CNN
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Ukraine and Russia have exchanged large-scale drone and missile attacks, with both countries looking to gain the upper hand as President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches.
His arrival in the White House will soon mark his fourth year at the White House, as the next U.S. leader has pledged to bring the fighting to a quick end, but few details have been released about how he will achieve this. This brings great uncertainty to the upcoming full-scale invasion of Russia.
Overnight from Monday to Tuesday, Kiev carried out the “most extensive” offensive of the conflict so far, striking deep into Russia with drones and missiles, including six U.S.-made long-range ATACMS ballistic missiles, Ukrainian and Russian officials said. Russian officials said. Said.
Outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden last November gave the green light for Ukraine to use long-range U.S. missiles to attack Russian territory, a move Moscow sees as a serious escalation. .
The Russian government had previously warned that the use of the ATACM would be accompanied by the launch of Russia’s new weapon, a medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile known as Oreshnik. The missile has only been launched once so far, on November 21st.
Ukraine’s military said the barrage targeted military and oil facilities, and said such attacks would continue “until the Russian Federation’s armed aggression against Ukraine is completely stopped.”
Russia began shelling Ukraine overnight into Wednesday, primarily targeting Ukraine’s beleaguered energy sector.
Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy said more than 40 missiles were used in the overnight attack, 30 of which were destroyed. More than 70 Russian attack drones were also involved.
“It’s yet another major Russian attack. We’re in the middle of winter now, but Russia’s goal remains the same: our energy sector,” Zelenskyy said in a statement Wednesday.
“Subjects include gas infrastructure and energy facilities that ensure people’s normal life.”
The attack forced Ukraine’s state energy company Ukrenergo to temporarily cut off power supplies, a measure to prevent the energy system from collapsing. Power was reportedly restored by 9 a.m. local time on Wednesday.
Russia repeatedly attacked Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the cold winter months, forcing the country to implement emergency power outages.
The increase in strikes comes in the run-up to President Trump’s inauguration on January 20th.
In an interview with Russian newspaper Kommolskaya Pravda published on Tuesday, Nikolai Patrushev, an advisor to President Putin, rejected the idea that Russia might be prepared to cede occupied territory to Ukraine.
He also said that Ukraine could cease to exist as a sovereign state in 2025, without further explanation.
“We cannot rule out the possibility that Ukraine will cease to exist at all next year,” Patrushev said.
In a separate development, reports have emerged that an Australian national captured fighting for Ukraine may have been killed by Russia, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese saying if confirmed: He promised to take the strongest possible action.
Oscar Jenkins was captured by the Russian military last month, and a video was later released showing him wearing military uniform and being interrogated. Australian state broadcaster ABC and CNN affiliate Seven News both reported that a 32-year-old man may have been killed, citing Ukrainian sources.
