12/12/2022
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 00:14 Ukrainian troops attack Wagner mercenaries +++
According to the governor in Luhansk, Ukrainian forces have attacked a hotel in the city of Kadivka where members of the Russian private mercenary group “Wagner” were staying. Many members of the group were killed in the attack, says Serhij Gaidai in a TV interview with Ukrainian television. So far, no statement has been received from the Russian Defense Ministry. The Wagner Mercenary Group is a Russian paramilitary organization.
+++ 23:09 Zelenskyj: The situation in Odessa and other regions is difficult +++
After the targeted Russian attacks on the Ukrainian power grid, the situation in the port city of Odessa and in other regions remains difficult, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “We are doing everything to restore the light in Odessa,” says Zelenskyj in his daily video address. “We’re doing everything we can to get the maximum out of the Russian goals under these conditions.” Russian troops attacked Odessa on Saturday night with a wave of Iranian combat drones, causing the city and the entire surrounding area to lose power. “Kiev and the surrounding area, Lviv Oblast, Vinnytsia Oblast, Ternopil Oblast, Chernovyts Oblast and Zakarpattia Oblast, Sumy Oblast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast – the situation remains very difficult,” says Zelenskyy. However, everything is being tried to “relax the situation” and to provide people with electricity.
+++ 21:58 Czech Republic criticizes German blockade on EU gas price cap +++
Czech Energy Minister Jozef Sikela has heavily criticized the federal government for its opposition to the introduction of an EU gas price cap. Germany has a strong responsibility for the EU’s dependence on Russian gas, Sikela said in an interview with the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. “If I strive for leadership, I have to respect the interests and abilities of those who are weaker. If we fail, it might not destroy the work of the whole year, but it could devalue it,” emphasized Sikela. Then there would be no winner, or if there was, Vladimir Putin. A few weeks ago, the EU Commission proposed a gas price cap of 275 euros per megawatt hour, but at the same time it was linked to such strict conditions that the cap would not have been activated even with the record prices this summer. The energy ministers are to decide at a special meeting on Tuesday.
+++ 21:23 Kharkiv’s Christmas tree is in the subway +++
The Christmas tree has been put up in the second largest city in Ukraine, Kharkiv. And not as always on the central Freedom Square, but due to the war in the subway station, which is directly below. The residents of the city can also celebrate New Year’s Eve on the platform – there will be a small concert. From December 19th there will also be performances for children at the Christmas tree. As the mayor of the city Ihor Terehov emphasizes, no money from the city budget has been spent on holding New Year’s events. All costs are therefore borne by sponsors.
For comparison, this is what the Kharkiv Christmas tree looked like in 2020:
(Photo: imago images/Vitalii Kliuiev)
And this is this year’s:
+++ 20:48 Macron expresses support for the Ukrainian peace plan +++
French head of state Emmanuel Macron has expressed his full support for the Ukrainian peace ideas. In a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Macron welcomed his peace plan, the Élysée Palace announced after the conversation. Selenskyj had repeatedly submitted a peace plan which, among other things, provides for the complete withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. Troops are also said to be withdrawing from the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which has been annexed since 2014. In addition, there are reparations payments, the legal processing of war crimes and security guarantees from the West for Ukraine.
+++ 20:08 Ukrainian Foreign Minister: So far no German commitment for tank delivery +++
According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, there are currently no German commitments to supply tanks to Ukraine. “Such a decision has not yet been made. There are no commitments. But we are working on it, quite openly,” says Kuleba on ARD. Ukraine does not understand why Germany is supplying artillery but not tanks. “As of now, there are projects from Germany, these are the delivery of the Iris-T systems, these are anti-aircraft weapons.” The Cheetah tanks are also anti-aircraft weapons. “But as of this writing, as far as I know, tanks are not included in that list. That’s a shame.” The Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, had previously said he had received promises in Berlin for further arms deliveries. “We will announce which ones together in due course,” Makeiev said in an interview with “Welt am Sonntag”.
You can read earlier developments in the Ukraine war here.