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Stay on top of Russia-Ukraine war 01-12-2025 developments on the ground with KyivPost fact-based news, exclusive video footage, photos and updated war maps.
Since being sent to Ukraine as part of the US April 2022 $800 million aid package, the venerable M113 APC has become the invaluable workhorse for Kyiv’s armed forces.
When the US National Guard began to remove M113 tracked armored personnel carriers (APCs) from storage to send them to Ukraine as part of the eighth presidential drawdown package (PDA) in April 2022, both Russian and Ukrainian mass media and milbloggers labelled it as another example of Washington “clearing out its rubbish.”
Even the Ukrainian military and politicians treated the allocation with scorn. Members of Ukraine’s armed forces (AFU) were quoted as complaining they had been trained to operate US Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (IFV) in Germany but on their return to Ukraine were only equipped with “ancient” M113s.
A new book by Gregory W. Slayton & Sergei Ivashenko is an important contribution to fully understanding Ukraine’s current struggle for freedom and what motivates her people
Seldom does a book appear that provides as comprehensive and well organized a treatment of its subject matter as does Portraits of Ukraine by Gregory W. Slayton & Sergei Ivashenko. The authors present an excellent overview of Ukraine in a highly readable volume complemented with photos and descriptions that serve to strengthen the overall narrative.
The 280-page book is packed with 310 beautiful and often dramatic images. At a time when Ukraine is viewed solely through the prism of the horrors and tragedies of the Russian invasion, it is good to see a book that presents Ukraine’s long history, its struggles and victories, the resolve and determination of its people, and the fabulous beauty and cultural heritage of the country. As such, it is an important contribution to fully understanding Ukraine’s current struggle for freedom and what motivates her people, a theme that runs throughout the book.
Where Putin is, there religious freedom ends
Traditionally, since 1991, Ukraine has been among the countries where there were no global and systematic problems in the field of religious freedom. It did not fall into the lists of violators of freedom of conscience. However, the war, especially its acute stage, which began on Feb. 24, 2022, significantly affected the state of religious freedom, giving rise to a number of challenges in this area.
So what is happening with religious freedom in Ukraine? Is religious freedom decreasing in Ukraine? YES, religious freedom in Ukraine is decreasing. The field of its action directly depends on the disposition of the Russian and Ukrainian armies at the front. As soon as the Russians seize new settlements, the territory of freedom, including religious freedom, decreases.
The shipment is a part of the “Grain from Ukraine” initiative under the UN’s World Food Programme that aims to beat hunger around the world.
Syria received 500 tons of flour as a UN humanitarian aid for the first time since Bashar al-Assad fled Syria and the new government was established.
This was reported by Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha, and Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Vitaliy Koval, the government’s press release wrote on Saturday.
However, recent reports and analysis suggest that Moscow is progressing in drone navigation and guidance, potentially with onboard artificial intelligence (AI).
Russian drones used artificial intelligence (AI) to defeat electronic warfare (EW) defenses, recent reports claimed.
“[Russia is] even using AI to make it more difficult to jam their Shahed drones,” Kyiv’s EU Ambassador Vsevolod Chentsov told Politico in late December.
Iryna Mudra, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. Why might does not make right.
The year 2024 showed that Ukraine and the world have been moving along two parallel tracks: “diplomacy of justice” and “diplomacy of interests,” and these tracks do not intersect. It is like two parallel tracks on which oncoming trains run, but the difference between two geometric parallel lines and tracks is that at the nearest station the tracks can intersect, while geometric parallels never do.
It turns out that in addition to the war at the front against the Russian army, Ukraine is forced to repeatedly prove that “justice” in achieving peace is a key concept not only in terms of restoring the importance of international law, but also in showing that tacit acknowledgement of the consequences of aggression leads to its continuation.
A UTair flight from Moscow to Dubai had to make an emergency landing back at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport on Saturday, Jan. 11.
A UTair flight from Moscow to Dubai had to make an emergency landing back at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport on Saturday, Jan. 11, The Moscow Times reported. It marks the fourth incident of a Russian airline plane breaking down since the start of 2025—and the second for UTair in just a week.
UTair stated that the emergency return was caused by “a change in the level of hydraulic fluid.” The plane, carrying 240 passengers, turned back near Baku and landed safely in Moscow.
Putin awarded Corporal Andrei Grigoryev the Hero of Russia medal after a widely posted video showed him violently killing a Ukrainian opponent in hand-to-hand combat.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday awarded a soldier with the country’s highest honour for bravery after a widely posted video showed him killing a Ukrainian opponent in hand-to-hand combat.
Putin awarded Corporal Andrei Grigoryev the Hero of Russia medal for his “courage and heroism”, the Kremlin said in a statement.
Greenland, a largely autonomous Danish territory, as well as the Panama Canal, were both needed “for economic security,” Trump said, refusing to rule out using military muscle to take them by force.
Colonial talk is back.
With the countdown to US President-elect Donald Trump returning to the White House, Europeans have discussed for months how to avoid ending up on his menu.
Switzerland isn’t the only option. Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico has also offered to host a Trump-Putin meeting.
Switzerland says it’s ready to host a meeting between US President-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to talk about ending the war in Ukraine. Nicolas Bidault, a top official at Switzerland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the country is happy to provide a neutral meeting spot if both sides ask for it.
“Since the Burgenstock summit, we’ve let Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. know we’re ready to support any efforts that help bring peace,” Bidault told Le Temps.
With Belarus facing another rigged election, Tsikhanouskaya urged the global community to remain steadfast in their policy of “delegitimization” and to strengthen sanctions against the regime.
In an interview with TVP World, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, leader of the Belarusian opposition in exile, called for unwavering international support to counter Alexander Lukashenko’s authoritarian regime.
With Belarus facing another rigged election, Tsikhanouskaya urged the global community to remain steadfast in their policy of “delegitimization” and to strengthen sanctions against the regime.
Kyiv has clamped down on draft evasion in recent months.
The Ukrainian National Police dismantled nearly 50 smuggling rings trafficking draft-age men across the border during a major 24-hour operation.
Launched on Saturday, the operation included over 600 searches, resulting in 60 criminal charges against individuals involved in organizing and participating in illegal smuggling schemes.
Children on the front line must cope not only with the constant bombing, they also have to deal with lack of services and education, as well as the pervasive fear that will mark them forever.
In Druzhkivka, a town just 11 miles from the front line, the distant sound of bombs was a constant backdrop as children ran and played on the playground outside. Overhead, the hum of drones blended with the chatter of families gathered at a community center, now repurposed as a shelter in the Donetsk region. Members of Dobra Sprava and LOVE UA hosted the event, bringing gifts, treats, and adults dressed in festive costumes to entertain the kids. Once families emerge from hiding, volunteers document their details to keep track of who remains in the area.
Funded by Ukraine Trust Chain, a US-registered nonprofit, the gathering drew dozens of mothers and grandparents who came with their children and grandchildren. These events for children aren’t just meant to make them happy during wartime. They also help volunteers keep track of how many kids live in the area and where they stay, so they can evacuate them if needed. Over 100 children still live in this area near the front in the Donetsk region. Without these events, many families remain hidden, leaving volunteers unaware of who needs evacuation until it’s too late.
Seoul pledged to collaborate with Ukraine’s intelligence agency to monitor North Korean involvement in the war.
North Koreans in Ukraine, Kursk, South Korea
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) has confirmed Ukraine’s account of capturing two injured North Korean soldiers in Russia, lending weight to Kyiv’s claims. According to the NIS, the soldiers were apprehended on Jan. 9 during combat in the Kursk region of Russia.
Two ageing tankers were hit by storms in mid-December in the Kerch Strait between Crimea and southern Russia, with one breaking apart and sinking and the other running aground.
Fuel oil that spilled from wrecked Russian tankers has spread into the Sea of Azov and reached the shores of Ukraine’s partly Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region, a Moscow-installed official said Saturday.
Two ageing tankers were hit by storms in mid-December in the Kerch Strait between Crimea and southern Russia, with one breaking apart and sinking and the other running aground.
Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.
Key Takeaways from the ISW:
Trump has no plan for peace in Ukraine
I think, like most people, I watched with disbelief Trump’s “performance” yesterday, pitching for land grabs in Greenland, Canada, the Panama Canal and the Gulf of Mexico, or the “Gulf of America” as Trump now prefers to refer to it.
It is tempting to dismiss all this as all a joke, and just amusing. This is just Trump.
Do you know the key events shaping the war in Ukraine this week? Stay up-to-date with Kyiv Post’s latest weekly quiz covering the most significant stories over the last seven days.
A lot has happened in Ukraine since 2025 kicked off last week – including a new counterattack in Kursk by the AFU and the announcement of millions more military aid and weapons to Kyiv.
