Russian soldiers have been killed by North Korean troops in friendly fire while fighting in Kursk, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said.
The HUR said a group of North Korean soldiers opened fire on and killed eight members of the Chechen Akhmat unit fighting for Russia.
The attack was the result of the language barrier between Russian and North Korean troops, which continues to be a “difficult obstacle” on the battlefield, according to the HUR.
Ukrainian and Western officials warned earlier this year that over 10,000 North Korean troops had amassed in Kursk Oblast, ready to aid Russia’s attempt to oust Ukrainian forces in the region.
It comes as Kyiv’s armed forces claimed Vladimir Putin lost over 1,000 soldiers in the past day as Russia pushes forwards to capture ground in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian defence ministry claimed its troops took control of the villages of Veselyi Hai and Pushkino in Ukraine’s Donetsk region.
Meanwhile, two Russian oil tankers split in half in the Black Sea, as Ukraine accused Vladimir Putin of “violating operating rules” for sending old vessels out into the water during bad weather.
Key Points
- Russian soldiers killed by North Korean troops, Kyiv says
- Two Russian tankers damaged in Kerch Strait
- Russian oil depot set ablaze after ‘massive drone attack’ by Kyiv
Ukraine reports North Korean losses in combat in Kursk region
03:11
Arpan Rai
At least 30 soldiers of North Korean units fighting for Russia have been killed or wounded around several villages on the front in Russia’s Kursk region over the weekend, Ukraine’s HUR military spy agency said.
This marks the first official confirmation of North Korean losses in the Ukraine war. The casualties occurred around the villages of Plekhovo, Vorozhba and Martynovka in the Kursk region but the Ukrainian officials have not shared evidence yet.
“Due to the losses, the assault groups are being replenished with fresh personnel, in particular from the 94th separate brigade of the DPRK army, to continue active combat operations in Kursk region,” the Ukrainian agency wrote.
Kyiv first said North Korean forces turned up in Kursk region in October and later reported unspecified clashes and casualties. It estimates there are 11,000 North Koreans in total, adding to a force of tens of thousands of Russians.
Trump calls Biden’s move ‘stupid’ to let Ukraine hit Russia with US missiles
03:00
Arpan Rai
President-elect Donald Trump suggested that he may reverse president Joe Biden’s recent decision to allow Ukrainian forces to use American long-range weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory.
Asked if he would consider reversing the Biden administration decision, Mr Trump responded: “I might. I think it was a very stupid thing to do.”
He also expressed anger that his incoming administration was not consulted before Mr Biden made the move. With the loosening of the restrictions, Biden gave Ukraine long-sought permission to use the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) provided by the US to strike Russian positions hundreds miles from its border.
Ukraine claims North Korean troops were killed as they fought alongside Russian forces
03:00
Tom Watling
Capitol rioter who tried to join Russian army is sentenced to prison for probation violation
02:00
Tom Watling
The Russian glide bombs changing the face of the war in Ukraine
01:00
Tom Watling
Why we should all be drinking Ukrainian wine (yes, really)
00:00
Tom Watling
EU adds Niels Troost to Russia sanctions list
Monday 16 December 2024 23:00
Tom Watling
The EU has added Niels Troost, the businessperson controlling Paramount Energy and Commodities DMCC, to its Russia sanctions list on Monday, according to a document published online.
The EU said Paramount “repeatedly traded Russian oil above the oil price cap after its introduction” in the document. Paramount was sanctioned by the UK in November 2023.
What will it cost to defend Britain from a growing Russian threat?
Monday 16 December 2024 22:00
Tom Watling
EU slaps sanctions on dozens more Russian officials and targets its shadow oil and gas fleet
Monday 16 December 2024 21:00
Tom Watling
Where Putin’s forces are making gains on the frontline in east Ukraine
Monday 16 December 2024 20:00
Tom Watling
Damaged Russian ships spilled an estimated 3,700 tons of oil in Kerch Strait, state media says
Monday 16 December 2024 19:00
Tom Watling
Ukraine claims North Korean troops were killed as they fought alongside Russian forces
Monday 16 December 2024 18:00
Tom Watling
Capitol rioter who tried to join Russian army is sentenced to prison for probation violation
Monday 16 December 2024 17:00
Tom Watling
Ukraine blames Russia for Black Sea oil spill
Monday 16 December 2024 16:00
Tom Watling
Ukraine said on Monday Russia was to blame for a major oil spill in the Kerch Strait that leads into the Black Sea, accusing Moscow of breaking navigation safety rules by using old tankers and keeping two vessels at sea during a storm.
A Russian oil tanker split apart during a storm on Sunday, while another one ended up in distress in the strait that separates Russia from the Crimean Peninsula that Moscow’s troops seized and annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
Russia did not say how much fuel was leaked but its state news agency TASS reported the two vessels had been carrying 9,200 metric tons of oil products.
“The Russians have a rather complicated situation... in the Azov and the Black Sea region. They use an outdated fleet: these ships were more than 50 years old,” Dmytro Pletenchuk, a spokesperson for Ukraine‘s navy, told Reuters by phone. The vessel that was torn apart, the Volgoneft 212, dates back to 1969 and the Volgoneft 239 was built in 1973, according to certificates seen by Reuters.
Pletenchuk said the vessels in the accident were designed to transfer oil products along rivers and load them onto other vessels at sea and were not meant to be used in stormy weather. The two vessels had earlier turned off their AIS identification system, a global naval navigation system, making it impossible to identify their locations using satellites, he added.
In Pictures: Ukrainians take part in medical exercises near the frontline
Monday 16 December 2024 15:28
Tom Watling
Admiral says hybrid war is biggest challenge in Baltic
Monday 16 December 2024 15:00
Tom Watling
Russia is disrupting mobile communications and ship-tracking data across the Baltic Sea, endangering vessels and energy supplies to test how Western powers will respond, a Polish admiral overseeing the area said.
Vice Admiral Krzysztof Jaworski said Moscow was systematically using such tactics to hide the movements of its own vessels and disrupt the operations of others in the sea which is bordered by eight Nato countries and Russia.
“Hybrid war in the Baltic is the biggest challenge we are facing,” Jaworski told Reuters in an interview last week, referring to the practise of launching conventional attacks alongside attempts to disrupt politics, energy supplies and other systems.
“We are talking about aggressive behaviour by Russia. They are trying to disrupt our lives,” Jaworski, commander of Poland’s Naval Operations Centre, added. “They are also testing us, us as an alliance (to see) how far they can go.”
US, others condemn deepening military ties between North Korea, Russia
Monday 16 December 2024 14:28
Tom Watling
The United States joined nine other nations and the European Union on Monday in condemning the increasing military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, the countries said in a joint statement.
“We will continue to act in concert, including through imposition of economic sanctions, to respond to the danger posed by the DPRK-Russia partnership,” the said in the statement, which included Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Britain.
Tax Russia to rebuild Ukraine and increase defence spending, Estonia says
Monday 16 December 2024 14:03
Tom Watling
Estonia will propose that the leaders of the United Kingdom-led alliance of northern European Nato countries spend no less than 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence in response to the threat from Russia.
Only 23 of the 32 Nato members are on track to hit the Nato target of a minimum 2 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defence spending.
“Everybody in Nato and in the EU right now has the feeling in their back bone that you should increase defence expenditure, because of what is happening all over the world and with Russia,” Michal told Reuters in an interview on Monday.
“Europe as the wealthiest region of the world has to spend more on defence, security and security.”
Michal hosts the heads of the alliance, called the Joint Expeditionary Force, in Tallinn this week, and will focus discussions on Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil tankers, which he described as an “an environmental disaster waiting to happen”.
Estonia has doubled its defence spending since the start of the nearly three-year-old war in Ukraine, up to 3.2 per cent of GDP in 2024.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in July that he would increase UK defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP, but only when the country could afford it and after a review of defence strategy.
EU slaps sanctions on dozens more Russian officials and targets its shadow oil and gas fleet
Monday 16 December 2024 13:41
Tom Watling
British former paratrooper unlawfully killed in Ukraine, coroner finds
Monday 16 December 2024 12:56
Tom Watling
What is ATACMS? The US missiles being used inside Russia
Monday 16 December 2024 12:30
Tom Watling
There are several variants of Army Tactical Missile Systems, a long-range missile system that often carries varying amounts of cluster bomblets.
Ukrainian forces used the US-supplied long-range ATACMS missiles for the first time in October 2023, with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy saying the weapons had "proven themselves."
Ukraine likely has what are known as M39A1 Block IA ATACMS that are guided in part by Global Positioning System and have a range of 40 to 190 miles. They can carry a payload of 300 bomblets. The M39 Block IA were used in Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to Army documents, and were added to the US arsenal in 1997.
Russia has begun using North Korean troops ‘in significant numbers’
Monday 16 December 2024 11:56
Tom Watling
EU announces 15th sanctions package against Russia
Monday 16 December 2024 11:30
Tom Watling
The European Union has announced a sweeping sanctions package against Russia, targeting 54 persons and 30 entities “responsible for actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine”.
It is the 15th package the EU has announced.
You can read details of the package here.
Where Putin’s forces are making gains on the frontline in east Ukraine
Monday 16 December 2024 11:06
Tom Watling
Mapped: Russia makes advances in eastern Ukraine
Monday 16 December 2024 10:43
Tom Watling
What will it cost to defend Britain from a growing Russian threat?
Monday 16 December 2024 10:26
Tom Watling
Ukrainian drone raid destroys Russian ammunition depot in Donetsk region, source says
Monday 16 December 2024 10:11
Tom Watling
A Ukrainian drone attack destroyed a Russian ammunition depot near the village of Markine in Russian-occupied Donetsk region, a source in Ukraine‘s SBU state security service said on Monday.
The depot stored thousands of ammunition rounds for armoured personnel carriers and tanks, anti-tank guided missiles, mines and grenades, plus millions of rounds of ammunition for guns of various calibres, the source said.
The attack also destroyed the nearby fuel storage facility, according to the source.
As the full-scale war approaches its 34th month, Russia is inching forward in Ukraine‘s east with the most intense fighting taking place on the Kurakhove and Pokrovsk fronts in Donetsk region.
Ukraine relies on long-range drones to damage Russian strategic and military targets far beyond the front lines, including attacks on ammunition depots and oil facilities.
Ukraine reports North Korean losses on Russia's Kursk front
Monday 16 December 2024 09:56
Tom Watling
Ukraine has claimed that North Korean units fighting for Russia sustained losses of at least 30 soldiers killed or wounded around several villages on the front in Russia’s Kursk region over the weekend.
Ukraine‘s military spy agency reported the losses in a statement after President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday Russia was using North Korean troops in significant numbers for the first time to conduct assaults in Kursk, a Russian region where Ukraine launched a cross-border incursion in August.
The statement is the first time Ukraine has reported North Korean losses of this scale and in some detail. It said the losses were recorded in the vicinity of the villages of Plekhovo, Vorozhba and Martynovka in the Kursk region.
It was not possible to independently verify the figures. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied the presence of North Koreans on its side. Pyongyang initially dismissed reports about the troop deployment as “fake news”, but a North Korean official has said any such deployment would be lawful.
“Due to the losses, the assault groups are being replenished with fresh personnel, in particular from the 94th separate brigade of the DPRK army, to continue active combat operations in Kursk region,” the Ukrainian agency wrote, without providing evidence.
Damaged Russian tankers were carrying 62,000 barrels of oil products, Tass says
Monday 16 December 2024 09:32
Tom Watling
Two Russian tankers that spilled oil into the Kerch Strait after sustaining serious damage during a heavy storm on Sunday were carrying 9,200 metric tons (62,000 barrels) of oil products at the time, the state Tass news agency reported.
How much of the fuel leaked is being determined, Tass said. It said the Volgoneft 212 was carrying roughly 4,900 tons of fuel oil at the time, and the Volgoneft 239 4,300 tons.
Russia’s emergencies ministry said on Monday that all 14 crew members from the Volgoneft 239 had been rescued. The vessel ran aground 80 metres from the shore near the port of Taman.
The Kerch Strait, which separates mainland Russia from Moscow-annexed Crimea, is a key route for exports of Russian grain and fuel products.
The spill has the potential to be one of the largest environmental disasters to affect the region in recent years.
On Sunday, one crew member was killed after the Volgoneft 212 split in half with its bow sinking. Eleven others were taken to a local hospital.
President Vladimir Putin on Sunday ordered the government to set up a working group to deal with the rescue operation and mitigate the impact of the spill, Russian news agencies cited Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.
In pictures: Life on Ukraine’s eastern frontline
Monday 16 December 2024 09:06
Tom Watling
Norway will provide £192m to strengthen Ukrainian navy
Monday 16 December 2024 08:49
Tom Watling
Norway’s government has announced it will provide 2.7 billion crowns (£192 million) to strengthen the Ukrainian navy and help it deter Russian naval forces in the Black Sea.
“It is essential to protect the Ukrainian population and Ukrainian infrastructure from attacks by Russia’s Black Sea Fleet,” Norway’s prime minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement.
“It is also important to protect exports by sea of grain and other products, which generate crucial revenues for Ukraine,” he added.
Video: Russian tankers split in two by strong storms in Black Sea
Monday 16 December 2024 08:35
Tom Watling
Russian soldiers killed by North Korean troops, Kyiv says
Monday 16 December 2024 08:00
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russian soldiers have been killed by North Korean troops in friendly fire while fighting in Kursk, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said.
The HUR said a group of North Korean soldiers opened fire on and killed eight members of the Chechen Akhmat unit fighting for Russia.
The attack was the result of the language barrier between Russian and North Korean troops, which continues to be a “difficult obstacle” on the battlefield, according to the HUR.
Ukraine says it shot down 27 Russian drones overnight
Monday 16 December 2024 07:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The Ukrainian military said it downed 27 drones launched by Russia overnight.
Ukraine said Russia launched a total of 49 drones, out of which the air force shot down 27 and lost track of 19, likely due to electronic warfare.
Three drones remained in the Ukrainian air space as of this morning, it added.
Putin ‘loses 1,000 soldiers in past day'
Monday 16 December 2024 07:27
Alexander Butler
Vladimir Putin has lost over 1,000 soldiers in the past day as Russia pushes fowards to capture ground in eastern Ukraine, Kyiv’s armed forces said.
It comes as Russian forces took control of the villages of Veselyi Hai and Pushkino in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said.
The ministry also said Russian forces had hit and destroyed four Ukrainian Patriot air defence systems.
How can Putin be defeated? Assad’s fall provides lesson for West
Monday 16 December 2024 07:00
Alexander Butler
The fall of the Assad regime in Syria has led to questions over Russia’s ability to sustain its military adventures abroad. Russia had supported Assad militarily for over a decade, building on longstanding ties between Moscow and Damascus.
But the rapid advance of anti-government forces this month saw Russia apparently powerless to influence the situation beyond a number of airstrikes (as always, apparently mostly delivered on civilian targets) in support of government forces.
That has inevitably led people to draw conclusions about Russia’s ability to project power overseas, and what it may mean for the course of the war in Ukraine.
Russian troops capture ‘two villages’ in Ukraine’s Donetsk region
Monday 16 December 2024 06:45
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russian forces took control of the villages of Veselyi Hai and Pushkino in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Russia’s defence ministry said.
The ministry also said Russian forces had hit and destroyed four Patriot air defence systems.
Britain is failing to prepare itself for war with Russia, top general warns
Monday 16 December 2024 06:34
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Britain is not properly prepared to defend itself in a war with Russia and cannot rely on the United States and Nato, a retired senior general has warned.
Writing in The Independent, Sir Richard Shirreff, who served as Nato’s deputy supreme allied commander in Europe from 2011 to 2014, said another global conflict will only be prevented if there is a “band of deterrent steel from the Baltic to the Black Sea” – something he said the UK may have to be prepared to help realise without the support of Washington.
His dramatic intervention comes alongside warnings from former defence secretary Ben Wallace and Labour peer Admiral Lord West that a failure to prioritise defence would be a grave error for the prime minister.
More here.
Russia has begun using North Korean troops in 'significant numbers’
Monday 16 December 2024 06:00
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russia has deployed North Korean soldiers in significant numbers for the first time to support its offensive in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president said North Korean troops are reportedly being used in assaults on Ukrainian forces defending an enclave in Russia’s Kursk region.
“Today, we already have preliminary data that the Russians have begun to use North Korean soldiers in their assaults. A significant number of them,” Mr Zelensky said during his nightly wartime address.
Namita Singh reports.
Zelensky announces humanitarian aid for Syria
Monday 16 December 2024 05:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says his country could provide food aid to Syria from its “Grain from Ukraine” programme.
“Now we can help the Syrians with Ukrainian wheat, flour and our oil – our products that are used worldwide to ensure food security,” Mr Zelensky said.
More than a million Syrians have been displaced since armed rebels began a lightning offensive that eventually forced president Bashar al-Assad out of the country, ending his family’s 50-year rule.
Russian oil depot set ablaze after ‘massive drone attack’ by Kyiv
Monday 16 December 2024 05:00
Alexander Butler
A major Russian oil depot was set ablaze after Ukrainian troops launched a “massive drone attack” over 100 miles inside Russian territory.
The Stalnoy Kon oil refinery, part of Vladimir Putin’s “military industrial complex” that supplies Russian troops, was struck overnight on Friday, Kyiv’s chief of staff said.
The Russian governor of Oryol said on Telegram that fuel had caught fire at “a facility” in the region after the “massive drone attack”.
Russian media reported images, purportedly of the attack, showing clouds of smoke billowing up into the night sky from a fire.
Ukrainian drone hits target 800km away in Chechnya
Monday 16 December 2024 04:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
A Ukrainian drone struck a campus of Russia’s National Guard in Chechnya, some 800km southeast of the front line in Ukraine, according to reports.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov confirmed the drone strike, saying it hit a site that belonged to the Akhmat Grozny riot police battalion.
He said two other drones were shot down by Russian air defences.
The Russian defence ministry yesterday said it downed 15 Ukrainian drones overnight over Kursk and Belgorod regions.
The war has reached Chechnya: this morning, a Ukrainian drone hit OMON headquarters in Grozny. pic.twitter.com/3OZNLAuC8L
— Pekka Kallioniemi (@P_Kallioniemi) December 15, 2024
Watch: Zelensky says Ukraine could temporarily cede territory in exchange for Nato membership
Monday 16 December 2024 04:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine criticises Russia for sending old ships into rough waters
Monday 16 December 2024 03:54
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The Ukrainian navy has criticised Russia for sending old vessels into choppy waters after a tanker sank and another sustained severe damage during a storm in the Black Sea.
The Volgoneft 212 tanker, with 15 people on board, split in half and spilled oil into the Kerch Strait, located between mainland Russia and annexed Crimea.
Dmytro Pletenchuk, Ukraine’s navy spokesperson, said: “These are quite old Russian tankers. You can’t go to sea in such a storm. The Russians violated the operating rules. The result is an accident.”
In pics: Russian vessel carrying oils splits in Kerch Strait
Monday 16 December 2024 03:20
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Two Russian tankers damaged in Kerch Strait
Monday 16 December 2024 03:17
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
A Russian oil tanker carrying thousands of tonnes of oil products split apart during a heavy storm yesterday, spilling oil into the Kerch Strait, while another tanker was also in distress after sustaining damage, Russian officials said.
The vessels were in the Kerch Strait between mainland Russia and Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, when they issued distress signals.
Russian investigators opened two criminal cases to look into possible safety violations after at least one person was killed when the 136-metre Volgoneft 212 tanker, with 15 people on board, split in half with its bow sinking.
The Russian-flagged vessel, built in 1969, was damaged and had run aground, officials said.
The second Russian-flagged ship, the 132-metre Volgoneft 239, was drifting after sustaining damage, Russian officials said. It has a crew of 14 people and was built in 1973.
Ukraine says it destroys Russian train carrying fuel
Monday 16 December 2024 03:09
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine’s security service said it had launched an operation to destroy 40 rail cars carrying fuel to Russian troops in an area of the Zaporizhzhia region Moscow holds in southern Ukraine.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) claimed the operation involved different intelligence and military services and unfolded over a series of stages.“The aim was to disrupt the logistical supply routes for fuel from Crimea to temporarily occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia,” it told Reuters.
Russia has so far not commented on the alleged incident.
The SBU said one of its units organised a sabotage operation that damaged a rail line as the train was moving near the village of Oleksiivka in a Russian-held part of Zaporizhzhia region.
The train was halted, with tanker cars ablaze, and army units fired US-supplied HIMARS missiles at the site. “The missiles struck the locomotive and cars at the end of the train. The enemy was unable to reach the tanks and salvage some of the fuel,” the statement said.
Russia launched hundreds of bombs, drones and missiles at Ukraine over past week, says Zelensky
Monday 16 December 2024 03:00
Alexander Butler
Russia has launched hundreds of bombs, drones and missiles at Ukraine over the past week, according to President President Volodymyr Zelensky.
In a post on X this morning, he said: “This week alone, Russia has used nearly 630 guided aerial bombs, around 550 strike drones, and over 100 missiles of various types against Ukraine.
“I am grateful to the warriors defending Ukraine and to our partners who understand our need to bolster Ukraine’s air defenses to save the lives of our people.
“Now, the world must be united and stronger than ever. Only through strength can we together force Russia and its allies to give up terror and achieve a just peace.”
Sir Richard Shirreff: ‘The time has come for the UK to start gearing up to be ready for war in every respect’
Monday 16 December 2024 02:00
Alexander Butler
British ex paratrooper unlawfully killed in Ukraine by someone claiming to be his friend, coroner finds
Monday 16 December 2024 01:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine peace talks possible this winter, says Donald Tusk
Monday 16 December 2024 00:01
Alexander Butler
Why is Russia targeting Ukraine’s energy grid with missile attacks?
Sunday 15 December 2024 23:00
Alexander Butler
How can Putin be defeated? Assad’s fall provides lesson for West
Sunday 15 December 2024 22:00
Alexander Butler
AP photos from Ukraine in 2024 convey wartime horror and hope
Sunday 15 December 2024 21:00
Alexander Butler
UK war-games major conflict to test durability of weapons stockpiles
Sunday 15 December 2024 20:00
Alexander Butler
Zelensky open to idea of Western troops in Ukraine
Sunday 15 December 2024 19:00
Alexander Butler
What will it cost to defend Britain from a growing Russian threat?
Sunday 15 December 2024 18:00
Alexander Butler
The Russian glide bombs changing the face of the war in Ukraine
Sunday 15 December 2024 17:00
Alexander Butler