Newsletter 06/01/2025
A daily news digest covering important war, political, economic, and cultural topics in Ukraine
Servicemen of the 211th Pontoon-Bridge Brigade of the Armed Forces Support Forces of Ukraine
TOP
Elections in Ukraine will be held immediately after martial law is lifted – Zelensky
“I believe that the elections will take place immediately after the end of martial law - this is according to the law. Or members of the parliament need to get together and change legislation, which will be very difficult to do because society is against it,” Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said this in an interview with US podcaster Lex Fridman.
In his words, these should be elections “that we want to trust.” To do this, it is necessary to create appropriate conditions for millions of Ukrainians who have left the country to vote. Millions more are in the occupied territories. “This is a difficult question,” Zelensky said, emphasizing that the elections would be unfair “without having a million soldiers”.
When asked whether he would run for a second term, he said: “I don't really know... It is a very difficult question”. He stated that the decision would depend on the outcome of the war and on what people will want.
He added that it also depends on his family.
“We had not time to speak about it with my family. And, of course, didn’t have a chance because we don’t think about it now,” Zelensky emphasized.
Lukashenko's spokeswoman denies he apologized to Zelensky for invading Belarus
The spokesperson for the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Natalia Eismont, confirmed that in the first days of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, Lukashenko and Zelensky had a conversation, but denied that he had allegedly apologized.
The spokeswoman added that during the conversation, Lukashenko “primarily said that the conflict broke out on the territory of Ukraine, on Zelensky's territory, and it is he who will eventually have to be responsible for the loss of life more than anyone else.”
Navy units destroy two Russian Pantsir in Kherson region
Units of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed two Russian self-propelled anti-aircraft missile and gun systems “Pantsir” in the Kherson region.
Russia's largest seaport of Ust-Luga attacked by SBU drones – source
The attack on Russia's largest commercial port, Ust-Luga, in the Leningrad region, is the operation of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
According to the source, on January 4, Ukrainian long-range drones flew over 900 kilometers and almost reached St. Petersburg. The drones successfully hit the target.
Video footage shows one of the drones hitting gas condensate tanks. As a result of the strike, one tank was severely damaged, while three neighboring tanks were shattered by explosive debris. Experts say that repairs will take at least a month, depending on the availability of materials, and will definitely lead to disruptions in the terminal's operations.
In Kherson, Russians fire at minibus with drone: 1 killed, 9 wounded
Video: Official channel of Oleksandr Prokudin
At about 17:00, Russians attacked a taxi in the Shumensky district of Kherson with a UAV.
As noted, one person was killed and nine others were wounded.
There is “preliminary agreement” with Russia that prisoner exchanges will become systematic in 2025 - Lubinets
“There is currently a preliminary agreement [with Russia] that exchanges in 2025 should become systematic, with the priority of returning primarily seriously ill and seriously wounded. We also agreed that every Ukrainian prisoner of war and civilian hostage will receive a package of belongings from Ukraine with the help of the ICRC,” said Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets.
War
Kursk raid: Ukraine’s SOF shows raw video of eliminating Russian, N. Korean troops
The Special Operations Forces posted combat footage showing their soldiers engage Russian and North Korean military and their military equipment in Russia’s Kursk region.
Snipers, engineers, artillerymen, drone operators, and rangers from the 6th SOF Regiment destroy enemy troops and their equipment in Kursk region every day.
IAEA detects explosions near Zaporizhzhia NPP
At least eight Shahed UAVs flew into Belarus overnight Monday – monitoring group
Russian forces attack Zaporizhzhia region 542 times in past day
Russians shell Zelenivka in Kherson region with artillery and drones, one wounded
Enemy attacked Kharkiv twice in one day with Molniya-1 drones, there are damages
Two children injured by explosives in Donetsk region
Ukrainian scouts destroy Russian military targets using Sich drones
The Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine showed the use of reconnaissance drones to destroy Russian military targets.
In particular, aerial reconnaissance units successfully identified and neutralized key enemy assets such as ammunition and fuel depots, command posts, personnel concentration areas, communication and surveillance equipment, vehicles, and power substations.
Border guards employ artillery to destroy Russian trenches, firing positions in Kharkiv region
Border guards from the Hart Brigade hit a number of Russian trenches, dugouts, and firing positions in the Vovchansk direction using artillery.
Thirty-four Russian invaders were “neutralized”.
Defense
Rheinmetall to send Ukraine another 180K rounds for Gepards
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has ordered from Rheinmetall additional 35-mm munitions for the Gepard system in December 2024. The latest order includes 180,000 tHEI-T (high-explosive incendiary with tracer) munitions.
The order value is in the high double-digit million euro range and financed by Germany, the report says.
D-21 silent ground drone accepted for service with Ukraine’s Army
The Ministry of Defense has formally allowed the Army to use the Ukrainian-made D-21 logistical ground robotic system.
The D-21 is designed to perform logistical tasks, including transporting food, ammunition, military equipment, as well as evacuating the wounded. It can operate in manual mode and automatic mode, when moving along a given route at a certain speed.
Politics
Russia set to share space tech with North Korea - Blinken
Russia intends to share its advanced space and satellite technology with North Korea in exchange for Pyongyang providing weapons and other equipment to Moscow to sustain its war effort against Ukraine.
He also suggested that Russian leader Vladimir Putin may be close to waling back a decades-long policy of accepting the DPRK's nuclear arms program.
Society
Black Sea oil spill: 32 dolphins die so far
At least 32 dolphins died in the Black Sea due to fuel oil spill caused by an accident involving two Russian tankers in the stormy Kerch Strait.
"Since the emergency, we have recorded 61 dead cetaceans, of which 32 individuals died after December 15, whose deaths are most likely related to the oil spill. The rest had died before the emergency," reported by the Dolphin Rescue Center Delfa
It is noted that the majority of these cetaceans died in the first 10 days into the disaster, and their bodies are being farther carried away by the sea. The victims were mostly Azov whales, which have always been the most vulnerable cetaceans.
SBU foils terror attack on military facility in Kyiv region
Counterintelligence operatives detained four members of a Russian human intelligence network, including a minor, who were planning to set off an explosive device at a military facility in Kyiv region.
As the investigation learned, the improvised explosive device was put in a tactical backpack, which was supposed to be delivered to the facility by a teenager sporting a Ukrainian military uniform.
The Russians tracked the suspect’s movement online, intending to detonate the explosive device as soon as the young man entered the targeted building.
At the same time, the minor was unaware of his handler’s plot to use him as a suicide bomber, being told that the explosive will go off once he leaves the building. Read More