A Ukrainian soldier walks through the rubble after a Russian attack on Kiev (Illustration photo: Skynews/Shutterstock).
Ukraine retreats in Rabotino - Verbovoe
The RVvoenkory channel reported that Ukrainian forces in Rabotino - Verbovoy are facing great difficulties as Russia attacks on a large front, pushing the enemy back 4km.
Specifically, in the direction of Ukraine's previous main counterattack - in the Orekhov area of the Zaporizhia front - Russia continued to attack actively, knocking the enemy out of positions on the Kopani - Rabotino - Novoprokpovka - Verbovoe axis.
Ukrainian military analysts write about the difficult situation: "In the direction of Orekhov, Russian troops have seized a number of positions east of Novoprokopovka and west of Verbovoy in an area up to 7 km wide and up to 1.8 km deep. Russian armed forces continue active offensive operations. In total, in recent days, in some areas, Russia has advanced up to 4 km"
According to the Russian Defense Ministry , personnel and equipment of the 118th Infantry Brigade and the 82nd Airborne Infantry Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces suffered heavy losses in the settlements of Rabotino and Verbovoe.
Rybar also confirmed that the Russian army is conducting an offensive on the Rabotino - Verbovoe line, gaining control of an area up to 7km wide and 1.5km deep. Ukraine occasionally tries to counterattack, but all of them only lead to losses and have to retreat to their original positions.
Meanwhile, according to the Suriyakmaps channel, the Russian army regained most of the lost positions around the Surovikin defense line after the Ukrainian army withdrew from the Verbove area back to the first dragon's tooth line.
Map of the Ukrainian war in the Rabotino - Verbovoy region as of December 31. Russia controls the brown area, Ukraine holds the light yellow area, the arrows show the direction of Russia's attack and the newly captured area. The black line is Russia's "dragon's tooth" defense line (Photo: RVvoenkory).
Avdiivka continues fierce fighting
Rybar channel reported that Russian troops continue to surround Avdiivka, however, in recent days the front layout here has not changed: Russian assault units continue to fight in the Ocheretino, Novokalinovo and Stepovoe areas.
At the same time, in the Marinka region, the Russian army is preparing to resume fierce clashes. Moscow's forces are carrying out massive attacks on enemy strongholds in Georgievka, leveling Ukrainian fortifications.
Ukrainian media acknowledged small advances by Russian troops around Avdiivka.
Map of the Ukrainian war in northern Avdiivka as of December 31. Russia controls the red line, Ukraine holds the yellow line, the arrows show the direction of attack of Moscow's forces with the crossed red boxes showing where they have recently gained control (Photo: Telegram).
Ukraine strengthens defense
Rybar channel reported that in the direction of Slobozhanskoe , Ukrainian formations continue to strengthen defenses along the entire border area, the "dragon's teeth" fence has been installed in the Bogodukhovsky district of the Kharkov region. The Ukrainian command has proactively built several defense lines including anti-tank ditches, minefields, barbed wire and fortifications to be ready to retaliate if Russia launches a major offensive on this front.
The situation in the Starobelsk direction has not changed significantly. In the Kupyansk area, Russian troops continued to fight in the Sinkovka area, as well as attack Ukrainian positions on the opposite bank of the Oskol River. At the same time, in the south, Ukraine tried to break through the Russian defense line near Ivanovka.
Meanwhile, in the Liman region, the main clashes are still taking place in the Torskoe promontory and Serebryansky forest.
Russia breaks through Bogdanovka defenses, Ukraine retreats
Russia continued to attack Ukrainian positions on both the northern and southern flanks of Bakhmut.
In the northwest, Russia continued to penetrate Ukrainian defenses near Bogdanovka.
In the west, Russian troops are clearing the territory of the abandoned airfield and continuing the offensive in the direction of Krasnoe.
On the southern flank, the situation is similar: Russian troops hold a key position at height 215.7 and fire at the concentration of Ukrainian armed forces.
Ukraine has tried to slow down the Russian pressure but the situation is getting more difficult and admits that Russia has breached the defenses at Bogdanovka. There are reports of Kiev forces hastily retreating. The southern part of the village is being cleared. It is expected that the village will soon be completely under Russian control.
Map of the Ukrainian war in northern Bakhmut as of December 31. Russia controls the brown area, the red arrow shows the direction of their attack (Photo: Geroman).
Ukrainian General Staff reports on the war situation
Ukrainska Pravda reported that the summary of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the evening of December 31 said that in the past 24 hours, 42 clashes took place at the front.
"During the day, 42 clashes took place. In total, Russia launched 12 missiles, carried out 58 air strikes and 48 attacks from multiple launch rocket systems on our positions," the report said.
The General Staff said that Russia attacked in the directions of Kupyansk, Liman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Marinka, Shakhtarsky and Zaporizhia but was unsuccessful.
The enemy also tried to dislodge the Ukrainian units from their bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnieper. During the day the enemy made nine unsuccessful attacks on these positions.
Kiev says Russia lost 413 tanks, nearly 30,000 soldiers in one month
Russia lost more than 400 tanks, 533 artillery systems and nearly 30,000 soldiers in December, as the grueling fighting neared the two-year mark, according to new figures from the Ukrainian military, Newsweek reported.
Moscow's military has lost 359,230 soldiers since the start of the special military operation on February 24, 2022, the Ukrainian armed forces said on Sunday, December 31. At the beginning of December, the figure stood at 330,040 soldiers, meaning the Russian military has lost 29,190 fighters this month.
According to Kiev, Russia also lost 413 tanks and 533 artillery systems during December.
Newsweek reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email but has not yet received a response.
The Kremlin did not comment on Kiev's reported casualties, but on Saturday, Russia said 660 Ukrainian soldiers had been eliminated in the past day.
Newsweek could not independently verify either figure.
Patriot air defense missile system made in the US (Photo: US Army).
Ukraine says success rate of shooting down aerial targets reaches 85%
Ukrainian Air Force Commander Nikolai Oleschuk said the air force shot down 85% of Russian missiles and drones, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
General Oleschuk wrote on Telegram that Ukraine has destroyed 1,709 missiles of various types since February 24, 2022, with the specific shootdown rate as follows: 1,045 out of 1,360 Kh-101/555/55 missiles launched by Russia; 397/834 Kalibr cruise missiles; 62/154 Iskander-K ballistic missiles; 3,095/3,940 Shahed-136/131 attack UAVs.
According to Mr. Oleschuk: "The rate of shooting down air attack weapons (cruise missiles and attack UAVs) is now about 85%!... A number of outstanding operations were carried out (in 2023) to destroy Russian aircraft attacking Ukraine with guided bombs and other means of destruction".
Ukraine General Staff: Russia lost 330,040 troops
The Kyiv Independent reported that the Ukrainian General Staff released its latest report on December 31, saying that Russia has lost 359,230 soldiers in Ukraine since the conflict began on February 24, 2022. This figure includes 960 casualties suffered by Russian forces in the past day alone.
Russia also reportedly lost 5,977 tanks, 11,070 armored fighting vehicles, 11,292 vehicles and fuel tanks, 8,464 artillery systems, 943 multiple launch rocket systems, 623 air defense systems, 329 aircraft, 324 helicopters, 6,591 UAVs, 23 ships and 23 boats and one submarine.
Almost 50% of Ukrainians think events are going in the right direction
According to a survey conducted by the Razumkov Center sociological agency together with the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation, about 45% of Ukrainians believe that events in Ukraine are moving in the right direction, while 33% have the opposite opinion, Kyiv Post reported.
The results of the survey published by Ukrinform show that after the outbreak of the conflict, the proportion of people who believe that events in Ukraine are moving in the right direction has increased significantly. In December 2021, this figure was 20%, and in September-October 2022 it was 51%. The highest level was 61% in February-March of this year. Now this figure has dropped to 45%.
According to the poll, 32% of respondents believe that Ukraine will be able to overcome its existing problems and difficulties in the next few years, 45% believe that the state will be able to overcome its problems in the long term, and 7% believe that Ukraine will not be able to solve its existing problems. The rest remain undecided.
The survey was conducted from December 8 to 15. A total of 2,019 respondents over the age of 18 were interviewed in areas controlled by the Ukrainian government and where there was no conflict. The poll's margin of error does not exceed 2.3 percentage points.
Mr. Zelensky: Ukraine must have "enough potential" to achieve its goals
In a social media post, President Zelensky said Ukraine must have “enough potential” to achieve its goals regardless of “political changes or moods” in other countries, the Guardian reported.
“We will fight for our influence and for justice for Ukraine, and I am grateful to all the leaders who have supported us, who have been with us since February 24 and will stand with us in 2024,” he added.
President Biden Should List 8 Major Accomplishments of the Year, Including Ukraine
Ukrainska Pravda reported that US President Joe Biden listed eight key achievements of his administration in 2023: among them is "support for allies and partners" in Ukraine and Israel.
US President Biden shook hands with his Ukrainian counterpart Zelensky at the White House on December 12 (Photo: Bloomberg/Getty Images).
Regarding domestic policy, the US President mentioned achievements such as controlling inflation and living costs, especially in areas such as health care, rental housing, Internet costs, etc.
Also among his domestic policy accomplishments, Mr. Biden listed steps to address climate change, stimulate investment in the United States, protect reproductive health, policies to curb gun violence, reduce the cost of higher education and appoint high-quality judges.
Mr. Biden devoted a paragraph to "strengthening democracy at home and abroad" such as "standing up for our allies and partners in Israel, Ukraine and around the world."
UK Ministry of Defense declares stand with Ukraine
The Guardian reported that the British Ministry of Defense sent a New Year's Eve message of support to Ukraine, accompanied by a performance of the song "Lean on Me".
In a social media post, the UK Ministry of Defence wrote: "Happy New Year to our friends at @Defenceu. Our support for your fight for freedom will not change in 2024. Stand with Ukraine."
According to Newsweek, Guardian, Kyiv Post, Kyiv Independent, Ukrainska Pravda, Rybar, Geroman, RVvoenkory
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