Live blog: Kiev aims for a peace summit in February: Ukraine

Monday, December 26, 2022

Ukraine aims for a peace summit in  February: Foreign minister

Ukraine's foreign minister has that his government is aiming to have a peace summit by the end of February, preferably at the United Nations with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a possible mediator, around the anniversary of Russia's war.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Russia could only be invited to such a summit if the country faced a war crimes tribunal first. “Every war ends in a diplomatic way," he said. “Every war ends as a result of the actions taken on the battlefield and at the negotiating table.”

Kuleba said that Ukraine will do whatever it can to win the war in 2023, adding that diplomacy always plays an important role.

Kazakhstan provides 41 generators for Ukrainian hospitals

Kazakhstan donated 41 generators to be used in Ukrainian hospitals, the war-hit country's Health Ministry announced.

"They will be transferred to regions that are under attack by Russian aggressors and where they are most needed — in Mykolaiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv," the ministry said in a statement on Facebook late on Sunday.

Health Minister Viktor Liashko said each of the generators would help provide uninterrupted power to operating rooms, intensive care units, and oxygen stations, the statement added. "The batch of generators was delivered thanks to the work of the inter-parliamentary friendship group 'Ukraine-Kazakhstan' chaired by People's Deputy Serhiy Nagornyak," it noted.

Ukraine seeks India's help with 'peace formula'

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiyy said he sought India's help with implementing a "peace formula" in a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The conversation comes at a time when India is seeking to strengthen trade relations with Moscow while Western nations introduce new measures to limit Russia's funding of the war.

"I had a phone call with PM Narendra Modi and wished a successful G20 presidency," Zelenskiyy wrote on Twitter. "It was on this platform that I announced the peace formula and now I count on India's participation in its implementation."

Ukrainian power grid operator introduces emergency shutdowns in multiple regions

Ukraine's sole power grid operator said that it introduced emergency shutdowns in multiple regions across the country, including the capital Kiev, due to an excess of energy consumption.

"Currently, due to exceeding consumption limits, emergency shutdowns have been introduced in the Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Lviv, and Kiev regions, and in the city of Kiev," Ukrenergo announced on Telegram. It also said repair work is ongoing at generation facilities and several power grids have been damaged as a result of nine Russian attacks recently.

"Due to the scale and complexity of the damage, restoring the equipment and functioning of a number of key facilities requires considerable time … Operators are doing everything possible to improve the situation with electricity supply in the country," a Ukrenergo statement said. It also noted that the capacity deficit in Ukraine's power system remains significant.

Russia killed Ukraine 'saboteurs' trying to cross border

Russia's FSB domestic security service said it had killed a group of saboteurs from Ukraine that attempted to cross into a Russian border region.

"As a result of a clash on December 25, 2022, four saboteurs, who attempted to enter the territory of Bryansk region from Ukraine, were killed," the FSB said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies.

A video shared by news agencies and attributed to the FSB showed several bloodied bodies sprawled on the ground, wearing winter camouflage and carrying guns.

Kiev's Botanical Garden struggles to save its tropical plants

In the lush greenhouses of Kiev's National Botanical Garden, staffs are struggling to save a decades-old collection of tropical plants after months of Russian attacks on Ukraine's power grid led to electricity outages, threatening the garden's heating supply.

"These collections cannot be restored. This is not a greenhouse with cucumbers and tomatoes... The loss of this collection would be a great national loss for Ukraine," said Lyudmyla Buiun, responsible for tropical and subtropical plants.

Ukrainian drone downed at Russian air base, 3 killed

Russian air defence troops have downed a Ukrainian drone as it approached an air base in southern Russia and three people died after being struck by debris, Russian news agencies said. 

It was the second attack on the Engels base this month. Engels, in the southern Saratov region, lies more than 600 kilometres from Ukraine. 

"On December 26, at around 01:35 Moscow time (2235 GMT), a Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down at low altitude while approaching the Engels military airfield in the Saratov region," the TASS news agency reported, quoting the defence ministry.

Ukraine to call for Russia's removal from UN Security Council

Ukraine is planning to call for Russia to be removed as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.

"Tomorrow we will officially express our position. We have a very simple question: Does Russia have the right to remain a permanent member of the UN Security Council and to be in the United Nations at all?" he said, speaking during a national television marathon.

"We have a convincing and reasoned answer – no, it does not."

Kuleba said the question of Russia's veto-wielding permanent seat in the UN Security Council – also held by the United States, Britain, France and China – was already being discussed around diplomacy circles.

Putin says West wants to 'tear apart' Russia

President Vladimir Putin has blasted the West for trying to "tear apart" Russia and said in an interview aired on national television that his offensive in Ukraine aimed to "unite the Russian people".

Putin has used the concept of "historical Russia" to argue that Ukrainians and Russians are one people -- undermining Kiev's sovereignty and justifying his 10-month offensive in Ukraine.

He said Russia's "geopolitical opponents (were) aiming to tear apart Russia, the historical Russia".

Ukraine must be ready for any scenario: Zelenskyy

Ukraine’s president said that they will continue to fight for victory and be ready for any scenario, despite energy problems due to Russian attacks

Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the nation in a video message on Telegram, congratulating those who celebrate Christmas.

“There are a few days left in this year. We must be aware that our enemy will try to make this time dark and difficult for us . Russia has lost everything this year but is trying to make up for its losses with the pride of his propagandists after the missile attacks on our country, on our energy,” he said.

“I know that the darkness will not prevent us from leading the invaders to new defeats, but we must be ready for any scenario.”

Russia's nuclear arms stop West from declaring war - Putin ally

Russia's nuclear arsenal and the rules Moscow has laid out for its use are the only factors preventing the West from starting a war against Russia, a top ally of President Vladimir Putin said.

Former President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, also said in an article Moscow would pursue its war in Ukraine until the "disgusting, almost fascist regime" in Kiev was removed and the country had been totally demilitarised.

In an interview aired separately on Sunday, Putin said Russia is ready to negotiate with all parties involved in the war, but said that Kiev and its Western backers have refused to engage in talks.

Belarus says Russia-deployed Iskander missile systems ready for use

The Iskander tactical missile systems and the S-400 air defence systems that Russia has deployed to Belarus are fully prepared to perform their intended tasks, a senior Belarusian defence ministry official said.

"Our servicemen, crews have fully completed their training in the joint combat training centres of the armed forces of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus," Leonid Kasinsky, head of the Main Directorate of Ideology at the ministry, said in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app.

"These types of weapons (Iskander and S-400 systems) are on combat duty today and they are fully prepared to perform tasks for their intended purpose."

For live updates from Sunday (December 25), click here.