Film Director Otar Iosseliani Dies At 89, Was Vehement Critic Of Putin, Russia Wars
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Ukraine launched dozens of drones at targets in southern and western Russia, while Moscow targeted sites inside Ukraine with at least one ballistic and one cruise missile, along with its own drones.
Live Briefing: Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL’s Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia’s full-scale invasion, Kyiv’s counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL’s coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
At least one person was killed in Ukraine’s coastal Odesa region overnight on December 17, the regional governor said, when debris from a downed Russian drone struck a residential building.
Overall, Ukraine’s air force said Russia fired at least one Iskander ballistic missile and one cruise missile along with 20 kamikaze drones. The Iskander missile “did not reach its target,” the military said in a post on Telegram, but did not provide further details.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed in a post on Telegram that it had downed 33 Ukrainian drones over the Lipetsk, Volgograd, and Rostov regions. Damage or casualties from those attacks were not immediately clear.
With the onset of winter in Ukraine, Russia has stepped up its air campaign, using missiles and drones to attack civilian infrastructure and terrorize the Ukrainian population.
On December 16, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed to strengthen the country’s air defenses and promised to continue his international diplomatic offensive to keep the flow of aid coming.
“We are preparing for further strengthening of air defenses,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.
“The theme of air defense arises in almost every meeting in talks with world leaders. There will be more systems, more protection for the sky,” he added.
Zelenskiy also vowed to maintain his global diplomatic push for aid and support as the holiday season nears.
“Christmas is approaching,” he said. “While political activity may relax in many countries, we continue to work rigorously with all partners who can help now and provide support in the future.”
Zelenskiy’s comments followed a whirlwind international trip with mixed results – including stops in Argentina, the United States, Norway, and the U.S. military headquarters in Germany – as he looks to maintain shipments of weaponry and other aid.
At a two-day summit earlier in the week, European Union leaders skirted Hungarian opposition and approved starting talks on admitting Ukraine to the bloc. However, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said he would block a major funding package for Kyiv.
EU leaders have said they could turn to an alternative plan in late January or early February, reportedly consisting of loans to Kyiv as opposed to outright grants.
U.S. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, has been struggling to reach a deal with Republicans in Congress to pass stalled legislation to support Ukraine.
Lawmakers began leaving Washington on December 14 for a holiday recess without a deal to send more military aid to Kyiv. Republican lawmakers have blocked a White House plan for $110 billion in defense funding for Ukraine and Israel, insisting the aid be paired with a major overhaul of U.S. border security and immigration policy.
Exhausted Ukrainian Forces Battle On Near Bakhmut As Winter Approaches
With Russian forces firmly in control of the devastated city, Bakhmut has endured months of combat as a counteroffensive by Ukrainian troops grinds along its northern and southern flanks.
Russian forces launch drone strikes almost daily on Ukrainian towns and cities. Ukraine has conducted its own, far-smaller air campaign on selected Russian targets, relying exclusively on its homegrown drone fleet.
On the battlefield, Ukraine’s General Staff said a monthslong Russian effort to encircle the eastern city of Avdiyivka, in the Donetsk region, was continuing.
Russian forces have made slow, painstaking progress in their effort to take the largely destroyed industrial city. Ukraine’s military said Ukrainian troops were “standing their ground” in the face of at least 17 assaults by Russian forces over the previous day.
Ukraine’s military also said troops continued to hold positions on the eastern bank of the Dnieper River in the Kherson region. That effort, which involves dangerous river crossings, has resulted in a small, tenuous bridgehead centered mainly around the town of Krynky. Ukrainian troops have not been able to break out, however, and push further south to the Sea of Azov coastline.
The river crossing is part of a larger Ukrainian counteroffensive, launched in June, that has faltered, with little new territory gained, and substantial losses of both men and equipment. Russia has pressed forward in several locations, including Avdiyivka and Kupyansk, further north.
Zelenskiy has signaled that Ukrainian troops may recalibrate their strategy, digging in with new defenses along the front line as winter deepens.
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