Leopard attack in Odesa, drones in Kazan, and outrage in Poland over UPA flags: December 21 highlights

Zelenskyy replaced 30 ambassadors

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has replaced ambassadors to a number of countries and international organizations. The day before, he announced that he had approved the replacement of 30 diplomatic representatives.

Fedir Shandor became the ambassador to Hungary. He was known as the "trench professor" because he conducted his lectures for his students while on duty.

Drones flew into an elite high-rise building in Kazan, Russia

In the city of Kazan, in the Russian Republic of Tatarstan, drones hit the upper floors of an elite residential complex. Tatarstan authorities say eight drone strikes have been reported, six of which hit residential buildings. In addition, one drone attacked an industrial enterprise.

Ukraine evacuated its citizens from Syria

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine evacuated 34 people from Syria, including 15 children.

In addition, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence helped Ukrainian writer, former Kremlin prisoner, and volunteer Stanislav Aseyev visit the Syrian prison of Sednayah, known as the "slaughterhouse for people" due to the horrific torture of prisoners during the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

The head of the CIA arrived in Ukraine for his last visit

Bill Burns visited Ukraine on his last visit as director of the American Central Intelligence Agency.

As President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated, such meetings are usually not publicly announced, and all of their meetings in Ukraine, Europe, the United States, and other parts of the world took place without official notification.

Transfer of military air defense to infantry: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine denies this

The British newspaper Guardian, citing sources, published an article stating that the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is allegedly ordering Ukrainian air defense units to transfer their soldiers to infantry due to a shortage of personnel.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine denied this information. The transfer reportedly does not concern air defense specialists who provide protection for Ukrainian skies.

UPA flags on military equipment angered Poles

Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz criticized the red-and-black UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army) flags that Ukrainian military personnel are attaching to Rosomak armored personnel carriers handed over by Poland.

According to the Polish President's Chancellery, Poland provided 100 such vehicles.

Ukrainian woman among victims in Magdeburg

A 52-year-old Ukrainian woman was injured in a car crash at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg. She is in serious condition.

As of the evening of December 21, five people were reported dead, including a nine-year-old child, and over 200 injured.

The suspect in the attack is a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who has lived in Germany for 18 years. He was a supporter of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and called himself "the most aggressive critic of Islam in history."

In Odesa, a leopard attacked a zoo employee

On the morning of December 21, a leopard injured a zoo employee in Odesa while he was cleaning his cage. The animal was later killed.

Police said they saw another worker in the leopard enclosure trying to help the injured animal. To protect people, officers were forced to neutralize the animal.

The zoo itself said that the animal allegedly ended up outside the enclosure due to a violation of safety rules.

Animal rights activists are demanding that law enforcement investigate all the circumstances surrounding the killing of the predator.

Fico accused Zelenskyy of offering bribes

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered him 500 million euros in Russian assets in exchange for voting for Ukraine's membership in NATO.

Earlier, Zelenskyy criticized Fico's proposal to extend the agreement on the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine. According to him, "it's a bit embarrassing to talk about money, because we are losing people."

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić also said that on Monday, December 23, Fico will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss gas transit.

A new checkpoint has opened on the border with Poland

The seventh checkpoint for the road connection Nyzhankovychi - Malhowice was opened on the Polish-Ukrainian border.

This project was first discussed in 2009, and construction began in 2021. The Polish side fully financed this project, worth 34 million euros. Ukraine built the access infrastructure.

Other news

• The Russians dropped KAB guided aerial bombs on a cancer center in Kherson: it was significantly damaged.
• Russian text has been removed from Ukrainian Railways tickets.
• In Kharkiv Oblast, Ukrainian military personnel conducted a fully robotic operation for the first time.
• The Mykolaivska Church in Kyiv, damaged during a Russian attack, will be restored according to authentic drawings.