Russian irredentism

TOPSHOT - This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Emergency Service on Dec. 20, 2024 shows a building damaged as a result of a missile attack in Kiev, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Russian missiles targeted the Ukrainian capital Kiev at sunrise on Dec. 20, killing at least one person and cutting heating to hundreds of buildings in cold temperatures.

Keith Kellogg, appointed by US President-elect Donald Trump as the special representative for Ukraine and Russia, plans to visit Kyiv and other European capitals in January 2025. According to Reuters, Kellogg's European tour is still being finalized, but it is expected to include meetings with Ukrainian leaders in Kyiv, as well as with officials in Rome and Paris.

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russian forces are maintaining a strategic upper hand along the entire front line in eastern Ukraine, emphasizing that their offensive is gaining momentum. Speaking during a televised meeting with military leaders, Putin asserted that Russian troops hold the "strategic initiative" and have captured 189 Ukrainian settlements so far this year.

Ukraine said on Monday that its troops killed or wounded at least 30 North Korean soldiers who had been deployed by Russia to its western Kursk region, where Ukraine has seized territory.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Dec. 14 that Russia had begun deploying North Korean soldiers to storm Ukrainian positions in the Kursk region.

He spoke after Russian authorities said their firefighters were battling a blaze in the western Oryol region caused by a drone attack, with Ukraine saying it had hit a major oil terminal.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that Russia has begun deploying a significant number of North Korean soldiers in military operations, particularly in the Kursk region. Speaking during his evening address, Zelensky confirmed that these troops are being integrated into mixed combat groups exclusively for offensive maneuvers in the area.

Ukrainian forces shoot toward Russian positions at the front line in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022.

The Kremlin said Friday that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's opposition to Ukraine's use of U.S. weapons to hit Russia "fully aligned" with Moscow's position, hours after it launched a massive aerial barrage on Ukraine.

Europe must urgently awaken from its slumber and spend “much more” on its defense, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned today, stating that the continent is unprepared for the threat of war with Russia.

Europe urgently needs to wake up from its slumber and spend “much more” on its defence, NATO chief Mark Rutte warned today, saying it is unprepared for the threat of war with Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán for his phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin regarding the war in Ukraine.

“No one should promote their own image at the expense of unity (…) There can be no discussions about the war Russia is waging against Ukraine without Ukraine,” he wrote in a post on the X platform.