12:55 Calls for Taurus deliveries grow louder

In view of the massive Russian air attacks, there are increasing calls in Germany for the delivery of German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. "Ukraine needs more ammunition, more spare parts and the Taurus must be sent on its way immediately in order to finally make it more difficult for the Russian supply," said Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Chairwoman of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, to the news portal T-Online. The pledge to support Ukraine for as long as necessary will "become a phrase if we do not continue to support Ukraine together with our European partners and do so much more strongly", Strack-Zimmermann continued. The Greens' security policy spokesperson, Sara Nanni, agrees with the call for reliable aid. Ammunition for artillery, Taurus cruise missiles and "spare parts for the large equipment we have supplied" are currently urgently needed in Ukraine. The CDU/CSU has also renewed its demands for Taurus deliveries. So far, Chancellor Scholz has rejected them.

12:20 Ukraine intercepts dozens of missiles and cruise missiles
The Ukrainian military says it has intercepted over 70 missiles and cruise missiles launched by the Russian armed forces. These include ten Kinshal missiles, 59 cruise missiles and three Kalibr missiles, army chief Valery Salushnyi announced on Telegram. The Ukrainian capital Kiev was the main target of the Russian missile and drone attack.

11:45 Massive Russian airstrikes: Ukraine urges allies to speed up arms deliveries
Ukraine is urging its allies to deliver weapons more quickly. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has called on Western partners to respond to the recent Russian attacks by "accelerating the delivery of additional air defense systems, combat drones of all kinds and long-range missiles with a range of over 300 kilometers," his ministry announced. Kuleba also called on the partners to make a decision and transfer frozen Russian assets for Ukraine's needs. In addition, the allies should end their contacts with Russian diplomats in the respective capitals and international organizations.

11:07 Russians devastate own village in airstrike
According to civilian authorities, a projectile accidentally hit a Russian village in the Voronezh border region during the latest heavy Russian airstrike on Ukraine. According to initial reports, seven farmsteads were damaged as a result, the governor of the region, Alexander Gusev, wrote on Telegram. There were no injuries. The incident took place in the village of Petropavlovka, around 140 kilometers from Ukrainian-controlled territory. Gusev spoke of the "accidental release" of the projectile. He did not specify the type of weapon. Unauthenticated videos are circulating on social media that are said to show severe damage to several houses in the village.

10:38 Massive Russian air strikes: Poland lets fighter jets take off
In EU and NATO member state Poland, the air strikes against neighboring Ukraine are being closely monitored. Two F-16 fighter jets each from the Polish and American air forces have taken to the skies for safety reasons, according to a command of the armed forces on Platform X. According to the Polish General Staff, it was only on Friday that a Russian missile entered Polish airspace for three minutes before leaving it again in the direction of Ukraine.

10:22 At least four dead in Ukraine
At least four people have been killed in massive Russian airstrikes in Ukraine, according to the authorities. An elderly woman and a married couple were killed in and around the capital Kiev, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko and the local prosecutor's office. Another person was killed in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, according to the authorities there. According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, at least 92 people were injured.

09:50 "If Western support for Ukraine is stopped, Putin will set new goals"
After a Ukrainian attack on the Russian city of Belgorod, President Putin speaks of retaliation. ntv Moscow correspondent Rainer Munz, however, does not believe that the attack will change anything about Russia's approach to the war. Overall, the Kremlin is entering the new year with great verbal confidence.

09:15 "Like the criminals of the Third Reich": Moscow threatens Ukrainian government with annihilation
What does Russia actually want in Ukraine? In any case, it seems to be less about preventing a possible eastward expansion of NATO. The Russian Foreign Ministry now declares: "Ukraine, which is infected with Nazism that has developed into terrorism, must be completely denazified and demilitarized. The Kiev regime and its leaders, who worship the criminals of the Third Reich, will end up just like their idols." Moscow does not provide any further justification for the alleged Nazi ideology of the Kiev government and President Volodymyr Zelensky, who himself is of Jewish origin.

08:39 "The hardest morning": How Kiev is experiencing the night of terror
For a few days now, Russia has been carrying out massive attacks in Ukraine, hitting the capital Kiev particularly hard. "This is the worst morning I've ever experienced in Kyiv, in terms of the air strikes. First drones, then cruise missiles, then the highest number of Kinschal aeroballistic missiles and now cruise missiles again," writes journalist Denis Trubetskoy. "I slept through the drones, woke up to cruise missiles - and have been in the hallway ever since, as the run outside to the bomb shelter can be even more dangerous with this intensity of fire. And there were a few scary moments when it was quite scary." Several people were injured by the attacks. According to Mayor Klitschko.

08:16 Heavy attacks also in Kharkiv: more than 20 injured, one dead
Not only the Ukrainian capital Kiev is the target of massive Russian attacks. Air strikes are also being reported from other parts of the country. According to initial reports from the authorities, one person was killed in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv; more than 20 people were apparently injured.

07:50 Russia fires hypersonic missiles
The Ukrainian capital Kiev is the target of a heavy Russian missile attack. According to the Ukrainian air force, Russia used several Kinschal hypersonic missiles. Loud explosions can be heard in the city of millions. There are power cuts in several parts of the city, writes Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Telegram. At least ten people were injured. Civil infrastructure facilities were hit and a gas pipeline was damaged. Problems with the water supply were also reported. According to a Russian Telegram channel, the Kinshal rockets are fired "every few minutes". "This is the first time that such a massive use of this type of weapon has been observed."

07:10 EON boss: Germany must never be so dependent on Russia again
The head of the EON Group, Leonhard Birnbaum, gives the all-clear for the winter when it comes to gas: "We are much better prepared than a year ago, the gas storage facilities are well filled," he tells the Rheinische Post. A lot would have to happen for there to be a shortage of gas this winter," Birnbaum told the Rheinische Post. When asked whether trade with Russia would ever be conceivable again, the EON boss said: "The West should do everything it can to ensure that Ukraine wins this terrible war. Our values are also being sworn by there. At some point, however, there will be a time after Putin. Why shouldn't trade be possible again then? But certainly at a completely different level. And one thing is very clear: Germany must not and will never again become so dependent on Russia."

06:35 Blood toll in Ukraine: How many Russians known by name have already been killed
How many Russians have already been killed in Ukraine? There are no reliable figures, but the independent Russian portal Mediazona, in cooperation with the BBC, has now provided an indication of the enormous blood toll: it has published the names of 40,599 Russian soldiers who have been killed since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022. The journalists point out that the actual figures are likely to be much higher, as the information they have verified so far comes from public sources, including obituaries, contributions from relatives, news in regional media and reports from local authorities. Since Mediazona's last update on December 15, the number of known victims has increased by 1,100. In total, almost 3,000 officers, including 341 with the rank of lieutenant colonel or higher, have fallen in Ukraine in the past 22 months.

05:59 All red: air alert throughout Ukraine
There is a nationwide air alert in Ukraine. The Ukrainian air force warns of Russian missile attacks via Telegram and calls on the population to seek safety. "A total of 16 Tu-95MS strategic bombers are in the air. Do not ignore the air alarm! Go to the shelters," it says. The air force claims to have fended off 35 Iranian-made Shahed drones during the night.

05:13 Klitschko: Air defenses deployed against Russian drone attack on Kiev
The mayor of Kiev, Vitali Klitschko, writes on the online platform Telegram that the Ukrainian air defenses are causing the loud explosions that can be heard in Kiev. Falling drone debris had triggered a fire in a residential building in the Desnianskyi district. The district on the east bank of the Dnipro River is the most densely populated part of Kiev. Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kiev military administration, said on Telegram that the emergency services had also been dispatched to the Holosiivskyi district on the west bank of the Dnipro. There are no immediate reports of casualties.

03:45 Ukraine: Air defenses deployed against drone attack on Kiev region
The air defense in the region around Kiev is deployed against another drone attack. This is reported by the Ukrainian military on Telegram.

02:30 Many Leopard tanks from Germany are broken
Only very few of the modern Leopard 2A6 battle tanks supplied by Germany are still in service in Ukraine - Green Party budget expert Sebastian Schäfer is therefore calling for faster steps to make them operational again. At the turn of the year, the defense budget expert wrote to the defence companies involved, Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW): "Unfortunately, only a very small number of the battle tanks supplied can still be used by Ukraine." Repairs take a very long time because, according to the industry's repair workshop in Lithuania, there is a lack of suitable spare parts.

01:51 Military administration: At least 29 people killed in attacks on Kiev
At least 29 people were killed in the Russian mass attack on the capital on December 29, according to Serhii Popko, head of the military administration of the city of Kiev. "By 10:30 p.m. on January 1, rescue workers had recovered more bodies, bringing the total number of dead to 29. This is the most terrible attack on the capital since the beginning of the war," Popko says on his Telegram channel.

00:25 Russian attack on Kherson region injures 44-year-old woman
According to the head of the Kherson military administration, Roman Mrochko, a woman was injured in a suburb of the city as a result of a Russian grenade attack. The 44-year-old woman was in her house during the attack. Mrochko also says that the woman suffered mine trauma and a concussion.

22:59 Selinskyj: Russia suffers heavy losses on the battlefield
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, Moscow is still suffering heavy losses on the battlefield. In an interview with the British weekly magazine "Economist", Selenskyj says that the idea that Russia is winning the war, which has now lasted almost two years, is "just a feeling". There are no real signs that Russia is interested in peace. Any suggestion that Russia is ready for talks only shows that Moscow is running out of weapons and soldiers. In order to reduce the Russian attacks, Ukraine must attack the strong Russian forces in Crimea and defend the cities in the east of the country. Mobilization is "the only way to protect our state and end the occupation of our country."

21:42 Video to show the work of Ukrainian air defense
The commander of the Ukrainian air force, Mykola Oleshchuk, publishes a video showing the air defense at work. Last night, the air force intercepted a total of 87 of the 90 kamikaze drones shot down by the Russian military. According to Kiev, this was a record number.

You can read all previous developments here.