Fighting during the "truce" and forecasts of power outages: last night's highlights
Russian troops continued fighting despite Putin's “Christmas truce”, and energy officials suggested that Kyiv will not avoid power cuts this weekend due to cold weather. Here is what you may have missed from the previous night.
Fighting during the “truce”
Despite the so-called Christmas ceasefire declared by the Russian side along the entire frontline in Ukraine, the occupying forces continued to conduct hostilities, the US Department of Defense stated. The head of the Luhansk Regional Military Administration Serhii Haidai also said that despite the “ceasefire” declared by the Kremlin, shelling and attempts to attack Ukrainian positions “have been and continue”.
Mastering Patriot systems
Training of Ukrainian troops on the use of Patriot air defense systems will begin in January 2023 and will last several months. The United States is considering the possibility of training Ukrainians directly in the United States, or abroad, or combining both options.
The United States government has developed a special accelerated training program for the Ukrainian military to deploy the first Patriot system in Ukraine in less than six months.
Power outages in Kyiv
Director General of the energy supply company Yasno Serhii Kovalenko said that most likely, the capital will not avoid power outages on the weekend of January 7-8 due to a significant cold snap. He explained that every minus 5 degrees outside is an additional 250 MW of consumption.
Statistics on the use of missiles by Russia
Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov published statistics on the use of missiles by the occupiers since February 24, 2022. Before the full-scale invasion, Russia had 900 Iskander ballistic missiles, 500 Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles, and 444 Kh-101 and Kh-555 air-launched missiles.
Currently, Russian troops have 144 Iskander missiles left. And the Russians have 59 Kalibr missiles left — this is 9% of the number as of February 24, taking into account the 150 units Russia produced during the full-scale war. Moreover, the occupiers have 118 Kh-101/Kh-555 missiles left.
Russia wants to mobilize another half a million people
The representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Vadym Skibitskyi said that Russia wants to mobilize another 500,000 people in January. The Main Intelligence Directorate expects a new mobilization wave will be announced on January 15. Earlier, Russia announced about 300 thousand people mobilized in October.
Intelligence expects that the Russians will attack in Donetsk and Kharkiv Oblasts, and possibly in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, but will defend in Kherson Oblast and Crimea. Half a million people are the number that Russia will need for such a task.
Other news:
- In Kyiv, about 3 thousand law enforcement officers will ensure the rule of law on the Christmas holidays. The police are also preparing for the service in the Dormition Cathedral of the Lavra.
- Defense Minister of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov called Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin before the eighth meeting in the Ramstein format.
- Mykolaiv received 280 generators donated by the United Kingdom. This became possible thanks to the staff of the Embassy of Ukraine.
- In Bucha, with the support of the Embassy of Kazakhstan, a “yurt of invincibility” was opened, which has a heating point in case of a blackout.
- In Kyiv, 15 cultural and historical sites were digitized. Now they can be viewed in augmented reality (AR) format.
- The vast majority of Polish citizens are in favor of political and military support for Ukraine until its complete victory over Russia, even if it takes several years. Among Germans, opinions on this issue are almost equally divided.