Ukraine Daily

Sunday, January 8

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Metropolitan Epifaniy of Kyiv, Head of Ukraine church, leads an Orthodox Christmas service at Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery in Kyiv on Jan. 7, 2023. (Photo by Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images)

Orthodox Church of Ukraine holds church service at Kyiv Pechersk Lavra for the first time. Previously the entire Lavra was controlled by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, an affiliate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

UK Defense Ministry: Fighting continued at ‘routine level’ despite Russia’s supposed ceasefire over Orthodox Christmas. Russian troops continued the war in Ukraine at “a routine level” despite Moscow’s supposed ceasefire over Orthodox Christmas, with one of the fiercest fighting raging west of the occupied Kreminna in the eastern Luhansk Oblast, the U.K. Defense Ministry said.

Ukrainian border guards repel Russian attack near Bakhmut. Ukrainian border guards repelled the advance of Russian troops near Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, killing the unit’s commander, Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service reported on Jan. 7.

Ukrainian army says it still controls Soledar despite Russian assaults. The town of Soledar, near Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast, is still under Ukrainian control despite violent Russian assaults, Serhiy Cherevaty, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Eastern Group of Forces, said on Jan. 7.

ISW: Russian troops remain far from encircling Bakhmut. Russia’s recent offensive in Soledar in Donetsk Oblast does not indicate an imminent encirclement of Bakhmut, contrary to Russian propagandists’ claims that Russia had taken Soledar, the Institute for the Study of War said in its latest update.

Wagner head says why he wants Ukraine’s Bakhmut. The founder of Russia’s Wagner Group said on Jan. 7 that he wanted his forces and the regular Russian army to capture Ukraine’s eastern city of Bakhmut for its resources and “underground cities.”

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Intelligence: Russia may re-launch mobilization of conscripts on Jan. 15. Russia is planning to launch a new wave of mobilization of conscripts for the war against Ukraine on Jan. 15, Andriy Chernyak, a representative of Ukraine’s military intelligence, said on Jan. 7.

Zelensky announces further sanctions against ‘those who justify war.’ President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Jan. 7 that Ukraine will expand sanctions against Russian citizens and those affiliated with Moscow “who justify the war (against Ukraine), help to wage it, or glorify the terrorist state.”

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National Bank: Foreign reserves grew by 1.9% in December, still lower than pre-war level. According to the National Bank, Ukraine’s foreign reserves reached $28.5 billion as of Jan. 1. The number is still lower than the pre-full-scale war number of nearly $31 billion.

German official: Ramstein-8 summit to be held on Jan. 20. Ramstein summits are held to coordinate efforts to provide military aid to Ukraine. They were named after the Ramstain Air Base, where the first summit was held in April 2022.

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Ukrainians celebrate ‘double Christmas’ in the shadow of Russia’s brutal war.

Hundreds of kilometers from battles raging in the country’s east and south, Ukrainians in Kyiv celebrate Christmas twice to cherish precious moments with their loved ones.

Photo: Sameer Al-Doumy/AFP via Getty Images

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The human cost of Russia’s war

Russia ramps up attacks against civilians over Orthodox Christmas, kills at least 3. Russian troops continued to “terrorize” civilians across Ukraine despite the Kremlin’s supposed 36-hour ceasefire over Orthodox Christmas, killing at least three people and injuring 14.

General Staff: Russia has lost 110,740 troops in Ukraine since Feb. 24. Ukraine’s General Staff reported on Jan. 7 that Russia had also lost 3,066 tanks, 6,125 armored fighting vehicles, 4,798 vehicles and fuel tanks, 2,062 artillery systems, 431 multiple launch rocket systems, 217 air defense systems, 285 airplanes, 272 helicopters, 1,844 drones, and 16 boats.

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International response

CNN: Turkey working to extend ceasefire amid Russia’s full-scale war. Turkey is working to establish a long-term ceasefire in Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, according to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told CNN.

Finland to send new military aid package to Ukraine. Finnish Defense Minister Mikko Savola said on Jan. 7 that Finland was preparing its 12th package of military aid for Ukraine, without disclosing its content for security reasons.

La Repubblica: U.S. asks Italy to send air defense systems to Ukraine. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke on Jan. 6 with Francesco Talo, an advisor to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, asking Rome to supply Ukraine with air defense systems as soon as possible, according to La Repubblica.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Oleksiy Sorokin, Asami Terajima, Oleg Sukhov, Alexander Query, Teah Pelechaty, Dinara Khalilova, Anastasiya Gordiychuk, and Lili Bivings.

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