Ukraine-Russia latest: Moscow cargo ship with Syria ties sinks as North Korean troop casualties ‘exceed 3,000’
Zelensky warns of greater military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, including sending more troops and military equipment
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Your support makes all the difference.A Russian cargo ship that Kyiv says was intended to collect weapons from military bases in Syria has sunk on route in the Mediterranean Sea.
Officials in Moscow said two crew members are missing after an engine room explosion sank the Ursa Major between Spain and Algeria. Fourteen other crew were rescued and taken to Spain.
The vessel left the Russian port city of St Petersburg on 11 December, according to ship tracking data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). It was last seen sending a signal at 10.04pm GMT on Monday between Algeria and Spain.
Ukraine’s military intelligence claimed on Monday that the ship had been sent to Syria to remove weapons and military materiel after the fall of Moscow-backed Bashar Al-Assad.
It comes as the North Korean troops killed and injured while fighting alongside Russian forces have surpassed 3,000, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has said, as he warned about greater military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang.
“There are risks of North Korea sending additional soldiers and military equipment to the Russian army, and we will have tangible responses to this,” Mr Zelensky said in a statement on Telegram yesterday.
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Nato cannot defend Europe from Russia without the US, warn leaders
The leaders of Finland, Latvia and Estonia tell The Independent that Ukraine’s victory against Russia is paramount to the defence of a poorly-armed Europe.
Nato cannot defend Europe from Russia without the US, warns Baltic leaders
The leaders of Finland, Latvia and Estonia tell The Independent that Ukraine’s victory against Russia is paramount to the defence of a poorly-armed Europe
Russia ship bound for Syria sinks in Mediterranean
A Russian cargo ship that Kyiv says was intended to collect weapons from military bases in Syria has sunk on route in the Mediterranean Sea.
Officials in Moscow said two crew members are missing after an engine room explosion sank the Ursa Major between Spain and Algeria. Fourteen other crew were rescued and taken to Spain.
The vessel left the Russian port city of St Petersburg on 11 December, according to ship tracking data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). It was last seen sending a signal at 10.04pm GMT on Monday between Algeria and Spain.
Ukraine’s military intelligence claimed on Monday that the ship had been sent to Syria to remove weapons and military materiel after the fall of Moscow-backed Bashar Al-Assad.
Ukraine says Russia used 60 drones in overnight attack
Ukraine said Russia had attacked it with 60 drones overnight, of which 36 were downed, 23 were jammed by electronic warfare and one was still in the air.
The Ukrainian air force said drones had been shot down in eight regions across the country in a statement posted on the Telegram app on Tuesday.
Moscow is pressing on the 1,000-km front line along Ukraine‘s east and south almost three years into its full-scale invasion. It has launched near-daily waves of drones in the past few months, seeking to exhaust Ukrainian air defences and hit key infrastructure.
Ukraine and South Korea disagree on North Korean losses
Ukraine’s president Zelensky and South Korean officials have provided different estimates of North Korean troops killed or injured as they fight alongside Russian forces.
Seoul’s top military officials say that around 1,100 North Korean troops have been killed or wounded in Ukraine’s Kursk region. Meanwhile, Zelensky put the figure much higher, at over 3,000.
The Ukrainian president has warned that more North Korean troops will likely join the invading Russian forces, criticising world leaders for doing “almost nothing” to curb collaboration between the two nations.
South Korean military sources have corroborated his claim, saying there is evidence that North Korea is preparing to send more resources to Russia.
“Fighting for money”: What did Zelensky say about Slovakia PM Robert Fico?
Ukraine’s president Zelensky has expressed his dismay at the meeting between Slovakian PM Robert Fico and Putin over gas exports.
Taking to Twitter / X, he wrote: “There have been many questions from journalists today about Fico’s trip to Moscow. In fact, after our conversation in Brussels in the presence of all European leaders, nothing surprises anymore.
“We are fighting for our lives, Fico is fighting for money, and it’s unlikely that money is for Slovakia. Shadow agreements with Putin are either a trade of state interests or working for personal gain.
“We offered him solutions regarding potential compensation for Slovaks – the Slovaks specifically – for losses from Russian transit, as well as alternatives for transit – any other gas, not Russian, at the request of the European Commission. We were ready to do this. Fico did not want compensation for the Slovaks. And he does not want to cooperate with the European Commission. For some reason, he finds Moscow more profitable.
“Everyone in Europe understands why. There’s no one who doesn’t.”
Russian gas flows faster in face of Ukraine criticism
Russia’s Gazprom said that it would send 42.4 million cubic metres of gas to Europe via Ukraine on Tuesday, up from 42.1 mcm on Monday.
The slight uptick in distribution comes after Zelensky said he would not allow contracts for gas exports which flow from Russia to Europe through Ukraine to be renewed.
In reaction to the announcement, Slovakia PM Robert Fico met with Putin on Monday for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Gazprom’s exports to Europe and beyond decreased sharply following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, dropping by 90 billion cubic metres (bcm) in a single year to 63.8 billion over the year.
This dropped again in 2023 to 28.3 bcm, and is estimated to reach 32 bcm overall for 2024.
However, these figures are all staggeringly low compared to Gazprom’s pre-war exports, with the 2018/19 peak of 180 bmc remaining far out of reach.
Ukraine launches first robot-only assault on Russia
Ukraine has successfully mounted its first robot-only assault against Russia, its the military says, as unmanned vehicles pushed back Moscow’s forces over the weekend.
In a display of modern warfare, Kyiv used dozens of remote-controlled vehicles mounted with machine guns, as well as unmanned kamikaze drones, in a raid near the Ukrainian-held town of Lyptsi, the Ukrainian military said.
Volodymyr Dehtiarov, a representative for Ukraine’s Khartiia Brigade, said: “We are talking about dozens of units of robotic and unmanned equipment simultaneously on a small section of the front.”
The assault took place between Russian-held Hlyboke and Ukrainian-held Lyptsi, in the Kharkiv region near Ukraine’s north-western border.
Kyiv has struggled with a shortage of manpower as the fight against invadin Russian troops continues into 2025. Ukranian officials have said the nation’s military consists of around 800,000 while Russia has committed 1.7 million troops to its war so far.
Modern assaults such as Ukraine’s robot only attack may prove to be crucial in the coming year as the officials look to tackle the imbalance of troops.
Protests and anger as Slovakia PM meets Putin
Slovakia’s prime minister Robert Fico has drawn criticism from the European community and Slovakian citizens after he met face-to-face with Vladimir Putin the day before Christmas Eve (23 December).
Mr Fico became only the third European leader to visit the Russian president in Moscow since its invasion of Ukraine was ordered in February 2022.
The pair discussed “the international situation” and the delivery of Russian natural gas, according to the Kremlin.
Mr Fico says his visit was a reaction to Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky’s announcement that he would no longer allow Russian natural gas to flow to other European countries through pipes in Ukrainian soil.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry slammed the “weakness, dependence and short-sightedness” of Mr Fico’s energy policy in a statement, calling it a “threat to the whole of Europe.”
Meanwhile, protests have taken place in Bratislavia, Slovakia’s capital, as citizens show their support for Ukraine and disappointment at Mr Fico’s meeting.
Urgent call for evacuation of Australian fighter after stepping on landmine in Ukraine
The Australian government is being urged to urgently evacuate a 38-year-old citizen who sustained severe injuries after stepping on a landmine while fighting on Ukraine’s eastern front. Friends of the injured man, who is currently receiving treatment in a Ukrainian hospital, told The Guardian that without immediate specialist care, he risks losing his limbs.
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that consular assistance is being provided but declined to comment further, citing privacy concerns.
The Australian fighter recounted his harrowing ordeal in a statement shared by a supporter. “I nearly bled out,” he said, describing the 20-hour evacuation and the lack of immediate first aid.
Glenn Kolomeitz, a former Australian army officer, has called on the government to arrange an urgent evacuation to ensure the man receives proper medical treatment. “He needs surgery very rapidly,” Mr Kolomeitz stressed.
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