“A severe flu outbreak has hit the Kremlin and could force Russian President Vladimir Putin into a bunker,” writes the Indian television channel NDTV, citing a report by the British portal Metro. The day before, it was officially announced that Putin would not hold his final annual press conference this year. Since Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov gave no reason for the break with tradition, several media outlets claim that it has to do with the Russian president’s health problems. Russian news agency TASS, citing the head of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare Anna Popova, reports that the H1N1 flu strain will hit Russia hard this year. According to Metro, Russian authorities are keeping their head of state away from people because of the spread of this disease. It adds that Putin is likely to cancel his speech to the Federal Assembly as many officials have been hit by the flu. On a Telegram channel allegedly run by an anonymous source in Russia’s foreign intelligence agency SWR, someone claims that Putin will spend the New Year in a bunker in the east of the Ural Mountains with his alleged girlfriend Alina Kabaeva.
+++ 06:55 Court confiscates all assets of Ukraine’s ex-president Yanukovych +++
The Supreme Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) said on Wednesday that it had seized all of the assets of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, almost nine years after he was ousted by the 2014 Maidan revolution. The HACC says it has seized nearly $20 million worth of property, including the Mezhyhirya residence, its mass estate, as well as several underground parking spaces, an apartment and a house. There are also 537 works of art, such as paintings and antique furniture. The former politician, who fled Kyiv for Russia on February 22, later admitted that Moscow helped him escape. In 2019, the Kiev District Court sentenced Obolon Yanukovych to 13 years in prison for high treason and aiding and abetting Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea.
+++ 06:33 Rheinmetall builds new ammunition production in Germany +++
Rheinmetall is setting up an extensive new ammunition production facility in Germany. The goal is an independent supply of the Bundeswehr. The systems for so-called medium-caliber ammunition should be ready in January, the armaments company confirms when asked by the German Press Agency.
+++ 06:23 British volunteer: Putin would upgrade during peace negotiations +++
There is a belief in the Ukrainian armed forces that Vladimir Putin would use potential peace talks to upgrade his armed forces and recruit soldiers, says British volunteer Seva Koshel. This assessment goes in the same direction as a warning by British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly a few days ago. “We are waiting for the difficult winter,” Koshel says on the Ukraine War Diaries podcast. “Now we are in front of him, and we believe that more areas will be cleared this winter. Of course, we understand that Russia does not want to negotiate…they only care about getting more resources to be able to continue attacking us. “
+++ 05:54 ISW: Putin is probably postponing speech – actually wanted to declare victory there +++
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s hinted decision to postpone his annual address to the Russian Federation Assembly suggests he is unsure of his ability to further determine the intelligence situation in Russia, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports in his current report. The President’s Address to the Federal Assembly of Russia is an annual speech that was incorporated into the Russian Constitution in February 1994 and roughly parallels the US President’s annual State of the Union Address. “Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Putin could deliver his address to the Federal Assembly in 2023 and urges Russians to stop “fortune-telling with coffee grounds” about the timing of the next address,” notes the ISW. The experts add that the Russian withdrawal from the Kyiv region and northern Ukraine in April likely thwarted Putin’s plans to declare victory during the address to the Federal Assembly.
+++ 04:30 report: USA deliver components for intelligent bombs +++
According to a newspaper report, the USA is providing Ukraine with precision military components. With the help of the special electronic equipment, unguided missiles can be converted into self-guiding missiles (“smart bombs”) and achieve a high degree of targeting accuracy, reports the Washington Post, citing US government officials familiar with the matter.
+++ 03:23 Canada reintroduces sanctions against Nord Stream 1 turbines +++
Canada is revoking a temporary sanctions exemption for Siemens Energy turbines on Russia’s Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline Melanie Joly and Natural Resources Secretary Jonathan Wilkinson in a joint statement. The decision was made in close cooperation with Ukraine, Germany and other European allies. The pipeline, which runs beneath the Baltic Sea, was shut down for repairs on August 31 but was not subsequently put back into service.
+++ 02:16 Russia warns USA against Patriot delivery +++
The Russian embassy in Washington sees the US government’s plans to equip Ukraine with the modern Patriot air defense system as a provocation. This could lead to unforeseeable consequences, the embassy warns on Telegram. “It is the United States that is responsible for the prolongation and escalation of the Ukraine conflict,” the embassy writes.
+++ 00:58 Ukraine: Children’s torture chamber discovered in Cherson +++
According to Ukrainian sources, children were also abused under Russian occupation in the recently liberated city of Cherson. “We found ten torture chambers in the Kherson region, four of them in the city of Kherson,” reports Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian parliament’s human rights commissioner. “In one of the torture chambers we found a separate room, a cell in which children were kept, even the occupiers called it that, a children’s cell.” The only difference between the cell and the adjoining rooms is that the occupiers laid thin mats on the floor. “We documented that the children were not given water, they were only given water every other day. They were given practically nothing to eat.” Psychological pressure was put on the children. “They told them their parents had left them and weren’t coming back.”
+++ 23:30 NATO countries agree on budget for 2023 +++
The NATO countries have agreed to significantly increase joint spending in view of the new security situation caused by Russia’s war against Ukraine. According to the alliance, the civilian budget will increase by around 28 percent to 370.8 million euros in the coming year, and the military budget by around 26 percent to 1.96 billion euros. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomes the decision. “This is a concrete expression of higher ambition,” comments the Norwegian. Only together can we offer security to the approximately one billion people in the NATO countries in a more dangerous world. Currently, NATO’s military and civilian budgets together amount to around 1.8 billion euros.
+++ 22:16 Scholz to Putin: “The brutal killing must come to an end” +++
Chancellor Olaf Scholz sees a clear signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin after the first summit meeting between the European Union and the ASEAN countries in Brussels: “The brutal killing must come to an end, Putin must end the war immediately,” said Scholz after the summit meeting in Brussels. The EU and the association of Southeast Asian countries had “made it unmistakably clear” that the United Nations Charter applies “to everyone and everywhere”. “With its terrible attack on Ukraine, Russia questioned precisely these principles,” Scholz continues. “No state has the right to invade another and nuclear threats are unacceptable.”
+++ 21:47 Ukrainian secret service confiscates propaganda material in churches and monasteries +++
The Ukrainian domestic secret service SBU has found propaganda writings in Orthodox churches and monasteries in renewed raids because of possible connections to Russia. During searches of religious sites across the country, he seized “Russian passports, propaganda literature and permits” issued by the Russian occupation authorities, the SBU explains. He wants to use the measures to prevent “religious communities being misused as the center of the ‘Russian world'”. In addition, the SBU wants to “protect the population from provocation and acts of terrorism.” The secret service published photos of confiscated Russian passports, Russian military symbols and pro-Russian writings. According to the SBU, Russian representatives deny “the existence of the Ukrainian people, their language and culture”. They also questioned the Ukrainian state.
+++ 21:15 Zelenskyj speaks of “significant progress in the question of air defense” +++
After new Russian drone attacks on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyj relies on more modern and more effective anti-aircraft systems from the West. “This week we made significant progress on the issue of anti-aircraft defense,” Zelenskyy said in his daily video message, without giving any details. According to media reports, the US government is considering supplying the Patriot air defense system to Ukraine. Zelenskyy reported that 13 Russian drones had been shot down in the morning. “That means 13 spared infrastructure objects, that’s saved lives,” he says. Ukraine is constantly expanding its air defenses. “And we are doing everything to get more modern and more effective systems for Ukraine.” Without giving details, Zelenskyj says that agreements to strengthen the country’s defense capabilities are being worked on.
Read earlier developments in the Ukraine war here.