After the stalled counteroffensive, Ukraine wants to massively expand its defenses. The country is badly scarred. The news at a glance.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj has announced the accelerated construction of shelters and fortifications along all sectors of the front. “The priority is obvious,” he said in his daily video address.
The construction of such facilities was discussed with the Defense Minister and leading military officials. Most recently, a number of observers declared the Ukrainian counteroffensive to have failed. The emphasis on fortress building is seen as an indication that the leadership in Kiev is now concentrating on defense.
Another air alert in Ukraine
During the night there was another air alarm in Ukraine. The Ukrainian armed forces warned of attacks by Russian drones that were launched from Crimea. Two people were injured by a Russian drone in the Kherson region, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
Meanwhile, the chairwoman of the parliamentary committee for regional development and urban planning in Kiev, Olena Schuliak, said that more than 170,000 buildings in Ukraine had already been damaged or destroyed as a result of the Russian invasion, which has been ongoing for more than 21 months. The Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform reported this early in the morning. This will include more than 20,000 residential buildings.
The Russian attacks affected more than 3,500 educational institutions and 420 large and medium-sized companies, as Schuliak wrote in an agency blog. In addition, airports and civil airfields, 344 bridges and crossings and 25,000 roads were affected by destruction.
Ukraine is repeatedly hit with missile and drone attacks in the Russian war of aggression that Moscow began on February 24, 2022. This often results in severe destruction, deaths and injuries.
Zelenskyj calls for more security for schools
In addition to the contested areas on the front, Zelensky also called for more security in schools. Shelters would have to be built there. In this context, he reported on a visit to a school in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, which is housed in the subway premises. Zelenskyj spoke of a successful project because the subway was safe from Russian attacks.
Since the beginning of its war of aggression, Russia has repeatedly attacked civilian targets in the hinterland of Ukraine with drones, cruise missiles and rockets. Above all, energy supply objects are being targeted in order to deprive Ukrainians of electricity, water and heat supplies during the cold season and to make them war-weary.
Latvia signs purchase agreement for German Iris-T anti-aircraft defense system
Latvia signed a contract on Thursday to purchase the German Iris-T medium-range air defense system worth around 600 million euros. Accordingly, the Baltic EU and NATO country will receive the necessary equipment from the manufacturer Diehl Defense to be able to operate the weapon system effectively. Delivery should begin in 2026, the Defense Ministry in Riga said. Latvia had agreed to purchase Iris-T together with neighboring Estonia.
Air defense is considered a weak point in the Baltic states. Estonia and Latvia border Russia, Latvia also borders its close ally Belarus. The two Baltic Sea states view the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine as a direct threat to their security. They have already massively increased their military spending and are upgrading their armed forces.
Report: School in Russia lets children make grenade parts
According to media reports, students at a school in the Russian republic of Tatarstan are making parts of artillery shells for Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine as part of a working group. “What at first glance looks like a child’s toy serves a very important function… the stabilizers help the grenade fly directly to the target without tipping over in the air,” the local television correspondent reported on the lesson. The independent “Moscow Times” also reported on the case nationwide on Thursday.
What is important today
In Skopje, the exchange of blows continues at the meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). On Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov blamed Western countries for the organization’s crisis. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock countered this and called on OSCE members to oppose the blockade by Russia. Lavrov’s participation in the conference triggered protests even before it began and some ministers decided not to take part.
