Ukraine Breaking News Today Live on 12-15-2024

The tankers, identified as Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239, were battered by a strong storm, with one reportedly breaking in half.

Two Russian tankers carrying thousands of tons of petroleum products sank in the Kerch Strait during severe weather, leaving one sailor confirmed dead and several others missing.

The tankers, identified as Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239, were battered by a strong storm, with one reportedly breaking in half.

Georgia’s lawmakers have elected an anti-Western President amid mass protests.

Georgian opposition parties are urging the EU to impose immediate sanctions on their country’s leadership, as mass anti-government protests continue in Tbilisi.

An appeal signed by four party leaders claims that Georgia is “on the verge of an unprecedented political crisis” after more than two weeks of rallies against the ruling Georgian Dream party’s decision to halt EU accession talks.

Russian forces are focusing on capturing Kurakhove, a frontline town in the Donetsk region, and the nearby Kurakhove Reservoir to establish a bridgehead for an assault on Pokrovsk.

Russian military on Saturday, Dec. 14, reportedly raised the flag of the Russian Federation on the administration building in Kurakhove, a city in the Pokrovsky district of Ukraine’s Donetsk region.

The video, shared by Russian military correspondent Grigory Vdovin on his Telegram channel, shows two soldiers entering the city council building before placing the flag on the second floor. According to Meduza outlet, the building’s coordinates confirm the location.

What’s the dress code for defending a nation?

It’s holiday season again, which means we are confronted by that age-old question: what should I wear to the defense of the free world? Is the attire to be business casual or is it acceptable to stop genocide in a cashmere sweater with a nice pair of trousers? Decisions, decisions. There is a certain coterie of people who seem exercised that the President of Ukraine insists on turning up to such events without a suit and tie.

His cities are being bombed daily, he must consider strategies to prevent the destruction of his country, and he has ceremonies to attend to honor those who have given their lives to defend their land. Yet he can’t even find time to choose a tie color or get a suit fitted? The audacity. What on Earth is going on?

The situation for Ukraine is presently complex. However, Iuliia Mendel says that she has strong faith in the Ukrainian people, no matter what the future holds.

The world in focus, as seen by a Canadian leading global affairs analyst, writer and speaker, in his review of international media.

A newly minted and massive Iranian drone carrier was captured in new satellite images sailing in the Persian Gulf this week — the ship’s first reported sighting since leaving its home port for the first time in mid-November. The satellite images taken Thursday by commercial operator Maxar Technologies shows three Iranian drone ships in the waters off the country’s coast as theories have swirled in the US that Iran could be behind the mysterious drone sightings across the tri-state area, according to Business Insider. Iran’s new carrier — the Shahid Bagheri — is a converted shipping container that was outfitted to support drone operations and was last seen on Nov. 12, when it was captured by satellite imagery sitting in Bandar Abbas, the report said. News of the Shahid Bagheri’s whereabouts came days after speculation that an Iranian drone “mothership” was parked out in the Atlantic and was carrying out clandestine drone operations in the airspace of New Jersey and Staten Island - NY Post

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Saturday that American officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that spearheaded the overthrow of President Bashar Assad’s government but is designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States and others. Blinken is the first U.S. official to publicly confirm contacts between the Biden administration and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, which led a coalition of armed opposition groups that ousted Assad from power last Sunday. Speaking at a news conference in Aqaba, Jordan, Blinken would not discuss details of the contacts but said it was important for the U.S. to convey messages to the group about its conduct and how it intends to govern in a transition period. “Yes, we have been in contact with HTS and with other parties,” Blinken said. He added that “our message to the Syrian people is this: We want them to succeed and we’re prepared to help them do so.” - AP

A multi-stage operation sabotaged tracks and used HIMARS strikes, crippling logistics and key railway links.

In a multi-stage operation, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) and defense forces struck a significant blow to Russian logistics in the occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia on Saturday, Dec. 14, sources within the SBU told Kyiv Post.

According to those sources, the mission, executed in collaboration with the operational grouping of troops "Tavria," Ukraine's Military Intelligence (HUR), Special Operations Forces (SSO), and Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), targeted a key fuel supply route from Crimea.

Germany has convicted several Assad government officials under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows for trials regardless of where the offences were committed.

German ministers on Sunday said supporters of fallen president Bashar al-Assad's government would face justice in Germany if they fled to the country after the toppling of the Syrian strongman.

"We will hold all of the regime's henchmen to account for their terrible crimes with the full force of the law," Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told the weekly Bild am Sonntag.

Unlike during his first term, Trump takes office with America engaged in two wars. One involving an ally, Israel, and one a country whose security we pledged to support, Ukraine.

At noon on Jan. 20, 2025, Donald Trump will become president for the second time. Unlike during his first term, Trump takes office with America engaged in two wars. One involving an ally, Israel, and one a country whose security we pledged to support, Ukraine.

Trump campaigned saying he would negotiate an end to the Ukraine war. Unlike former President Richard Nixon, who promised “peace with honor” in extricating the United States from the Vietnam quagmire but delivered instead a messy American exit from Saigon (an exit that was unparalleled in its chaotic quality until President Joe Biden’s Afghanistan fiasco), Trump hasn’t overpromised on how he will end Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Despite the withdrawal from certain positions, Russia has maintained communication channels with both the new Syrian authorities and rebel forces.

Russia has begun withdrawing its military forces from frontline positions in northern Syria and posts in the Alawite mountains following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime.

However, Moscow will retain its presence at two major military installations—Khmeimim Air Base in Latakia Province and the Naval Base in Tartus, according to a Reuters report citing four anonymous Syrian officials.

Ukrainian President said he had instructed his government to set up supply mechanisms to deliver together with international organizations and partners food to Syria.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday he had instructed his government to set up supply mechanisms to deliver together with international organizations and partners food to Syria in the aftermath of the fall of President Bashar al-Assad.

Ukraine has been one of the world's top grain and oilseeds exporters, and has been exporting wheat and corn to Middle Eastern countries, but not to Syria.

The attack reportedly targeted an OMON base, the Chechen Interior Ministry’s 2nd regiment, and a military base tied to the Russian war effort.

Explosions rocked Grozny, the capital of Russia's Chechnya, early Sunday morning, Dec. 15, in what Russian Telegram channels are reporting as Ukrainian drone strikes.

The opposition Chechen Telegram channel NIYSO reported at least five explosions in the city. It claimed that the attacks targeted key facilities, including an OMON riot police base, the 2nd regiment of the Chechen Interior Ministry’s patrol and guard service, and a military base linked to the Russian war effort.

Ukraine has been targeting fuel depots in Russia in retaliation for Moscow’s bombardments that have wreaked massive damage on its power generation network.

Russian authorities said Saturday that firefighters were battling a blaze caused by a drone attack in the western Oryol region after Ukraine said it struck a major oil terminal there.

Ukraine has been targeting fuel depots in Russia in retaliation for Moscow's bombardments that have wreaked massive damage on its power generation network.

Assad’s fall, Russia’s humiliation, and the rise of a nominally Islamist power in Syria may have opened a Pandora’s box. The coming months could bring any number of unexpected scenarios.

With huge Russian losses in Syria, culminating in Assad’s flight to Russia, the world takes stock. The big unknown is the true ideological inclination of the newly empowered rebel movement. Several powers are weakened – the Assad regime was destroyed; Russia was humiliated; and Iran lost its logistical supply lines to its proxy, Hezbollah. Two countries made immediate gains: Israel faces a further weakened Hezbollah to its north, and Ukraine benefits from Russia’s humiliation. All the world sees more clearly that Russia's military and Iran are overstretched. 

However much some may revel in Assad’s flight to Russia, the serious instabilities and unintended consequences are palpable. Nobody can be sure of the full consequences, but we can make educated guesses. Iran and Russia’s immediate responses must be of three types: shock, fear, and damage control. ISIS sees opportunity, to which the US and Israel are responding with pre-emptive strikes to destroy weapons depots and production sites that could otherwise fall to ISIS.

In the first of two exclusive dispatches from Ukraine, Lord Ashcroft hears about the brave women serving their country, including former music industry worker Hanna Vasyk.

As a self-confessed hippy who enjoyed a career in music and the arts, Hanna Vasyk makes an unlikely soldier. With her striking features and fondness for jewellery – including a gold-hoop nose piercing – the peace-loving former music industry worker looks as though she might be more at home on the catwalk than the battlefield.

First appearances, however, are deceptive. And although for a time Hanna feared she lacked the courage to serve on the frontline, or whether she could face the loss of freedom required to be in the military, those self-doubts were misplaced.