RUSSIAN ARMY SHOT DOWN 69 UKRAINIAN DRONES IN 1 DAY: DEFENSE MINISTRY

Wed 17 January 2024:

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday that 69 Ukrainian drones and 13 HIMARS rockets were shot down over the past day.

Ukrainian troops continued attempts to storm Russian positions and Russian forces repelled six Ukrainian attacks in the Kupyansk area.

All assault attempts were repelled, with Russian forces destroying several pieces of heavy military equipment including two German-made Leopard 2 tanks, it said.

Ukraine also shelled several Russian border regions including Bryansk and Belgorod, resulting in the destruction of a number of private houses and service facilities, according to the ministry.

Ukraine calls on residents to evacuate northern border regions

Serhiy Naev, a Ukrainian military commander, says that the measure is necessary to allow the Ukrainian military to conduct “a full-fledged exchange of fire and destroy the enemy without thinking that they can harm our citizens”.

“The border in the north of our country is a line of contact with the enemy with all its inherent combat actions. These hostilities can lead to the death of both civilians and military personnel, their capture, and the destruction of entire border villages and towns,” he said in a Telegram channel statement.

“Every civilian should clearly understand that being near the border with Russia is dangerous!”

Germany promises $7.6bn military aid to Ukraine

Germany will provide military aid to Ukraine in the amount of 7 billion euros ($7.6bn) this year, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says following the telephone conversation with US President Joe Biden.

“President Biden and I agree: we want to continue providing Ukraine with financial, humanitarian and military support. Today I spoke with the US president by phone. Germany will provide more than 7 billion euros for military goods in 2024,” he said.

Ukraine’s 2024 priority is to gain control of the skies: Minister

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says his country’s priority for 2024 is to gain control over its skies “because the one who controls the skies will define when and how the war will end”.

In an address to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Kuleba called for patience among Ukraine’s key Western backers and insisted that with the right support, Ukraine could be victorious.

“We are fighting a powerful enemy, a very big enemy that doesn’t sleep. It takes time,” Kuleba said.

“We defeated them on the land in 2022. We defeated them in the sea in 2023, and we are completely focused on defeating them in the air in 2024.”

Russia launched its “special military operation” in Ukraine in February 2022.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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