This live CNBC blog on the progress in the war in Ukraine on January 6, 2023. See the latest updates here.
Russia’s 36-hour ceasefire began at noon Moscow time, ordered by President Vladimir Putin for Russian Orthodox Christmas on Jan. 7. Get reinforcements while preventing Ukrainian advances.
Several media outlets report that shelling from Russian-occupied areas continues.
The think tank at the Institute for the Study of War said Putin’s move is likely a research stunt aimed at making Ukraine appear competitive and unwilling to negotiate.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is receiving more military aid from its American and European allies, artillery shells, light tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles.
Ukraine will want at least $1. 79 billion to repair its telecommunications sector to pre-war levels, a UN firm said in a report alleging Russia had “completely destroyed or seized” networks in parts of the country.
The long-awaited and delicate damage assessment through the Geneva-based International Telecommunication Union (ITU), commissioned in April to assess the extent of the destruction of Ukrainian communications networks following the Russian invasion last February.
The report, which covers the first six months of the war, found that communications infrastructure had been extensively destroyed in more than 10 of Ukraine’s 24 regions.
“Since the beginning of the army’s attacks, with the aim of obtaining the comforts for its own advantages and needs, the aggressor has completely destroyed or taken over the normal functioning of public and personal land telecommunications and critical infrastructure in territories temporarily occupied and devastated by war. “areas. affected territories of Ukraine,” the report says.
— Reuters
Global costs of food products such as grains and vegetable oils were record last year, even after falling for nine straight months, the U. N. Food and Agriculture Organization said, as Russia’s war in Ukraine, drought and elsewhere boosted inflation and worsened world hunger.
FAO’s food value index, which tracks monthly adjustments in the foreign value of traded food, fell 1. 9 percent in December from last month, the Rome-based organization said on Friday. % above the 2021 average, which also saw sharp increases.
December’s drop was due to declining vegetable oil costs amid declining import demand, expectations of higher soybean oil production in South America and declining crude oil costs. Cereals and meat also declined, while dairy products and sugar rose slightly.
“The calm in food costs is welcome after two very volatile years,” FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said in a prepared statement. with many commodities near record levels, and with rising rice costs, and many dangers related to long-term supplies. “
– Associated Press
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked President Joe Biden for the “very powerful” American security package in a video message on his official Telegram channel.
“Today a new one was announced, and very hard! An American defense package for our country. For the first time we will get Bradley armored vehicles, that’s precisely what we need,” Zelenskyy said.
“For now, Ukraine has more air defense, more armored vehicles, Western tanks for the first time, more weapons and projectiles, more power and political opportunities,” Zelenskyy added, according to an NBC News translation.
—Amanda Macias
Biden’s management has announced nearly $3. 8 billion in security aid for Ukraine and its European allies, Washington’s largest package since the full-scale invasion of Russia began about a year ago.
The next military aid program, the such tranche, brings the U. S. commitment to fighting Ukraine to about $24. 9 billion since Biden’s tenure began.
Bradley infantry fighting cars, tracked armored cars manufactured through the American defense company BAE Systems, are new to this aid program.
Also included in the security package:
Additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS, such as RIM-7 missiles for air defense and 4,000 Zuni aircraft rockets.
—Amanda Macias
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for agreeing to supply Ukraine with Patriot air defense missile systems as well as Marder combat vehicles.
“I appreciated the tough defense package, adding several dozen Marder cars and the Patriot system. We discussed further cooperation with the Ukrainian military,” Zelenskyy wrote in a tweet.
On Thursday, Scholz said German forces would train Ukrainian infantrymen in the systems.
—Amanda Macias
The organization that oversees the export of agricultural products said two ships carrying corn and wheat had left Ukrainian ports.
The amount of cereals and other crops exported under the Black Sea Grain Initiative exceeds 16. 8 million metric tons.
The Black Sea Grain Initiative, negotiated in July between Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, eased the Russian naval blockade and allowed the reopening of 3 key Ukrainian ports.
—Amanda Macias
U. S. Sens. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Angus King, I-Maine, meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.
— Reuters
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invited him to Kyiv in a phone call on Friday.
Kishida said Ukraine has not made a decision yet.
During her call with Zelenskyy, Kishida reaffirmed Japan’s and pledged to provide more assistance to Ukraine when Tokyo assumes the presidency of the G-7 this year.
—Amanda Macias
Biden’s management has announced a series of new sanctions and additional measures for Iran’s aviation and defense sector, as Washington raises the bar in its crusade against Tehran for supplying weapons to Moscow for its war against Ukraine.
The Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on six executives and board members of Iran’s Quds Aviation Industries, the country’s most sensible defense manufacturer, for generating unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs. Tehran has transferred drones to Moscow for battlefield use across Ukraine, according to the Treasury Department. .
In recent months, Moscow has carried out devastating missile and drone movements opposed to what Ukraine has described as civilian targets, as well as critical infrastructure such as electrical installations. Increase in civilian areas.
Learn here.
—Amanda Macias
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s call for an orthodox Christmas ceasefire, which Ukraine has rejected, is likely a tactic designed to make Ukraine appear competitive and uncompromising, according to analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank. Orthodox Christmas takes office on January 7.
“Putin’s announcement that Russian forces will carry out a 36-hour ceasefire in the case of Russian Orthodox Christmas is likely to be a fact-finding operation designed to damage Ukraine’s reputation,” the organization wrote in a message on Twitter.
The think tank wrote in the following tweets that “Ukrainian and Western officials, in addition to U. S. President Joe Biden, pointed out the hypocrisy of the ceasefire announcement and noted that Russian forces continued to attack the Ukrainian military and civilian infrastructure on December 25, when many Orthodox Ukrainians are celebrating Christmas and the New Year. “
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would have a ceasefire once Russian troops left his country.
“Putin may have only sought a 36-hour pause for Russian troops to rest and reorient themselves to restart offensive operations in critical spaces of the frontline,” ISW wrote.
“Putin cannot be waiting for Ukraine to abide by the terms of this suddenly declared ceasefire and possibly would have called for a ceasefire to label Ukraine as unaccommodating and unwilling to take the obligatory steps towards negotiations,” he said, adding that Russia had used this kind of information. tactics before.
—Natasha Turak
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister warned citizens of Russian-occupied spaces not to attend the Orthodox Christmas, celebrated on January 7, and warned that it could be dangerous.
“There are reports that Russians are preparing terrorist attacks on churches in the temporarily occupied territories for Orthodox Christmas,” Iryna Vereshchuk wrote on her Telegram channel, though she provided no evidence to back up this claim.
“I urge citizens to be cautious and, if possible, avoid visiting places with large crowds,” he said. “Take care of yourself and your loved ones. “
—Natasha Turak
The Baltic country of Estonia is allocating more than 900,000 euros to demolish Soviet-era monuments installed in the country when it was part of the Soviet Union, Poland-based Belarusian news firm Nexta reported.
Estonia has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine of the Russian invasion. It is a member of NATO and the EU.
—Natasha Turak
Artillery shelling continues in parts of eastern Ukraine despite the so-called unilateral Russian ceasefire declared through Vladimir Putin, several media outlets reported.
“A witness in the Russian-occupied regional capital Donetsk, near the front, described the passage of artillery fired from pro-Russian positions on the outskirts of the city after the truce came into effect,” Reuters news firm wrote.
Russia’s Defense Ministry also said bombing from Ukraine continues. Ukraine has refused to participate in the ceasefire, calling it hypocritical and a canopy to allow more reinforcements for Russian troops while impeding the advance of Ukrainian forces.
—Natasha Turak
Russia’s ceasefire, ordered through Putin for Russian Orthodox Christmas on Jan. 7, officially began at noon Moscow time.
“At noon today, the ceasefire regime came into effect along the entire contact line. It will continue until the end of January 7,” Russian news channel Channel One reported.
Many see this resolution as a possibility to let Russian foot soldiers rest and prevent Ukrainian troops from gaining territorial gains. Ukraine rejected the ceasefire, comparing it to a trap to give Russian forces an advantage.
—Natasha Turak
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized a proposal by Russian President Vladimir Putin for a transitional ceasefire on Orthodox Christmas on Jan. 7, calling it a canopy to halt advances through Ukrainian forces and bring in more reinforcements to Russian troops.
“Now they need to use Christmas as a cover, albeit briefly, to prevent the advances of our boys in Donbass and bring equipment, ammunition and mobilized troops closer to our positions,” Zelenskyy said in his late-night video speech. they? Only accumulating in their overall losses. “
Zelenskyy spoke in Russian rather than Ukrainian and said a genuine ceasefire meant “ending your country’s aggression. . . And the war will end when their foot soldiers leave or when we drive them out. “
Many noted that Russia proposed a ceasefire on Dec. 25, which is celebrated through many Orthodox Ukrainians, or for the New Year. On New Year’s Eve, Russia attacked Ukrainian cities with drone strikes, destroyed electrical infrastructure and destroyed residential buildings.
—Natasha Turak
The Pentagon said Bradley fighter cars would give Ukraine an edge on the battlefield, but declined to give the main points on how the armored cars would be supplied and how long the education would last.
It is also unclear how many Bradleys the US would send to Ukraine and how long it would take for the tracked armored cars to make their battlefield debut against Russia.
The White House is expected to announce the upcoming security program on Friday.
The U. S. Air Force Press SecretaryBrig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the Bradleys will provide “a point of firepower and armor that they will bring to the battlefield as Ukraine continues to protect its homeland. “
—Amanda Macias
State Department spokesman Ned Price said it was up to Ukraine if it wanted to participate in Russia’s proposed truce.
Price said the United States had “little confidence in the intentions of the announcement,” adding that Russia had already damaged promises.
“We know how to take everything we see or hear from Russia at face value. Unfortunately, they haven’t given us any explanation as to why take everything they offer at face value,” Price added.
Earlier Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a ceasefire.
The ceasefire would allow Orthodox Christians in Russia and Ukraine to hold Christmas services.
—Amanda Macias
Live updates on the Ukraine war: Putin orders ceasefire for Russian Orthodox Christmas; Ukraine calls truce ‘hypocrisy’
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