2023-12-29 12:56:00
[Article publié le vendredi 29 décembre 2023 à 07H18 et mis à jour à 14H29]France condemned “with the greatest firmness” the ” terror strategy aimed at destroying Ukrainian civilian infrastructure “, declared the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after the wave of Russian strikes which hit several cities in Ukraine.
Explosions were also heard in kyiv as its mayor Vitali Klitschko announced early this morning, assuring that the “ anti-aircraft defense [y] works actively “. At the same time, the national air alert was triggered around 6:00 a.m. (Paris time).
For its part, the Air Force also assured that it had destroyed 114 of the 158 missiles and drones launched by Russia during this wave of attacks. “ The enemy used 158 means of air attack against Ukraine last night: missiles of different types and drones “, she clarified on the Telegram network.
« This is the most massive missile attack overall “, excluding the first days of the war, lamented air force spokesperson Yuri Ignat.
The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, estimated that these strikes demonstrated that Vladimir Putin “ will stop at nothing » when the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, condemned one of the “ biggest attacks » Russian, « hitting cities and the population », accusing Moscow of targeting civilians.
« This is a new series of cowardly and indiscriminate strikes hitting schools, a metro station and a hospital, which left at least sixteen dead “, he lamented on social networks.
Six regions of the country affected
These strikes with « a record name of missiles » caused, according to the Ukrainian authorities, at least 16 deaths and 97 injuries. The strikes targeted “ civil installations, civil buildings », Specified Andriï Iermak, the chief of staff of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. HAS Konotop, a town located in the Sumy region and affected by the strikes, three people were injured and a residential building was notably hit, the local military administration said earlier in the morning.
Kharkiv, for its part, suffered at least ten strikes in two waves, according to the head of the local military administration, Oleg Synegubov. A hospital in the Kyivskyi district was damaged, local police said. The mayor, Igor Terekhov, clarified that these strikes were carried out by S-300 and X-22 missiles, and that they disrupted the electricity supply to transport.
HAS Odessa, a building was damaged following a strike overnight but the resulting fire was quickly brought under control, said Mayor Gennady Trukhanov.
As for Lviv, a city more rarely targeted, its mayor, Andriy Sadovyi, mentioned “two strikes” in an attack carried out in total by “ten (Iranian drones) Shaheds” at the regional level. The manager mentioned “a fire in a crucial facility”, without providing further details. Authorities also reported explosions in the Dnipro region. According to the army, “guided missiles” were fired by Russian Tu95MS bombers.
Last Thursday, Russian strikes left three dead and nine injured in two villages in the Zaporizhia region, in southern Ukraine, according to local authorities.
Russia limited itself to indicating in its daily briefing that “ all targets have been achieved ”, as she does every day. She further claimed to have targeted more than 50 strikes, including one “ of scale » in Ukraine between December 23 and 29, military infrastructures, ammunition depots and places of deployment of Ukrainian soldiers.
And this Friday’s attack could have consequences in Poland where search operations were underway after a flying object, “arrived from the border with Ukraine”, was spotted by radar near the border town of Zamosc in the east of the country. In November 2022, a Ukrainian missile fell on the Polish village of Przewodow, killing two civilians. The incident briefly sparked fears of an extension of the conflict.
Ukraine needs “more help”
This wave of Russian strikes shows that the country needs “ more help » of the international community, said the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff.
« We are doing everything possible to strengthen our air shield. But the world must see that we need more help and means to stop this terror “, he wrote on the social network Telegram.
« For the Ukrainian people, this is yet another unacceptable example of the horrible reality they face », Reacted the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, Denise Brown, strongly condemning “a hateful wave of attacks on populated areas of Ukraine”.
Fear of a decline in financial support for Ukraine
While it has suffered repeated attacks from Russia since the outbreak of war in February 2022, Ukraine will nevertheless be able to benefit from new financial support from the United States. The latter, in fact, released, on Wednesday, a new tranche of military aid of 250 million dollars including in particular ammunition, which the country needs, or air defense systems to face attacks from Russia.
And if Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Washington for releasing this aid, urging his precious ally to maintain this assistance “essential”this good news however leaves a bitter aftertaste in kyiv, because it is the last tranche available without a new vote in the American Congress, which refuses for the moment to allocate more money.
After a disappointing 2023 for Ukraine, whose major counter-offensive did not give the hoped-for results on the front, kyiv fears disengagement from Western countries. HAS In Washington but also in Europe, the idea of unconditional support has cracked, weakened by political divisions on the very salty issue of military aid. In mid-December,Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has also vetoed a new EU aid package of 33 billion euros in loans and 17 billion euros in donations over four years. A problem that Europeans hope to resolve at a new summit in early February 2024.
Volodymyr Zelensky’s allies nevertheless continue to proclaim that they will not abandon him. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs notably assured, this Friday, that Paris “ will continue to support Ukraine and provide it with the necessary assistance to enable it to exercise self-defence, in close coordination with its partners ». « The EU will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes », also promised the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell. As for American Ambassador Bridget Brink, she pleaded in favor of Ukraine which « needs funds now to continue fighting to free ourselves from such horror in 2024 ».
F-16 delivery
The Netherlands announced on December 22 the imminent arrival of the promised F-16s on Ukrainian soil. The Dutch government has indicated that its country will deliver its 18 « premiers » American-made combat planes, without giving the delivery date of the devices. The latter are eagerly awaited as kyiv faces increased pressure from Russia on the front.
“Today I informed President Zelensky of our government’s decision to prepare the delivery of a first batch of 18 F-16 fighter jets for delivery to Ukraine,” said the outgoing Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, on X (formerly Twitter), ensuring that “the delivery of F-16s is one of the most important elements of the agreements reached on military support to Ukraine”. “This decision confirms the Netherlands’ unwavering commitment to providing Ukraine with the support it needs to respond to ongoing Russian aggression”he greeted.
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