Russia-Ukraine war live: air raid alarms sound in Kyiv and Kherson; Bakhmut reaching stalemate, say US thinktank - The Guardian

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Fighting astatine a deadlock, says Ukraine spy chief

The caput of Ukraine’s subject quality agency, Kyrylo Budanov, has made a akin assertion to what the Institute for the Study of War had to accidental astir Bakhmut, though helium has widened it to the full country.

Budanov says that warring successful Ukraine is astatine a deadlock, arsenic neither Ukraine nor Russia is capable to marque important advances.

“The concern is conscionable stuck…It doesn’t move,” Budanov told the quality bureau successful an interview.

He said that Russia was astatine a dormant extremity but that Ukraine “can’t decision them successful each directions comprehensively” portion it awaits weapons.

Bakhmut reaching stalemate, accidental US thinktank

Analysts astatine the US-based Institute for the Study of War judge that Russia has reached a stalemate successful Bakhmut, with “several indicators support[ing] the appraisal that Russian forces astir Bakhmut person culminated”.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said “only a few” civilians remained successful the embattled frontline city, which is successful the eastbound state of Donetsk. In a station connected Telegram, Ukraine’s person said of the metropolis that “there is nary spot that is not covered with blood”.

In an update posted astatine 8.15pm Eastern Time, the ISW wrote:

US subject doctrine defines culmination arsenic the “point astatine which a unit nary longer has the capableness to proceed its signifier of operations, discourtesy oregon defense,” and “when a unit cannot proceed the onslaught and indispensable presume a antiaircraft posture oregon execute an operational pause.” If Russian forces successful Bakhmut person so culminated, they whitethorn nevertheless proceed to onslaught aggressively. Culminated Russian forces whitethorn proceed to behaviour ineffective squad-sized assaults against Bakhmut, though these assaults would beryllium precise improbable to marque operationally important gains.

Air raid alarms dependable successful Kyiv and Kherson

At astir 6am connected Thursday, 29 December, aerial raid alarms sounded successful the Ukrainian superior Kyiv, arsenic good arsenic the confederate regions of Kherson and Mykolaiv and the occidental portion of Zhytomyr.

“An aerial alert has been announced successful the capital! Please spell to the shelter!” the Kyiv City Military Administration posted connected Telegram.

As yet, determination person been nary confirmed attacks.

Summary and welcome

Hello and invited to our unrecorded sum of the warfare successful Ukraine. My sanction is Helen Sullivan and I’ll beryllium bringing you the latest developments arsenic they happen.

Air raid sirens sounded successful the superior city, Kyiv, and the confederate Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Mykolaiv successful the aboriginal hours of Thursday morning, a time aft Russian forces stepped up mortar and artillery attacks connected Kherson city.

As yet, we person nary reports of rocket fire, lone notifications via the respective governors connected Telegram that the alarms are sounding and that radical should caput to shelters.

Our different apical communicative this greeting is that analysts astatine the US-based Institute for the Study of War judge that Russia has reached a stalemate successful Bakhmut, with “several indicators support[ing] the appraisal that Russian forces astir Bakhmut person culminated”.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said “only a few” civilians remained successful the embattled frontline city, which is successful the eastbound state of Donetsk. In a station connected Telegram, Ukraine’s person said of the metropolis that “there is nary spot that is not covered with blood”.

We’ll bring you much item connected these stories shortly. In the meantime, present are the different cardinal caller developments:

• Ukrainian officials were urging residents to evacuate from the metropolis of Kherson connected Wednesday as Russian forces stepped up mortar and artillery attacks connected the confederate Ukrainian city, which was precocious liberated. Some residents who lived done the Russian concern are reluctant to permission contempt the bombardment, according to a section authoritative who has been progressive successful the evacuation.

• Volodymyr Zelenskiy said “only a few” civilians stay successful the embattled frontline metropolis of Bakhmut successful the eastbound state of Donetsk. In a Telegram post, Ukraine’s person said “there is nary spot that is not covered with blood” successful the Ukrainian-held city, wherever his troops are waging a conflict that has travel to symbolise the grinding brutality of the war.

• Ukraine has secured the merchandise of 1,456 prisoners of warfare since Russia invaded successful February, according to Zelenskiy. Ukraine’s president was speaking successful an yearly address to the Ukrainian parliament, wherever Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s equipped forces, furniture ministers, overseas diplomats, subject unit and household members of fallen soldiers were reportedly present.

• The Kremlin has insisted immoderate proposals to extremity the struggle indispensable instrumentality into relationship what it calls “today’s realities” of 4 Ukrainian regions Moscow has unilaterally declared portion of Russia. In a regular briefing with reporters, the Kremlin’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, dismissed Zelenskiy’s 10-point bid plan, which includes the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops, the merchandise of each prisoners, a tribunal for those liable for the aggression and information guarantees for Ukraine.

• Russia’s overseas curate has said helium is convinced that Moscow would execute its goals successful Ukraine acknowledgment to its “patience” and “perseverance”. “I americium convinced that acknowledgment to our perseverance, patience and determination, we volition support the noble goals that are captious for our radical and our country,” Russia’s apical diplomat Sergei Lavrov said successful an interrogation broadcast connected nationalist television.

• The caput of Gazprom has said the Russian state elephantine had a challenging year, arsenic the institution seeks caller markets aft planetary sanctions implicit Moscow’s Ukraine offensive. “I privation to accidental close distant that 2022, of course, has turned retired to beryllium very, precise difficult,” Alexei Miller said during an end-of-year league arsenic tensions soar betwixt Russia and the west.

• A Crimean quality rights activistic has been sentenced to 7 years successful situation aft a Moscow-installed tribunal successful the Russian-annexed peninsula recovered her blameworthy of carrying an explosive device, successful a proceedings that rights activists person described arsenic “trumped up” and “illegal”. Iryna Danilovich was sentenced to 7 years successful a wide authorities colony by a tribunal successful Feodosia, the Kyiv-based organisation Institute of Mass Information (IMI) said.

• Authorities successful the Ukrainian metropolis of Odesa person begun dismantling a monument to Catherine the Great, the Russian empress who founded the metropolis successful the precocious 18th century. Last month, the section parliament voted to dismantle the statue, as good arsenic different to the Tsarist wide Alexander Suvorov.

• Russian soldiers mobilised to combat successful Ukraine volition beryllium capable to store their frozen sperm successful a cryobank for free, a starring Russian lawyer has said. Demographers person warned that Vladimir Putin’s penetration of Ukraine and its “partial” subject mobilisation could further deepen Russia’s demographic crisis.

• The United Nations precocious commissioner for quality rights has released a number of the fig of civilian casualties successful Russia’s warfare connected Ukraine truthful far, saying that 6,884 radical are known to person died successful Ukraine, including 429 children, betwixt 24 February 2022 to 26 December 2022. The existent fig is likely to beryllium “considerably higher”, it added.