Two leaders spoke by video call and vowed closer ties amid Russia’s war in Ukraine
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China promised what it described as its “objective and fair” stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine following an assembly between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.
President Xi said Beijing and Moscow coordinate and cooperate strongly in foreign affairs and under pressure Russia’s willingness to start negotiations on Ukraine, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said in its report on a call between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The Chinese side noted that the Russian side has said it has never refused confrontation through diplomatic negotiations and expressed its appreciation for this,” Xi said during the CCTV video call.
Elsewhere, Kyiv citizens were told to rush to bomb shelters when air raid sirens sounded in the capital at 2 a. m. local time. The Ukrainian military said it struck with 16 “kamikaze” drones, all of which it shot down.
In his late-night address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelemnsky said air commandos in central, southern and western Ukraine repelled 54 Russian missiles and 11 drones on Thursday.
That’s all for our updates today. Thanks for listening.
As major Western economies responded to the invasion with a barrage of coordinated and unprecedented sanctions, Russia has been forced to seek out other markets and has overtaken Saudi Arabia as China’s most sensible crude supplier.
Bilateral industry has soared and monetary ties have expanded.
On Friday, Russia’s Finance Ministry doubled the maximum imaginable percentage of Chinese yuan in its National Wealth Fund (NWF) to 60% as Moscow tries to “de-dollarize” its economy and end the smear of “hostile” nations, adding that the United States. United States, members of the European Union, Great Britain and Japan.
Moscow also publicly subsidized Xi’s stance on Taiwan and accused the West of galvanizing a dispute over the self-governing island’s prestige, which China claims as its own.
Putin told Xi, “You and I have the same perspectives on the causes, course and logic of the ongoing transformation of the global geopolitical landscape, in the face of unprecedented pressures and provocations from the West. “
However, Xi has been less explicit in his complaint of Western countries that are China’s main export market, and has been unmoved by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
China has refrained from condemning, emphasizing the lack of peace, but Putin publicly stated in September that his Chinese counterpart was “concerned” about Russia’s actions.
Xi, however, told Putin on Friday that China is in a position to develop strategic cooperation with Russia amid what he called a “difficult” scenario in the world at large.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the assembly was substantive and constructive, but no date has yet been set for Xi’s visit.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday he expects Chinese President Xi Jinping to pay a state early next year in what would be a public show of solidarity from Beijing as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine falters.
But an official Chinese reading of a video summit between the two leaders highlighted differences in the technique of their upcoming alliance, without mentioning a scale and stressing that Beijing, which has refused or condemned the invasion, would maintain its “purpose. “and equity. ” position.
Since sending troops to Ukraine in February, Russia has turned its back on Western forces that have marginalized it economically and politically and armed Ukraine, courting the developing global force of China, its longtime rival.
“We are waiting for you, dear Mr. President, dear friend, we are waiting for you next spring for a state stopover in Moscow,” Putin told Xi in an effusive eight-minute introductory broadcast on state television.
“This will demonstrate to the whole world the strength of Russian-Chinese ties on key issues. “
He also said that his goal is to strengthen the military’s cooperation with China; this is not mentioned in the call report through China’s state-run CCTV television network.
Although Xi called Putin his “dear friend,” his opening statement, about a quarter of Putin’s, was far more pragmatic.
The two men had signed a “limitless” strategic partnership in February, reported through a shared distrust of the West, days before Russia sent its armed forces to Ukraine in what it calls an “army special operation. “
The United States said after the call that it was “concerned” about China’s alignment with Russia and reiterated that it had warned Beijing of the consequences if it provided Russia with military assistance for its war against Ukraine or assistance to evade Western sanctions.
“We are closely monitoring Beijing’s activity,” a State Department spokesman said. “Beijing claims to be neutral, but its habit makes it clear that it still invests in close ties with Russia. “
U. S. officials have consistently said they have yet to see Beijing offering Russia curtains for war, a move that could cause sanctions against China.
Russia has bombed Ukrainian cities along a long stretch of the front line from north to south, Ukrainian officials said Friday, a day after Moscow fired dozens of missiles in its new bombardment of critical infrastructure.
Airstrike sirens sounded overnight Friday in Kyiv, the capital, and Reuters heard several explosions and the sound of anti-aircraft gunfire south of the city as Russian forces fired 16 Iranian-made Shahed drones, officials said.
The Ukrainian military said all the drones had been destroyed. Seven targeted Kyiv, where an administrative building was damaged, Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said.
In an evening report on Friday, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Russian forces had attempted to advance near Bakhmut and Avdiivka, the focal points of their slow crusade to take the entire Donetsk region in the east.
Russian forces fired on several towns and villages, adding Bakhmut, Kudryumivka just to the south, near Soledar and also the key town of Kostyantynivka, west of Bakhmut.
Russian forces also fired on Avdiivka, the nearby town of Maryinka, as well as Nevelske, according to Facebook’s report. Russian forces shelled settlements further west in the Donetsk region, adding the town of Vuhledar.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces held their positions in the eastern Donbass region and made small gains in some areas.
“In general, our positions,” Zelensky said in his late-night video speech on Friday. “There are also some spaces on the front where we’re moving around a little bit. “
Russian forces shelled several towns near Kupyansk in the northeastern Kharkiv region recaptured through Ukraine in September, according to the General Staff report, as well as settlements in the Luhansk region, where Ukrainian forces hope to advance after advances in recent weeks.
Areas in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia have also been bombed across Russia, adding the disputed city of Hulyaipole. There were also bombings in and around Ukraine-controlled Nikopol through the Kakhovka reservoir from Russia’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
On the southern front, Russian bombardment of infrastructure has been renewed in the town of Kherson, abandoned by Russian forces last month, and Kashkarivka, further north on the western bank of the Dnipro.
Russia’s Defense Ministry earlier said it had carried out a “massive attack” on military power and commercial targets to disrupt Ukraine’s ability to repair equipment and move troops. Zelenskiy said the attacks targeted the energy infrastructure and that the maximum had been repelled.
Since October, Russia has introduced large, almost weekly movements of missiles and drones opposed to civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, leaving millions without heat or power in the dead of winter. Russia says its purpose is to increase Ukraine’s combat capability. harming civilians.
Reuters may simply not verify reports on the battlefield.
Ukrainian forces maintain their positions opposite Russian troops in the eastern Donbass region and make small gains in some areas, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday.
“In general, we have our positions,” Zelensky said in his late-night video speech. “There are also some spaces at the front where we’re moving a little bit. “
Zelensky also said Ukraine, subject to waves of Russian airstrikes, has reduced its anti-aircraft capability and will increase it in the new year to protect itself and the entire European continent.
Russia attacked Ukraine with 16 Iranian-made Shahed drones overnight, Ukraine said Friday, a day after Moscow fired dozens of missiles in its new bombing raid on critical infrastructure.
DIPLOMACY
Russian President Vladimir Putin said his goal is to deepen military cooperation with China and expects Chinese President Xi Jinping to travel to Russia in the spring of 2023.
Xi told Putin that the path to peace talks on Ukraine would not be straightforward and that China would continue its “objective and fair position” on the issue, Chinese state media said after a video convention between the two leaders. His reading did not mention any state scale in or army cooperation.
*NATO
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on NATO member states to Ukraine with more weapons, according to an interview.
ECONOMY
The ruble soared in its final session of a volatile year on Friday but remained on track for steep losses in December after fears about the effect of a Western oil cap on Russia’s export earnings dominated trading this month.
Russia’s Finance Ministry said the Chinese yuan’s maximum imaginable percentage in its National Wealth Fund (NWF) has doubled to 60% as it restructures its emergency fund to decrease reliance on the currencies of so-called “unfriendly” countries. .
Putin also said Russia has one of China’s most sensitive oil and fuel suppliers, with 13. 8 billion cubic meters of fuel shipped to China via the Power of Siberia pipeline in the first 11 months of 2022.
FIGHT
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential administration, said at least three other people were killed in a new Russian bombing of a border area in the northern Chernihiv region and eastern Kharkiv region.
Russia introduced “kamikaze” drones into Ukraine overnight, Kyiv’s military said after the 2 a. m. airstrike warning. All had been shot down through air defenses, he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said air orders in central, southern and western Ukraine on Thursday repelled 54 Russian missiles and 11 drones.
More than 18 residential buildings and 10 critical infrastructure services were destroyed in Thursday’s attacks, a Defense Ministry said Thursday.
The Russian Defense Ministry on Friday described the attack as a “massive attack” opposed to the high-precision weapons of Ukraine’s military-industrial and energy infrastructure.
Ukrainian grid operator Ukrenergo said the deficit in Ukraine’s energy formula at the same point as before Thursday’s attacks.
The Kremlin said it was incredibly involved in a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile that it said was shot down after flying into the airspace of its best friend, Belarus, on Thursday. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said it would investigate the incident, suggesting it was a Russian provocation and a reservation. the right to protect their own skies.
As the sound of artillery explosion echoes in the distance, Senia, a white rabbit, trembles nervously in the arms of its owner, Herbert Villarraga, reports from Yampil, in Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast region.
“He’s scared,” explained Farmer Yevhennia, stroking the rabbit.
Here in Yampil, a frontline crater-ridden village in eastern Ukraine, retaken by Ukrainian forces last September after months of Russian occupation, the buildings are in ruins and most people are gone. But not Yevhennia and Ivan, who say he can’t bear to abandon his rabbits, ducks, chickens and pigeons.
It’s been easy.
“We’ve had rabbits. But when (the missiles) started falling on the maple, in the morning I saw 15 of them on the ground, with blood dripping from their noses. This is the balance of stress,” Ivan said.
The Ukrainian government arrived here with leaflets urging the remaining citizens to leave. Ivan and Yevhennia go anywhere.
Farmer Yevheniia Andriivna, 70, who refuses to evacuate to care for herself and her husband’s animals, holds one of her chickens as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues in Yampil.
“This is my escape. I’ve lived my whole life,” Ivan explained.
Yevhennia said she had been raising birds since she was a child and lived on the farm with her mother.
“This love has grown with us into our old age. That’s what we do, and we can’t live without our chickens, our rabbits. So we try to do everything we can take care of physically.
Nearby, in the village, a destroyed solid dotted with animal bones is a monument to the dark fate of animals in a war zone. Private owners had amassed a collection of wild and exotic animals. to see their ostriches, bears, wolves, kangaroos and birds.
The animals died, fled or were killed during the months of Russian occupation, locals say.
Before the war, “there were tours all over Ukraine. . . Large buses with children arrived. It’s a cultural center,” said Pavlo, a farmer who lives nearby.
“But now. . . Let’s go. “
China promised what it described as its “objective and fair” stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine following an assembly between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.
President Xi said Beijing and Moscow strongly coordinate and cooperate in foreign affairs and press Russia’s willingness to interact in negotiations on Ukraine, China’s state CCTV said in its report on a call between China and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The Chinese side noted that the Russian side has said it has never refused confrontation through diplomatic negotiations and expressed its appreciation for this,” Xi said during the CCTV video call.
Xi and Putin have come together in recent years through a shared distrust of the United States and its allies, highlighted through the declaration in early February of an “unlimited” strategic partnership that has sounded alarm bells across the West.
An Italian theater on Friday canceled a performance of a Russian dancer who has 3 tattoos of President Vladimir Putin on his chest and shoulders, in reaction to online protests opposing the artist’s planned appearance.
Sergei Polunin’s Jan. 28-29 exhibition at Milan’s Teatro Arcimboldi canceled “due to the press’s crusade (against him) on the internet and social media,” the theater said on its website.
Mr. Polunin intended to play in the ballet “Rasputin – Dance Drama”, originally scheduled for 2019 and postponed several times due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The theater said the cancellation was an act of “political and ethical responsibility,” given “a climate of tension and threats. “A spokeswoman said the theater had been the subject of an email crusade as well as negative messages online.
Arcimboldi, who said he made the resolution in agreement with the artist’s company, said he strongly opposed the war in Ukraine and noted that he had performed through the Russian dissident organization Pussy Riot and Ukrainian artists.
Polunin, one of the biggest names in world dance and former director of the Royal Ballet in London, was born in Ukraine but acquired Russian citizenship in 2018. There was no immediate reaction to a request for comment through its website.
Ten months after Russia’s last invasion of Ukraine, overwhelming evidence shows that Kremlin troops waged all-out war, defying foreign legislation governing the remedy of civilians and their conduct on the battlefield.
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