillery fire is further evidence of Moscow’s increasingly weak position on the battlefield nearly a year into the invasion, the sources noted.

“During today alone, Soledar and its surroundings were hit by 86 Russian attacks with various artillery systems”, the head of the Eastern Group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Sergiy Cherevaty told Ukrainian TV, quoted by Ukrainska Pravda. In the town 10 km north of Bakhmut – at the moment Moscow’s main target – battle rages between Ukrainian troops and mercenaries from Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner group. Cherevaty stated that “the enemy is suffering colossal losses, but try to move forward, even a small tactical advance is presented as a great achievement”.

The Russia will continue to develop nuclear weapons to ensure the country’s sovereignty: Defense Minister Sergei said today Shoigucited by the Tax. “We will continue to develop the nuclear triad and keep it combat-ready, as the nuclear shield has been and remains the main guarantor of our state’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Shoigu said. “We will also increase the combat capabilities of the aerospace forces, both in terms of the work of fighters and bombers in areas where modern air defense systems are in operation, as well as the improvement of drones.”

“President Putin wanted to divide us but he failed. The regime in Moscow wanted a different Europe, and this would have consequences for our security. therefore we must continue on our transatlantic alliance, on EU-NATO cooperation and strengthen our support for Ukraine”. The NATO secretary general said so Jens Stoltenberg explaining that the third declaration of cooperation between the EU and the Alliance takes their partnership “to a higher level”. “We will deepen our excellent cooperation and extend it to new sectors,” added EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Powerful explosions are underway in Kherson this morning: «Another Russian shelling in Kherson. Attention, there may be repeated arrivals of missiles,” wrote the deputy chairman of the Yuriy Sobolevskyi regional council in Telegram, quoted by local media. Meanwhile, the air warning is sounding in the southern regions of Ukraine of Odessa and Mykolaiv

«The events in Ukraine are not a clash between Moscow and Kiev, this is a military confrontation between NATO, and above all the United States and England, and Russia. Fearing direct contact, NATO instructors are leading Ukrainian boys to certain death. With the help of a special military operation, Russia is liberating its regions from occupation and must put an end to the bloody experiment of the West to destroy the fraternal Ukrainian people. This was stated by the secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushevloyalist of Vladimir Put inin an interview with the Russian newspaper Argumenty i Fakty.

«We are not at war with Ukraine, because, by definition – Patrushev argues – we cannot have hatred for ordinary Ukrainians. Ukrainian traditions are close to the inhabitants of Russia, just as the heritage of the Russian people is inseparable from the culture of the Ukrainians. Note that in Crimea the Ukrainian language is preserved as one of the state languages».

In the last 24 hours, 710 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine. This was claimed in a post on Facebook by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kiev, which updates the number of Russian military dead since the beginning of the war to 112,470.

«There are no brakes on the delivery of the air defense shield to Ukraine, we have voted to renew the authorization to send weapons to Kiev in a European and NATO context, after informing Parliament. The shield project is Italian-French, we are working intensely with the French, there are technical problems to be solved, for the non-bureaucratic military aspects, Defense Minister Crosetto is working, we are proceeding and there is no braking. The general staffs are at work but it takes time»: said Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on the radio too.

“The battle for Donbass continues and although the occupiers have now concentrated their major efforts on Soledar, the result of this difficult and protracted battle will be the liberation of all of our Donbass.” The Ukrainian premier said so Volodomijr Zelenskyexplaining that Ukrainian soldiers are resisting increasingly intense Russian attacks on Bakhmut and Soledar, Kreminna and Svatov. “I thank all our soldiers who protect our Bakhmut and show maximum resilience. Thanks to all the soldiers of Soledar, who are resisting new and even harder assaults of the invaders. It is extremely difficult: there are almost no whole walls left… Thanks to the resilience of our soldiers there, in Soledar, we have gained additional time and additional forces for Ukraine». In those places, he added, “everything is completely destroyed, there is almost no life left” and “the whole earth under Soledar is covered in corpses”.

Russian forces have attacked the Zaporizhzhia region of southern Ukraine more than 600 times since the beginning of this year, killing four and wounding seven, the head of the regional military administration, Oleksandr Starukh, said. Ukrinform. “Since the beginning of the year, there have been more than 600 attacks on peaceful cities and towns: four dead and seven wounded,” Starukh said, adding that yesterday the Russians launched 91 attacks in the region, of which 70 targeted civil infrastructure in 19 villages. Starukh stressed that the pro-Russian administration is trying to ban the circulation of Ukrainian currency (hryvnia) in the occupied territories of the region. The Russians have also introduced “passes” for residents, without which it is forbidden to move between occupied villages.

The United States they would be considering the possibility of sending armored combat vehicles Stryker in Ukraine. Politico writes it, quoting two sources close to the dossier, according to which the announcement could arrive next week, even if the final decision has not yet been made.