White House Concerned About Reports Paul Whelan Feels Physically Threatened In Russian Jail

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban says he has accepted an invitation from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to hold a bilateral meeting, which would be the first between the two leaders since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Orban said at a news conference in Budapest on December 21 that he agreed to Zelenskiy’s proposal for a future meeting during a brief conversation on December 10 on the sidelines of the swearing-in ceremony for Argentina’s new president.

He said he told Zelenskiy he would “be at his disposal” after Zelenskiy suggested they discuss his country’s ambitions to join the European Union.

At an EU summit last week, Orban prevented the adoption of a 50 billion euro ($54.7 billion) EU aid package to Kyiv. Orban was the only leader who objected, thus blocking the aid because the EU requires unanimity among its members. But on the vote over accession talks, Orban left the room, allowing it to pass.

Orban said at the news conference that his government continues to oppose the scope and timeline of the proposed funding for Ukraine, suggesting he would maintain his position when EU leaders meet again in February.

Earlier on December 21, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Kyiv had received the last 1.5-billion-euro tranche from a previously approved 18 billion euro package from the European Union as other Western aid remains in doubt.

“Today we have received the last 1.5 billion euros of the 18 billion euro financial aid package. Hope for continued unwavering support from the EU,” Shmyhal said on the X social media platform on December 21.

The announcement came after Germany said it would provide an additional 88.5 million euros ($96.89 million) to help strengthen the resilience of the Ukrainian energy system as Russia targets its infrastructure.

Finland also announced a new aid package on December 21. The country’s Defense Ministry said it would provide Ukraine with aid worth 106 million euros. It will be the 21st shipment of defense equipment from Finland to Ukraine.

“Finland is determined to support Ukraine both in the short term and in the long term. The total value of the defense equipment packages that we have provided is now 1.6 billion euros,” said Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen.

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The fresh cash injections were announced as Zelenskiy said Ukraine has received signals that Russia’s military planning and activity are slowing.

In his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said this was noted in a report issued by the HUR military intelligence directorate.

“The enemy’s plans, the work of the Russian defense [industry]. There are signals indicating a slowdown. We will continue to support their slowdown.”

Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said earlier on December 21 that at least three people died in Russian attacks on mining facilities in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

“Two bombs hit the territory of one of the mines in Toretsk. One person was killed and two others were injured,” Klymenko said in a statement on social media.

Two more bombs hit an area near another mine, killing two people and injuring three, he added.

Ukraine’s General Staff said earlier that Ukrainian air defenses shot down 34 of the 35 Iranian-made drones launched by Russia at 12 regions, including Kyiv, early on December 21, Ukraine’s General Staff reports.

“Thirty-four attack UAVs were destroyed by our air defense forces,” the military said in a statement.

“Antiaircraft defense was active in the Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsya, Cherkasy, Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Mykolayiv, Khmelnytskiy, Sumy, Poltava, Chernihiv, and Kirovohrad regions,” the military added.

Since 2022, when Russia launched a campaign of drone attacks over Ukraine, Kyiv’s military has managed to down 2,900 out of 3,700 Shahed drones, Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said on December 21, Reuters reported.

In other news, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov told foreign media on December 21 that the Ukrainian military, will soon start to mobilize Ukrainian men between 25 and 60 who reside abroad.

Umerov said that those who fail to heed the mobilization call when summoned would face unspecified sanctions.

Meanwhile, Defense Ministry spokesman Illarion Pavlyuk told the Babel website that Umerov only intended to send a message to Ukrainians abroad about the importance of their joining Kyiv’s struggle to repel Russia’s invasion, adding that specific mechanisms to recruit Ukrainian expats are not under discussion yet.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP