Billions of winter aid for Kiev – the night update without photos FTX founder faces long prison terms: the deep fall of the crypto prodigy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the emergency winter aid for his country that he had started at a conference in Paris. This will allow, among other things, to rebuild the badly damaged electricity grid, he said on Tuesday evening. Meanwhile, the US is considering supplying Patriot air defense systems to Kiev. And the International Atomic Energy Agency wants to monitor all nuclear power plants in Ukraine directly in the future.

Zelenskyj thanks supporters for winter help

Zelenskyy thanked the international community for the €1 billion emergency winter aid launched on Tuesday. “Every day we draw new strength from Ukraine to get through this winter and I thank everyone who is committed to this and helping our state,” he said in his daily video address in the evening.

Representatives from some 70 countries gathered in Paris to help Ukraine, which had been hit hard by Russia’s offensive war. The aid is primarily intended to restore badly damaged electricity and heat supplies, water supplies, transport and health systems and food supplies. The Russian military recently targeted Ukraine’s entire energy infrastructure to exhaust the population in winter and put pressure on the country’s leaders.

Report: US considers Patriot anti-aircraft defenses for Ukraine

According to a report, the US government plans to supply the Patriot air defense system to Ukraine. The project is subject to approval by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, CNN reported Tuesday, citing unnamed government sources. The plans could be made official later this week. The Patriot system is used to counter aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles and cruise missiles.

Ukraine, attacked by Russia, continues to push for better air defenses. The US is already supplying several Himar missile launchers and the Nasams air defense system to Ukraine.

IAEA has stationed safety experts in all Ukrainian nuclear power plants

Safety experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will be permanently stationed at all four Ukrainian nuclear power plants. That is what IAEA chief Rafael Grossi and Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal agreed in Paris on Tuesday.

Currently, an IAEA team only at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant is constantly monitoring the situation and providing independent reports on Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which has come under repeated attack. Indirectly, the presence of the IAEA is also intended to prevent serious attacks that could cause a nuclear accident. Now the three remaining nuclear power plants in Ukraine are also permanently monitored by the IAEA. These facilities are under Ukrainian control.

Kiev reports losses among Russian troops

According to their own statements, the Ukrainian armed forces inflicted heavy losses on the Russian occupiers during heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine. About 60 Russian soldiers have been killed and 100 others wounded in the village of Kadievka in the Luhansk region alone, the general staff in Kiev said Tuesday night. About 150 Russian soldiers were injured in attacks on a command staff and artillery positions near Melitopol in the south of the country. The information could not be independently verified.

The Ukrainian foreign minister expects a Russian offensive in early 2023

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba says he expects another major Russian offensive in January or February. “I think that by the end of January or the beginning of February, Russia will probably have recovered its capabilities for a major offensive – they will try and we will try to prevent it,” he said Tuesday night when speaking to press officials in Kiev. Ukraine will do everything to thwart these plans of the Russian army.

UN emergency aid coordinator in Kherson – Russians angry

UN emergency coordinator Martin Griffiths angered the Russian occupiers across the Dnipro River by visiting the recently liberated southern Ukrainian city of Kherson. Moscow-appointed regional administration chief Vladimir Saldo on Tuesday accused the UN representative of crossing the border into Russian territory illegally and without permission. “This is outrageous, shameful and indecent,” Saldo told Russia’s state agency Tass.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, it held mock referendums and illegally annexed four territories in southern and eastern Ukraine, including Kherson Oblast. In the autumn, however, Ukrainian troops succeeded in liberating the city of Kherson and pushing back the Russian occupiers across the Dnipro River. UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric pointed out that the United Nations does not recognize the referenda organized by Moscow either.

What will the day bring?

The European Parliament will award the renowned Sakharov Prize to the Ukrainian people this Wednesday in Strasbourg. Three Ukrainians who are committed to civil society receive the award. The Sakharov Prize has been awarded by the European Parliament since 1988 to an individual or organization that defends human rights and freedom of expression. (meg/sda/dpa)