Day 687 of the Invasion of Ukraine: NATO Will Provide More Money And More Air Defense In 2024

Day 687 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• Ukraine is intensifying the construction of fortifications, moving to a more defensive position
• 11 people were injured after a Russian attack on a hotel in Kharkiv
• NATO will provide more air defense and billions for Ukraine in 2024
• Seven member countries of the UN Security Council: Russia exploits its position
• Finland will keep its border with Russia closed
• Russia ranks first in Europe in terms of purchasing power parity, but there is still work to be done, Putin said

Ukraine is intensifying the construction of fortifications, moving to a more defensive position

Ukraine has stepped up fortification construction in recent months as it reconfigures its military operations against Russia toward more defensive tactics.

New defensive lines near the northeastern city of Kupiansk were visited by a Reuters team on December 28 last year - exactly a month after President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine was "significantly upgrading" the fortifications following Ukraine's failure to quickly break through Russian lines with the counteroffensive that began in June.

Kyiv says there is no wavering or backing down in its ambition to retake all remaining occupied territories, but for now, it is focused on politically sensitive reforms to conscription to replenish manpower and address frontline artillery shortages.

At the same time, Russia is increasing its offensive pressure around the eastern cities of Kupiansk, Lyman and Avdiivka and no longer needs to keep its reserve troops for fear of a possible Ukrainian breakthrough, military analysts note.

Ukraine has had defensive lines in some areas of eastern Donbas since 2014, when Russia backed militants who seized territory. There are no publicly available data on the intensity and scale of the ongoing fortification construction, writes "Reuters".

Stronger fortifications would slow down Russian troops and free up some resources from Ukrainian defense forces to be available at the front or to undergo additional training, for example, explains Jack Watling, senior research fellow in land warfare at the Royal United Services Institute.

"Reuters" quoted a Ukrainian army engineer with the call sign "Rhys", according to whom, "when the troops move and cross the fields, you can do without fortifications, but if they stop, you have to immediately dig into the ground."

"Now the Ukrainians are on the defensive because their offensive has peaked," and Russia has regained the initiative on the battlefield and is able to choose where to attack, Watling added in a telephone interview.

As Ukrainian artillery ammunition stocks dwindle, Russian casualty rates are falling, making it easier for Moscow to generate new units, which in time could allow them to open new lines of attack, he points out. The task of Ukraine is, on the one hand, to minimize its own casualties, and on the other hand, to restore its offensive combat power.

After visiting the newly constructed Ukrainian trenches at Chornobyl near the border with Belarus in December, Reuters reporters yesterday (January 10) saw the excavations at an undisclosed location in the Chernihiv region near the Russian border. Excavation is carried out simultaneously with excavators and shovels.

A large military engineering machine moves across the snow-covered ground as it digs a wide anti-tank ditch. "Once the civilians do their job (building the positions), we will mine it tightly," said Serhiy Naev, commander of Ukraine's joint forces, which oversees the northern military sector. According to him, similar activity is currently being carried out throughout the Northern operational zone, in Sumy region, Chernihiv region, in the direction of Kyiv.

Near Kupiansk, the Ukrainian military showed Reuters reporters newly constructed defense lines, the exact location of which cannot be made public for security reasons.

A military engineer with the callsign "Lizard" said that "dragon's teeth" - pyramidal reinforced concrete anti-tank obstacles - are usually laid first, followed by coils of barbed wire and finally mines, in case they are used. According to him, these barriers should have been built much earlier, probably in the spring, because they take a long time to build.

A few hundred meters behind the "dragon's teeth" work is underway to expand a network of personnel trenches, reinforced with wooden beams, where there are living quarters and wooden bunk beds.

The engineer, with the call sign Rees, told Reuters reporters that Ukraine was trying to minimize the use of mines for its fortifications to avoid leaving dangerous munitions on its territory.

11 people were injured after a Russian attack on a hotel in Kharkiv

Two Russian missiles hit a hotel in the center of Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv last night. 11 people were injured, one of them is in serious condition.

The governor of Kharkiv, Oleg Sinegubov, wrote on "Telegram" that the strike at around 10:30 p.m. local time was carried out with S-300 missiles in the Kyiv region of the city. 23 guests and 8 staff were in the hotel when the rockets hit. Damage was also caused to several houses in the area, as well as to a manufacturing plant and a car dealership.

Kharkiv is only 30 km away. from the Russian border and is often subject to Russian strikes. On his visit to Lithuania yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again called on the West to provide more air defense weapons.

NATO will provide more air defense and billions for Ukraine in 2024

NATO member countries will continue to provide Ukraine with important military, economic and humanitarian aid in the context of the almost two-year-old Russian invasion. In a statement after a video conference meeting of the alliance, it was stated that the member states have drawn up plans to provide "billions of euros of additional opportunities" for Ukraine in 2024. The meeting was held at the request of Ukraine.

Alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg added that while Moscow is stepping up its strikes against Ukrainian cities and civilians, NATO allies are beefing up Ukraine's air defenses.

Seven member countries of the UN Security Council: Russia exploits its position

Seven member countries of the UN Security Council have accused Russia of taking advantage of its position as a permanent member by acquiring North Korean missiles and firing them at Ukraine in violation of resolutions adopted by the Council, AFP reported.

"A permanent member of the Security Council who participated in these violations demonstrated a clear exploitation of his position," said the statement by permanent council members Britain, France and the United States.

Non-permanent members Japan, Malta, Slovenia and South Korea also supported the position along with Ukraine.

Last week, the White House announced, citing recently declassified intelligence, that Russia had recently used short-range ballistic missiles originating in North Korea to launch multiple strikes against Ukraine-. Both Moscow and Pyongyang have denied any arms deals, but pledged last year to deepen military ties.

Russia has recently launched some of its most intense strikes against Ukraine since it invaded the country nearly two years ago.

"It is abhorrent that a permanent member of the UN Security Council flagrantly violates Council resolutions to attack another UN member state, violations that increase the suffering of the Ukrainian people, support Russia's brutal war, and undermine the global nuclear non-proliferation regime weapon," said US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood.

Finland will keep its border with Russia closed

Finland will extend the closure of its border with Russia, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Sari Essayah said on national television, quoted by Reuters.

"The border will remain closed," Essayah said when asked if the measure would be extended for another month after it expires on January 15.

Late last year, Finland closed its border with Russia to stem a growing number of asylum seekers in the Scandinavian country and said Moscow orchestrated the flow of people, a charge the Kremlin denies.

According to data from the Finnish border guard, about 900 asylum seekers from countries such as Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria and Yemen entered Finland from Russia in November. By comparison, migrants were previously less than one per day, according to the Border Patrol.

Russia ranks first in Europe in terms of purchasing power parity, but there is still work to be done, Putin said

Russia's economy took first place in Europe and fifth in the world in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP), Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting with businessmen from Russia's Far Eastern Federal District, TASS reported. However, the Russian head of state noted that according to the per capita income indicator, the country still has a lot to work on.

"It's as if they are suffocating us from all sides, they are pressuring us, and in terms of the volume of the economy in general, we are the first in Europe. We overtook Germany and took fifth place in the world (in terms of GDP relative to PPP) after China, the USA, India and Japan. We are in first place in Europe," Putin said.

"In terms of purchasing power parity, we have overtaken the whole of Europe, but we still need to work on the per capita income. Therefore, there is still work to be done," added the Russian president.

Putin did not agree with the comment of the chairman of the association "Business Russia" Alexei Repik that Japan's economy can be written off. "Japan, like many European economies, is a high-tech economy," noted the Russian leader.

A sharp increase in import duties on fish can lead to a rise in prices on the domestic market, which is dangerous, the Russian president said.

"I will check exactly, I will make a note. I will ask my colleagues to make a note. Simply raising the import duty sharply is dangerous, because prices on the domestic market can jump," Putin said.

"You said that because of inflation, it doesn't seem like it will get better. It will get better," assured the Russian leader. He emphasizes that a significant part of the Russian central bank's actions are aimed at curbing inflation. "I think we will achieve the target indicators," added Putin.

He said that he was against the super-liberal "equalization" in the development of Russian regions, since the conditions in them are different.

"I don't want to argue with anyone, our liberals, they do their work and they do it well. However, the general super-liberal approach is the following - everyone should be placed on equal terms, and the Far East as well, as well as the European part of the country. However, then here the population reduction would continue and there would be nothing. The conditions are different," Putin explained.

He noted that now it is necessary to work purposefully for the development of the regions. The Russian president reminded that this approach to the development of the regions has been applied since 2013. "Step by step, gradually, but we are still moving in the right direction," summed up Putin.

He expressed regret that the authorities did not allow the import of eggs in time to stop the rise in their prices.

"We just didn't orient ourselves in time. Production volumes in our country did not decrease. Consumption increased in relation to the real disposable income of the population, little by little, but still incomes increased little by little. They started buying more eggs, meat, chickens. However, we didn't think to allow imports in time. And prices jumped. That's why we have to be very careful," Putin said.

The reproductive health of the population affects the demographic indicators of the country and is one of the key issues, the Russian leader also said.

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