Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated his demand for the delivery of air defense systems. The news ticker on war diplomacy.
- Zelenskyj demands air defense systems: President wants the West to ‘up the pressure’
- Putin advises with military representatives: At a meeting on Friday, Putin exchanged views with representatives of the armed forces on what is happening in Ukraine throughout the day.
- This News ticker to diplomatic developments in the Ukraine war is constantly updated.
Update from December 17, 6:45 p.m.: In view of the ongoing Russian attacks on his country’s infrastructure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has reiterated his demand for the delivery of air defense systems. The West must “increase the pressure” on Russia, the head of state said in his video speech on Saturday night. His country urgently needs anti-aircraft missiles. After the massive shelling of the previous day, many places worked on Saturday to restore electricity and water supplies.
At least five people were killed in new Russian attacks, according to Ukrainian sources. In the central Dnipropetrovsk region, four people were killed and 15 others injured, said the deputy chief of the presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko. One person died and three were injured in the Cherson region in the south. According to the governor of Kherson, Yaroslav Yanuchevich, a geriatric center was also hit, but there were no casualties there.
According to the Ukrainian army, 74 rockets were fired by the Russian armed forces on Friday. According to Zelenskyj, there were power outages in the capital Kyiv and 14 other regions as a result.
Moscow: New sanctions by the European Union are illegitimate and not effective
Update from December 17, 6:17 p.m.: Moscow has condemned the European Union’s new Russia sanctions as illegitimate and ineffective. These “restrictive, unilateral and illegitimate measures” would not achieve their goal, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday. The ninth package of sanctions was published in the Journal of the EU on Friday and thus came into force.
The new punitive measures against Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine were agreed by the EU ambassadors on Thursday. According to the EU Commission, almost 200 other institutions and those responsible are subject to asset and entry bans in Europe. In addition, trade restrictions will be expanded and further Russian banks will be sanctioned.
Water supply and metro services restored in Kyiv
Update from December 17, 5:23 p.m.: Water supply and metro services have been restored in Kyiv. At the same time, Ukrainians continued to work to restart heating in the capital a day after a barrage of Russian missiles slammed into the city.
“The water supply has been restored for all residents of the capital. Half of Kyiv’s residents already have heating and we are working to restore it for all residents of the city,” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a post on Telegram on Saturday. Klitschko also said that two-thirds of Kyiv residents had regained electricity.
“But emergency power outage schedules are still being applied,” Klitschko added. “Because the power shortage is severe. Energy engineers are demanding to continue saving electricity.”
Ukrainian state energy company ends “emergency operation”
Update from December 17, 4:57 p.m.: The Ukrainian state energy company ends the “emergency operation” activated after Russian attacks. Which he activated on Friday after the wave of Russian attacks on the country’s infrastructure, as the company published on Facebook on Saturday.
The company said in a statement that Ukraine’s electricity system continues to recover after Friday’s attack on the country and the electricity deficit is “still significant”, with all regional electricity companies warned of consumption limits.
“Thermal power plants are gradually resuming work, hydroelectric power plants continue to work according to plan,” the company said. “Emergency repair work is being carried out on the power plants damaged by shelling.” On Friday, Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said nine power generation plants were damaged in Friday’s attacks, without specifying where.
Ukraine war: Putin meets with his staff
Update from December 17, 1:39 p.m.: On Friday (December 16), according to the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin met with the staff involved in the “special military operation” in Ukraine, AFP reported. The meeting is said to have taken place throughout the day, the Kremlin said on Saturday. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov also attended one of the meetings.
There were also “separate meetings” with the commanders of the various branches of the armed forces. The status of the military operation was exchanged throughout the day. “I would like to hear your suggestions on our short and medium-term actions,” Putin said at the meeting. Excerpts from the meeting were broadcast on Russian state television on Saturday.
Scholz promises talks with Putin to end the Ukraine war
First report from December 17th:
Berlin — Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has promised further talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the Ukraine war. The German head of government explained this to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. “Our goal is for Russia to end its war of aggression and for Ukraine to defend its integrity,” said Scholz. For this it would be “necessary to speak,” the Chancellor continued. “Whether that’s done by phone, video link or at a long table remains to be seen.”
Scholz holds out the prospect of talks with Putin – the Kremlin boss must “understand that things cannot go on like this”
The Chancellor assessed the risk of a further escalation in the Ukraine war by Russia as “great”. This is mainly due to the military failures of the Russian army in recent months. The Russian armed forces were hardly able to carry out any offensive actions during this period and are currently focusing on attacks on the Ukrainian energy supply. The non-fighting retreat from the strategically important port city of Cherson represented the interim climax of this development.
Russia must “recognize that things cannot go on like this,” said Scholz. Putin must “end the war, withdraw troops and thus create the opportunity for mutual understanding”. The appeal could only be: “Putin, end this war.”
Ukraine war: Scholz is pushing for a diplomatic solution
At the beginning of December, Scholz had called his Russian counterpart for the first time since mid-September. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit subsequently explained that the Chancellor had pushed for a diplomatic solution during the hour-long conversation. (fd with dpa)
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