Ukrainian Government Press Service | Reuters The European Union has announced it has approved a new package of sanctions aimed at increasing pressure on Russia over its war in Ukraine. The package, the details of which have not been disclosed, was approved after days of discussions during a meeting of ambassadors of the 27-nation bloc. The Czech Republic, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU Council, said the package would be confirmed in writing on Friday. The details will then be published in the block’s legal archives. The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, last week proposed travel bans and asset freezes on nearly 200 more Russian officials and military officers as part of the new round of measures. Targets of the latest proposed sanctions included government ministers, lawmakers, regional governors and political parties. — Associated Press
Four vessels depart from Ukrainian ports under the Black Sea Grain Initiative
The Maltese-flagged bulk carrier Zante en route to Belgium transits the Bosphorus carrying 47,270 metric tons of rapeseed oil from Ukraine after being detained at the Bosphorus entrance due to Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea agreement on November 2, 2022 in Constantinople. Turkey. Chris McGrath | Getty Images Four ships carrying wheat and vegetable oil have left Ukrainian ports, the agency that manages the country’s agricultural exports has announced. The ships are destined for India and Turkey. The Black Sea Grain Initiative, a deal brokered in July between Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, saw three key Ukrainian ports reopen after a Russian naval blockade halted exports for months. More than 13.9 million tons of grain and other products have left Ukraine since the deal came into effect. The agreement between the signatories is set to expire in about three months. — Amanda Macias
Grain deal with Ukraine unlikely to be extended in near future, says UN aid chief
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Coordinator Martin Griffiths speaks during an interview with Reuters amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on December 15, 2022. Stringer | Reuters UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said it was unlikely the Black Sea grain deal would be extended in the short term to include more Ukrainian ports or reduce inspection times. Kyiv has called for an extension of the deal with Moscow brokered by the United Nations and Turkey that allows Ukraine, a major global grain exporter, to ship food from three of its Black Sea ports despite the Russian incursion. “I don’t see anything like this happening in the next, short term,” the UN’s undersecretary for humanitarian affairs and emergency aid coordinator told Reuters in an interview in the Ukrainian capital. “I think it would be great if it could scale, the more grains that get out into the world, the better from our point of view, from the world’s point of view. But I don’t think that’s immediately likely.” — Reuters
The Ukrainians find refuge in the front line of Bakhmut
Ukrainians take refuge from Russian attacks in Bakhmut, Ukraine. Ukrainian citizens cross a bridge in Bakhmut, Ukraine on December 15, 2022. Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Ukrainians take shelter from shelling in a basement in Bakhmut, Ukraine on December 15, 2022. Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Ukrainians take shelter from shelling in a basement in Bakhmut, Ukraine on December 15, 2022. Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images A Ukrainian man prepares firewood for the winter as civilians take shelter from shelling in a basement in Bakhmut, Ukraine on December 15, 2022. Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Ukrainians take shelter from shelling in a basement in Bakhmut, Ukraine on December 15, 2022. Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images — Diego Herrera Carcedo | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
US Treasury Sanctions 18 Entities Linked to Russia’s Financial Sector
Clients of Russia’s VTB bank gather at its headquarters to meet with the bank’s representatives and demand compensation for their investments, lost due to recent Western sanctions imposed on Russia, in Moscow, Russia on July 22, 2022. Evgenia Novozhenina Reuters The US Treasury Department announced that it has sanctioned a bank owned by a Russian billionaire, along with 17 subsidiaries of Russia’s second-largest bank VTB. The ministry made the move alongside designations issued by the State Department against a prominent Russian oligarch, his associates and more than 40 others with ties to the Russian government. The efforts are aimed at limiting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ability to finance Moscow’s war with Ukraine. Access to all real estate and interests in US soil belonging to any of the sanctions has been blocked. — Chelsea Cox
Kyiv has been hit by new drone attacks from Russia
Ukrainian military experts show downed drones allegedly used by Russia to strike critical infrastructure and other targets in Ukraine during a news conference in Kyiv. Military personnel show the fragments of unmanned aerial vehicles used by the Russian Federation against Ukraine to journalists during a press conference of the Ukrainian Security and Defense Forces at the Military Media Center in Kyiv, Ukraine, on December 15, 2022. Vladimir Shtanko Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Col. Oleksandr Zaruba, a representative of the Research Center for Trophy and Prospective Weapons and Military Equipment speaks during a press conference of the Security and Defense Forces of Ukraine at the Military Media Center in Kyiv, Ukraine, Dec. 15, 2022. Vladimir Shtanko Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Military personnel show the fragments of unmanned aerial vehicles used by the Russian Federation against Ukraine to journalists during a press conference of the Ukrainian Security and Defense Forces at the Military Media Center in Kyiv, Ukraine, on December 15, 2022. Vladimir Shtanko Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Ukraine announced on Wednesday that it had shot down more than a dozen drones in Moscow’s latest attack on Kyiv. A view of an administrative building destroyed by a Russian kamikaze drone attack is seen in Kyiv, Ukraine, December 14, 2022. Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images A municipal employee walks at the site of a Russian kamikaze drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, December 14, 2022. Air defense forces have already shot down 13 kamikaze drones over Kyiv, as the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration Serhii Popko posted on Telegram. Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
US ambassador thanks counterparts for brokering release of US citizen in latest Ukraine prisoner swap with Russia
US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink welcomed the release of an American citizen from Russian custody following another prisoner exchange between Moscow and Kiev. “Great to see an American citizen freed from Russian controlled territory,” Brink tweeted. “I thank Andriy Yermak and our Ukrainian partners for their continued efforts to secure the freedom of US citizens held by Russian forces,” he continued. Sixty-four Ukrainian soldiers, captured in the Russian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, and US citizen Swedi Murekezi were included in the swap, Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian president’s office, told Telegram on Wednesday. — Amanda Macias
Russia is preparing for a long war, says the Ukrainian military
Ukrainian military personnel drive a tank on a road in eastern Ukraine on November 24, 2022, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Anatoly Stepanov | Afp | Getty Images Russia is digging for a long war in Ukraine and still wants to conquer the entire country, a senior Ukrainian military official said. Brigadier General Oleksiy Gromov told a military briefing that while he did not expect Moscow to launch an attack from Belarus, Russia was training new troops on the neighbor’s territory and had moved military aircraft there. Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar, in the same briefing, warned against complacency following recent Russian military setbacks. Ukrainian officials have portrayed the Kremlin as desperate to reverse recent military setbacks – which included a retreat from the southern city of Kherson after months of occupation – and secure victories to justify the war to the Russian public. The Kremlin has never fully defined the goals of its February 24 invasion, which it said was aimed in part at protecting Russian-speakers in eastern Ukraine. — Reuters
Backlog of 92 ships waiting to transport crops from Ukraine
Ships, including those carrying grain from Ukraine and awaiting inspections, are seen anchored off the coast of Istanbul on November 2, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. Chris McGrath | Getty Images The agency responsible for exporting Ukrainian crops said 92 ships were waiting to be loaded with cargo. Sixty-eight laden ships are also awaiting inspection in Turkish territorial waters, the UN-led Joint Coordination Center said. The Black Sea Grain Initiative, an agreement brokered in July between Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, led to the reopening of three key Ukrainian ports after a Russian naval blockade halted exports for months. Since the agreement entered into force, more than 550 ships carrying 13.9 million metric tons of grain and other agricultural products have departed for destinations around the world. Kyiv claimed that Moscow suspended inspections and delayed ship departures. — Amanda Macias
The UN is hoping for a breakthrough in Russian fertilizer exports
A photo taken on October 31, 2022 shows a cargo ship loaded with grain being inspected at the anchorage area of the southern entrance of the Bosphorus in Istanbul. Ozan Kose | AFP | Getty Images A senior UN official expressed…
