+++ 06:58 NGO: Prisons in occupied territories are a "black hole"

+++ 06:58 NGO: Prisons in occupied territories are a "black hole" - thousands of civilians missing +++

According to estimates by human rights activists, Russia is holding thousands of Ukrainian civilian hostages. "I am very afraid that among the 8,000 missing civilians there are also those we will never find," Olga Romanova tells the Kyiv Independent. She is the exiled director of Russia Behind Bars, a prominent Russian NGO for prisoners' rights. "I vividly remember how the lists of missing civilians quickly dwindled when all those mass graves were discovered after the liberation of Isjum." The prisons in the occupied territories are a "black hole", as it is "almost impossible" to send real lawyers there without connections to the Russian security service. According to her, there are "hundreds of people" who come to Russia to work or visit their families and are now accused of espionage. The Ukrainian Coordination Center for the Treatment of Prisoners of War is keeping quiet about the number of civilian hostages in Russian custody. Its spokesman, Petro Yatsenko, is quoted in the "Kyiv Independent" as saying that just 140 civilian hostages have returned to Ukraine as part of several prisoner of war exchanges.

+++ 06:29 Despite Putin's threat: Ukraine sends numerous freighters across the Black Sea +++DespiteRussian threats, Ukraine has been transporting around seven million tons of freight across the Black Sea since August, according to its own statements. The goods have been exported on 200 ships, the Ukrainian Minister for Reconstruction, Oleksandr Kubrakov, announced on Telegram. Around five million tons of these are agricultural products. According to Kubrakov, 31 freighters are currently being loaded at three Ukrainian ports, while another 30 are using the corridor created by Ukraine in the Black Sea. Kiev had set up the sea corridor between the ports in the south of Ukraine and the Bosporus after Russia withdrew from the grain agreement in July after almost a year.

+++ 05:58 US senator warns: If Ukraine falls, Putin will "carry on" +++Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi intends to personally appeal to the US Senate today for further support in view of the possible loss of important US military aid at the end of the year. Zelenskyi wants to emphasize the urgency of further US aid and will join a meeting of senators via video, announced the Democratic majority leader in the House of Representatives, Chuck Schumer. He asked everyone to take part in this "important briefing". It was about finding out directly what was at stake. Chumer called on his colleagues to "do the right thing" and push for the release of new funds. If Ukraine falls, Russian President Vladimir Putin will "move on". The director of the National Budget Office, Shalanda Young, had previously warned both chambers of Congress that if the House did not act, the government would have no funds left at the end of the year to purchase more weapons and equipment for Ukraine.

+++ 04:54 Russia reports repulsed drone attacks +++Russiasays it repulsed several Ukrainian drone attacks during the night. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, 22 unmanned missiles were destroyed and 13 more were intercepted over the Sea of Azov and the annexed Black Sea peninsula of Crimea. However, it happens again and again that Russia speaks of supposedly successfully repelled drone attacks, but then damage becomes known.

+++ 04:04 Price cap for Russian oil exports: EU wants to tighten conditions +++Oneyear after the introduction of the Western price cap for Russian oil exports to third countries, monitoring measures and documentation requirements are to be tightened. This could make it more difficult for shipping companies to circumvent Russia sanctions with impunity in future. Ideally, the tightening of the price cap instrument should be adopted by the end of the year as part of the twelfth EU sanctions package due to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. This also includes the proposal to restrict trade in diamonds from Russia.

+++ 02:47 Russia intensifies shelling of Avdiivka +++Accordingto Ukrainian sources, theRussian armed forces are intensifying their attacks on the destroyed city of Avdiivka. "Yesterday and today we have seen a significant increase in artillery fire ... and a large number of mortar shells," said Vitali Barabash, head of the military administration of Avdiivka, on state television. "They are probably waiting for better weather to redeploy some of their equipment, as they used to do, only on a larger scale."

+++ 01:35 Baerbock: EU admission of the Balkan countries in our own interest +++Foreign MinisterAnnalena Baerbock sees the admission of the so-called Western Balkan countries to the EU as an important contribution to Europe's security in view of the Russian war in Ukraine, which has been going on for almost two years. "The countries of the Western Balkans belong fully and completely in our European Union. This is not just an empty phrase, but in our own security interests," explained the Green politician before her departure to Slovenia. She adds: "In view of Russia's imperialism in the middle of Europe, the EU cannot afford any gray areas." The countries of the so-called Western Balkans include Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia. All six countries are striving to join the EU, but are at different stages in the process.

+++ 00:57 Putin criticizes treatment of Russians in Latvia +++RussianPresident Vladimir Putin criticizes the treatment of the Baltic state of Latvia with part of the Russian population in threatening terms. "I do not believe that happiness will come to those who pursue such a policy," says the Kremlin leader. Those who treat parts of their population - literally - "piggishly" should not be surprised if this turns against them. According to the TASS agency, Putin said this at a meeting of the Russian Human Rights Council. The Kremlin-controlled council discussed changes to the law on foreigners in Latvia. Of the approximately 1.8 million people in the small EU and NATO country, around one in four is of Russian origin. However, many Russians are not Latvian citizens, but have non-citizen status. In the wake of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Latvia has introduced language tests for these non-citizens to test their everyday knowledge of Latvian. They are threatened with the withdrawal of their residence permit.

+++ 23:47 Orban does not want a decision on Ukraine accession talks at the EU summit +++Accordingto Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the EU heads of state and government should not attempt to bring about a decision on EU accession talks with Ukraine at the upcoming EU summit. In a letter to EU Council President Charles Michel, Orban writes that "the obvious lack of consensus" would "inevitably lead to failure". The summit will take place on December 14 and 15 in Brussels. Germany is one of the EU states that want to push for the opening of accession talks. This is controversial among the 27 EU countries.

+++ 23:09 Zelensky praises mobile units in the fight against drone attacks +++Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expresses his gratitude to mobile units, which he says were very effective in repelling Russian drone attacks. "Last night alone, 18 drones were destroyed in the latest Shahed attack. That is the majority. And most of the destruction was the result of mobile firing groups. This is how it should be. I thank all those who train the warriors of such groups and are committed to providing them with everything they need," the Ukrainian head of state wrote on his evening video update on social media. Last night, the mobile firing squads in the Mykolaiv, Kherson, Ivano-Frankivsk and Kirovohrad oblasts worked well. "I am personally grateful to you, but also to everyone else who is working every day and every night in the various regions," Selensky continued.

+++ 22:23 Storm washes sea mine ashore in Odessa region +++Accordingto the Ukrainian Navy, the stormy weather washed a sea mine ashore near the town of Prymorske in the Odessa region. According to the Ukrainian newspaper "Kyiv Independent", citing the navy, the mine can be defused by mine countermeasures units of the Ukrainian navy.

+++ 22:03 Several fires break out after drone attack on Kharkiv +++AfterRussian drone attacks on civilian infrastructure, several fires break out in the Kharkiv region. Oleh Syniehubov, head of the military administration of the Kharkiv region, announced this on Telegram, as reported by the Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform. "The occupiers are launching Shahed drone attacks," writes Syniehubov. The Izium and Chuhuiv districts were targeted, and some civilian infrastructure objects were hit. "Several fires broke out. No casualties have been reported so far," Syniehubov continued.

+++ 21:46 NATO chief Stoltenberg underlines "unwavering support" for Ukraine +++Ata meeting with Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg underlines Ukraine's unwavering support. The two discuss the latest developments on the front and Ukraine's urgent military needs in the fight against Russia.

+++ 21:28 General Staff: Ukrainian army repels 56 Russian attacks in 24 hours +++TheUkrainian army has repelled 56 attacks by the Russian military in the past 24 hours. There have been a total of 61 battles between Ukrainian and Russian troops. The situation in the east and south of the country remains difficult, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced on Facebook. The Russian troops are also attacking Ukraine with ten Shahed drones and a Ch-59 missile. Six drones and the missiles were shot down, according to the situation report.

+++ 21:02 Ukrainian secret service unmasks FSB agent +++Ukraine's domestic secret service (SBU) takes an agent of the Russian secret service (FSB) into custody. The agent provided Russia with information about the positions of Ukraine's armed forces and coordinated missile attacks on Kiev on New Year's Eve 2022, according to the Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform, citing the SBU.

You can read all previous developments here.