Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck in the Black Sea near the coast of Sevastopol. The Unified Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) press service reported this on Sunday, December 14. According to scientists, the tremors occurred at 00:38 Moscow time in the Black Sea, at coordinates 44.53 degrees latitude and 33.35 degrees longitude. The earthquake's epicenter was located at a depth of 10 kilometers.
Local Telegram channels reported that some residents felt tremors. There were no reports of injuries or damage.
Earlier, on December 12, a magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded in the Black Sea, 24 km from Sevastopol. Regional Governor Mikhail Razvozhaev clarified that, according to current data from the Crimean Seismic Network, the earthquake had one aftershock.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Korrespondent] 2.54 Deputies of the Latvian Seimas supported the redistribution of 5 million euros for the purchase of unmanned systems to support Ukraine in 2025. This is reported by Delfi .
It is expected that 5 million euros of funding will be redirected from the budget program of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Ministry of Defense of Latvia. The funding will be used to purchase drones for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as to promote the development of Latvian industry in the field of dual-use technologies.
22.23 Since the beginning of the day, 148 combat clashes between the Defense Forces and the occupation forces have taken place at the front . Today, the Russian Federation carried out 42 air strikes, dropping 103 guided bombs. In addition, the invaders used 4,003 kamikaze drones to destroy them and carried out 3,703 attacks on the positions of our troops and settlements. This is stated in the General Staff report.
20.37 In Zaporizhia, the number of victims as a result of a Russian drone attack has increased to 14 people. This was reported by the press service of the State Emergency Service.
"The number of victims of shelling of Zaporizhia has increased to 14," the report said.
Among the injured were one child, three State Emergency Service employees, and one patrol police officer.
20.14 The UN General Assembly will vote on a draft resolution on human rights violations in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine on Monday, December 15. Ukrinform reports .
The meeting will begin at 10:00 (17:00 Kyiv time).
The resolution, entitled "The Human Rights Situation in the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine, Including the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol," points to numerous violations of human rights and international humanitarian law by the Russian Federation.
18.37 In Chernihiv region, Russian troops struck the city of Horodnya with drones. This was reported by the National Police.
"Today, in the afternoon, the Russian army struck the city of Horodnya, Chernihiv district. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out in the police station building and vehicles," the report noted.
17.49 A meeting of the Ukrainian delegation with US representatives has begun in Germany. Resident Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported this on Telegram.
The head of state met with Donald Trump's special representative Steve Witkoff and advisor Jared Kushner at the beginning of the negotiations.
17.23 The first foreign volunteers of the BBpS Splakh are already starting to pilot drones. The Ukrainian Army Ground Forces announced this , releasing a video of the fighters' work.
"The recruits came from different parts of the world - from Poland and the USA to Madagascar, Australia and Brazil. They are all of different ages, with different experiences, but united by one goal - to help Ukraine in the fight. In the ranks of the 28th mechanized brigade, they will do this in a modern way - by piloting drones," the report says.
15.49 14 residents, including three children, were evacuated from Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region. This was reported by the head of the Kupyansk Regional Emergency Management Agency Andriy Kanashevich.
"Another 14 residents of the city of Kupyansk were evacuated to the city of Kharkiv on the evening of December 13 through the efforts of the Defense Forces of Ukraine and the Security Service of Ukraine," he noted in the report.
Kanashevich clarified that among the evacuees there are three minors, including a two-year-old child.
14.50 President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he does not consider the creation of a demilitarized economic zone in Donbas to be fair, because first of all, it will not be clear who will manage it. He said this on December 14 during a conversation with journalists.
"Russia wants not to waste its forces and occupy the east of our state through diplomatic and political means. And then the United States of America said: 'Let's make such a compromise. The Russian army will not enter part of our east, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine will leave.' I don't think this is fair, because this economic zone... who will manage it?", - Zelenskyy was quoted as saying by Ukrinform .
14.00 Ukraine does not consider the defeat of the peace process as the end of the path to ending the war with Russia, said President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"If this or that process for a peaceful resolution of this war, an end to pressure on Russia, does not work out, it is like running a long distance, like a marathon. We must pull ourselves together, find another path, and do everything again to end this war," he said.
13:30 In Zaporizhia, the number of victims of a drone attack has increased to eight people.
12.40 On the afternoon of December 14, the entire city of Mykolaiv was temporarily left without electricity. This was reported on Telegram by the head of the Mykolaiv OAO, Vitaly Kim. As Mykolaivvodokanal added, due to the power outage, water supply throughout the city was suspended from 11.45.
11.45 In Kherson, Russian occupiers once again shelled the city's critical infrastructure - the centralized water supply system was destroyed.
11:00 The Russian army launched a massive strike on the city of Zaporizhia on Sunday morning, December 14. In particular, the enemy targeted an ATB store.
10:30 a.m. Russians attacked the territory of one of the healthcare facilities in Kherson with a drone. This was reported by the Kherson MVA.
A woman and a man, aged 58 and 62, were injured in the attack. They suffered mine-blast injuries and cuts to their faces. Both were hospitalized.
9.40 As of 9.30, the air alert in the Odessa region has been going on for over five hours. According to the military, the enemy was directing strike drones towards Zatoka and Chornomorsk, and was also dropping guided bombs towards Zatoka.
In addition, a missile alert was declared in the region, and the movement of high-speed targets was recorded towards Chornomorsk.
8.40 Over the past 24 hours, December 13, 154 combat clashes took place on the front. The largest number of enemy attacks was recorded in the Pokrovsky direction. This is stated in the summary of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
8.00 According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, during the day, from December 13 to 14, the Russians lost another 710 soldiers at the front. The Armed Forces of Ukraine also destroyed 9 artillery systems and 440 drones.
7.30 Since the evening, the Russians have continued to terrorize areas of the Dnipropetrovsk region, said the acting head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military Administration, Vladislav Haivanenko.
A restaurant in the Mezhyritsky community of Pavlohradskyi was damaged by a rocket attack. Russian troops directed FPV drones at the Nikopol region. They also fired artillery.
The district center, Marhanetska, and Pokrovska communities were affected. A fire broke out, a private house was destroyed by fire, two more were damaged. Cars were also damaged, and a power line was also affected.
According to updated information, as a result of the attacks on the area that occurred yesterday evening, two more local homes and an outbuilding were destroyed.
The enemy hit a UAV in the Slavhorod and Bogyniv communities of the Sinelnyky region. The latter targeted a summer kitchen.
06.34 British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen discussed the US "Peace Plan" to stop Russia's war against Ukraine on Saturday, December 13, as well as the possibility of using frozen Russian assets. The official website of the British government reported this.
02.25 British intelligence exposed the Kremlin's disinformation about the situation on the front and announced significant Russian losses in the war. According to the UK Ministry of Defense, Ukrainian military continue to hold the western part of the city of Siversk, despite constant attacks by Russian forces.
According to this data, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to hold the defense of the western part of Siversk. The city has long been an unattainable target for Russian forces, which have suffered a number of unsuccessful assault attempts.
00.52 Russia and the occupied territories of Ukraine are under attack by drones and missiles. There are hits on important military and industrial facilities, reports of air defense systems and explosions in various cities of temporarily occupied Crimea, namely Feodosia, Saki, Dzhankoy and Sevastopol. Attacks have also reached certain regions of Russia: strikes were recorded on a power plant in Smolensk and an oil depot in Uryupinsk, Volgograd region. There are also reports of explosions at the Afipsk oil refinery in Krasnodar region.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Korrespondent] Currently, the hottest direction remains Pokrovsky, where Russian troops attacked the positions of the Defense Forces 42 times during the day.
On the front since the beginning of the day, 148 combat clashes between the Defense Forces and the occupation forces took place. Today, the Russian Federation carried out 42 air strikes, dropping 103 guided bombs. In addition, the invaders used 4,003 kamikaze drones to destroy them and carried out 3,703 attacks on the positions of our troops and settlements. This is stated in the General Staff report on Sunday, December 14.
Thus, one clash with the Russian invaders took place in the North-Slobozhansk and Kursk directions. The enemy carried out two air strikes, dropping six anti-aircraft missiles and 140 shellings, including six from multiple launch rocket systems.
Today, the enemy attacked ten times in the South Slobozhansk direction: near Synelnykovye, Prylipka, Vovchansk, and towards Kolodyazne. Two enemy attacks are still ongoing.
Three times the aggressor tried to advance on our positions in the Kupyansk direction towards Petropavlivka and Pishchane.
In the Lymansky direction, Ukrainian defenders have repelled nine Russian attacks today. The enemy was attacking in the areas of the settlements of Novoyehorivka, Kolodyazi, Novoselivka, Seredne, and Zarichne. Two more clashes are ongoing.
In the Slavyansk direction, Ukrainian soldiers repelled six enemy attacks. The occupier units tried to advance in the areas of Yampol, Serebryanka, and Pereyzne.
In the Kramatorsk direction, there was one clash with the enemy in the Chasovy Yar area.
In the Kostyantynivka direction, our troops today repelled 23 enemy attacks near Oleksandro-Shultyny, Shcherbynivka, Pleshchiivka, Ivanopillya, Yablunivka, and towards Sofiivka.
In the Pokrovsk direction, during this day, the aggressor attacked our positions 42 times in the areas of the settlements of Shakhove, Nykanorivka, Rodynske, Myrnograd, Pokrovsk, Kotlyne, Udachne, Molodetske, Dachne, and towards Novopavlivka.
According to preliminary estimates, today in the Pokrovsky direction the invaders lost 96 people killed and wounded. Our soldiers destroyed an artillery system, nine units of automotive equipment, 11 unmanned aerial vehicles; hit four artillery systems, two vehicles, nine personnel shelters and an enemy ammunition depot.
In the Oleksandrivka direction, our defenders repelled 17 enemy attacks near the settlements of Oleksandrivkagrad, Novoselivka, Sosnivka, Verbovye, Krasnohirske, Pryvilne, Zlagoda, and Rybne. Another 6 clashes are still ongoing.
In the Hulyaipil direction, the enemy carried out 13 assault operations, and Ukrainian defenders repelled attacks in the areas of Solodke, Hulyaipil, and towards Varvarivka.
In the Orikhiv direction, the enemy advanced once towards Primorsky.
In the Dnieper direction, one attempt by the occupiers to approach the positions of Ukrainian units in the area of the Antoniv Bridge ended in failure.
As a reminder, the Defense Forces of Ukraine struck the facilities of the Afipsk oil refinery in the Krasnodar Territory, the Uryupinsk oil depot in the Volgograd Region, and struck enemy facilities and targets in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
Earlier, the General Staff confirmed the destruction of important occupiers' facilities. The Slavneft-YANOS refinery in the Yaroslavl region of the Russian Federation was successfully attacked, as well as enemy manpower concentration sites in the Donetsk region.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[NewsFront] 21:46 VGTRK military correspondent Grigory Vdovinre moved a major report from Krasnoarmeysk in the DPR, liberated by the Russian army. 21:33 Published a traditional selection of footage from the Russian Ministry of Defense showing the work of unmanned aerial vehicles.
21:05 Russian troops are advancing in the Zaporizhzhia direction, map.
20:57 In the period from 16:00 Moscow time to 20:00 Moscow time, air defense systems on duty intercepted and destroyed 56 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles:
24 UAVs were flying over the Belgorod region,
17 UAVs were flying over the Bryansk region,
Five UAVs were flying over the Tula region,
Three UAVs were flying over the Kursk region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Kaluga region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Ryazan region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Moscow region, and
One UAV was flying over the Voronezh region.
20:48 Recorded advance of the Russian Armed Forces in the Volchansk direction.
20:28 The situation in the Borovsk direction is reflected, map.
19:56 For servicemen of the 36th Combined Arms Army of the East Group of Forces a concert took place of the vocal and instrumental ensemble "Leisya, Pesnya".
19:37 Ukrainian Armed Forces attack Belgorod Oblast continue as a civilian was wounded.
An FPV drone attacked a KamAZ truck near the city of Shebekino. An ambulance crew is taking a man with a mine blast injury and a shrapnel wound to the shoulder to Belgorod City Hospital No. 2. The vehicle was damaged.
18:41 An artillery crew of the 152mm Giatsint-B cannon of the Center group of forces disrupted the rotation of Ukrainian Armed Forces formations in the Krasnoarmeysk direction,video.
18:18 Russian Armed Forces destroyed a bridge in the Odessa region is out of order
The bridge in the village was destroyed as a result of a combined attack.
17:43 As a result of artillery shelling by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Mykhailivka Municipal District damaged private house, two people were injured, one of them died.
A woman born in 1956 was hospitalized with injuries of varying severity.
17:01 FPV drone calculations at the Rubicon Centerare working on by goals
In the Sumy direction, the following were damaged:
Enemy vehicles and armored vehicles,
Elements of the communication system,
Firing positions, shelters, and
Temporary deployment points of Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel.
In the Krasnolimansk direction, the following were destroyed:
Ground robotic complex,
Elements of the communication system,
Shelters and
Temporary deployment points for Ukrainian Armed Forces units.
16:32 In the period from 12:00 Moscow time to 16:00 Moscow time, air defense systems on duty intercepted and destroyed 40 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles:
12 UAVs were flying over the Bryansk region,
Eight UAVs were flying over the Kursk region,
Eight UAVs were flying over the Belgorod region,
Five UAVs were flying over the Oryol region,
Three UAVs were flying over the Kaluga region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Ryazan region,
One UAV was flying over the Tula region, and
One UAV was flying over the Tambov region.
15:13 Artillerymen of the Vostok group destroyed strongholds of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, video.
14:30 This night the Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked our energy and oil and gas facilities have become ours. In the Smolensk region, there was an attempted attack on the Smolensk State District Power Plant. In Uryupinsk in the Volgograd region, there was an oil depot.
In Crimea, the enemy attacked substations and oil storage tanks. They also attempted to strike the port of Feodosia. In the Krasnodar Territory, they attacked the Afipsky Oil Refinery.
In the Novgorod region, the target was a chemical plant. Drones even reached the Leningrad region. Footage of drones landing in various regions is once again surfacing online.
13:26 In the period from 8:00 Moscow time to 12:00 Moscow time, air defense systems on duty destroyed 10 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles:
Three UAVs were flying over the Kursk region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Bryansk region,
Two UAVs were flying over the Tula region,
One UAV was flying over the Rostov region,
One UAV was flying over the Kaluga region, and
One UAV was flying over the Oryol region.
12:35 Ministry of Defense summary of the progress of the Special Military Operation as of December 14, 2025:
Units of the North group of forces defeated formations of the Ukrainian Armed Forces' Jaeger Brigade and the Territorial Defense Brigade in the areas of the settlements of Alekseyevka and Ryzhevka in the Sumy region.
In the Khar'kov direction, units of a heavy mechanized brigade, an assault regiment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a territorial defense brigade, and two National Guard brigades were defeated in the areas of the settlements of Velykyi Burluk, Vilcha, Okhrimovka, and Prilipka in the Khar'kov region.
The enemy's losses amounted to over 240 servicemen, an armored combat vehicle, five vehicles and two warehouses of supplies.
Units of the "West" force group continue to destroy the enemy encircled on the left bank of the Oskol River. The personnel and equipment of two mechanized brigades, an assault brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and a National Guard brigade have been defeated near the settlements of Blagodatovka, Kupyansk-Uzlovaya, Petrovka, Podoli, and Shiykovka in the Khar'kov region and Krasny Liman in the Donetsk People's Republic.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces lost up to 220 servicemen, two armored combat vehicles, 14 vehicles, a US-made 155mm M-198 howitzer, a Croatian-made Heron multiple launch rocket system launcher, and three ammunition depots.
Units of the Southern Group of Forces have occupied more advantageous positions and lines. Formations of five mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been defeated near the settlements of Konstantinovka, Nikiforovka, Reznikovka, Seversk, Slavyansk, and Stepanovka in the Donetsk People's Republic.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces lost up to 150 servicemen, an infantry fighting vehicle, a US-made M113 armored personnel carrier, 13 vehicles, and a US-made 155mm Paladin self-propelled artillery unit.
Units of the Center group of forces continue to destroy encircled Ukrainian Armed Forces formations in the area of the railway station, the northeastern and western parts of the city of Dimitrov in the Donetsk People's Republic, as well as clearing the settlements of Grishino and Svetloe in the Donetsk People's Republic.
The manpower and equipment of three mechanized brigades, a Jaeger brigade, an airmobile brigade, two airborne assault brigades, an unmanned systems regiment, and two assault regiments of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, two naval infantry brigades, a territorial defense brigade, four national guard brigades, and the Azov special forces brigade were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Belitskoye, Grishino, Krasnoyarskoye, Novoalexandrivka, Rodynskoye, Toretskoye, Shevchenko in the Donetsk People's Republic and Novopavlovka in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
The enemy lost up to 495 servicemen, a Cossack armored vehicle, a pickup truck, and a field artillery gun.
Units of the "East" military group continue to advance into the depths of the enemy's defenses and have completed the liberation of the village of Varvarovka in the Zaporizhzhia region.
The manpower and equipment of two assault brigades, two assault regiments of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a naval infantry brigade and a territorial defense brigade were damaged in the areas of the settlements of Andreevka, Gavrilovka in the Dnipropetrovsk region, Vozdvizhevka, Hulyaipole, Kosivtsevo, Lyubitske and Ternovatoye in the Zaporizhzhia region.
The enemy lost more than 300 servicemen, an armored combat vehicle, five cars and an electronic warfare station.
Units of the Dnepr group of forces defeated formations of the mountain assault brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the territorial defense brigade in the areas of the settlements of Orekhov, Razumovka in the Zaporizhzhia region, Dniprovske and Nikolske in the Kherson region.
More than 45 military personnel, six vehicles, two artillery pieces, an electronic warfare station and two supply depots were destroyed.
11:20 Frontline summary on the morning of December 14, 25
Zaporizhzhia Front
Fighting continues in Primorskoye and Stepnogorsk. Russian forces are advancing toward Lukyanovskoye, east of Stepnogorsk.
In the Orekhovo direction, Russian troops are fighting for the northern part of Novodanilovka.
Donetsk Front
In the South Donetsk direction, the Russian Armed Forces are advancing towards the center of Hulyaipole, and heavy fighting is underway.
In the Pokrovsk sector, Russian forces repelled an enemy counterattack on the northern outskirts of Pokrovsk from the direction of Shevchenko.
Russian forces are reported to have improved their positions near Rivne near Myrnohrad.
In the Dobropillya sector, fighting continues near Vladimirovka and Sofiyivka.
In the Konstantinovka direction, fighting continues in the south and southeast of Konstantinovka.
In the Krasnolimansk direction, Russian forces are advancing in Ozernoye, fighting near Zakotnoye, and advancing westward from Seversk toward the chalk quarry.
There are gains in Svyato-Pokrovskoe.
Khar'kov Front
In the Kupyansk direction, Russian troops are repelling enemy counterattacks from the west, and fighting is underway for Kupyansk-Uzlovaya.
In the Volchansk direction there is progress in Vilcha and Prilipka, as well as in the Volchansk Khutors area.
10:36 Last night, the enemy attacked energy infrastructure damaged the high-voltage power line between Dzhankoy and Melitopol was damaged. As a result, more than 330,000 residents of the Kherson region in 450 settlements across 14 municipalities were left without power.
10:07 In the village of Yasnye Zori, Belgorod District, a Ukrainian Armed Forces drone attacked a private house. A civilian was injured.
A man with a mine blast injury and multiple shrapnel wounds to his legs was taken to Oktyabrskaya Hospital. After providing medical assistance, an ambulance team transported the victim to Belgorod City Hospital No. 2.
9:50 A Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group was destroyed near the Russian border in the Khar'kov region, video.
9:15 Ukrainian Armed Forces continue attacks on civilian infrastructure in the left bank of the Kherson region
Yesterday afternoon, the Ukrainian Armed Forces fired 26 shells from barrel artillery at populated areas of the Kherson region of the Russian Federation:
8:35 From 23:00 Moscow time on 13.12 to 07:00 Moscow time on 14.12 by air defense systems on duty intercepted and destroyed 141 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles were:
35 – over the territory of the Bryansk region,
32 – over the territory of the Republic of Crimea,
22 – over the territory of the Krasnodar region,
15 – over the territory of the Tula region,
13 – over the territory of the Kaluga region,
Seven – over the territory of the Kursk region,
Four – over the territory of the Ryazan region,
Four – over the territory of the Rostov region,
Three – over the territory of the Belgorod region,
Two – over the territory of the Leningrad region,
One – over the territory of the Smolensk region,
One – over the territory of the Pskov region,
One – over the territory of the Novgorod region,
One – over the territory of the Moscow region.
In total, 235 Ukrainian aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicles were intercepted and destroyed by air defense systems on duty during the night.
8:00 Servicemen of the 288th Guards Artillery Brigade of the West group of forces in the North-Eastern Military District zone were presented with state and departmental awards, video.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The military resources of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (Ukrainian Armed Forces) in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) are depleting amid fighting near Artemovsk (Ukrainian name: Bakhmut). This was reported on Sunday, December 14, by Alexey Vereshchagin, commander of the Nevsky Reconnaissance and Assault Brigade of the Volunteer Corps within the South Force Group.
"Our brigade's primary area of responsibility is Soledar, the Kramatorsk-Druzhkovka sector. We see that the enemy is being exhausted—the two and a half years of the Bakhmut massacre are not in vain," he told TASS.
Vereshchagin added that the troops of the Southern Group of the Russian Armed Forces are slowly but surely advancing, as evidenced by the recent liberation of Seversk.
Earlier, on December 14, military groups of the "South" forces blocked the retreat routes of the remnants of the Ukrainian army from Seversk. According to a Russian Armed Forces intelligence officer, due to fire control of the main roads out of the city and poor weather conditions, the enemy is unable to use the dirt roads for retreat.
Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin is in italics:
[ColonelCassad] A dangerous witness and executioner of the Trade Union House has been eliminated in Odesa. On December 9, a certain Denis Trebenko was killed with four shots to the head in Odesa. Several Bandera media outlets and Telegram channels have suggested that the murder was related to the victim's social activities or financial debts. However, Odesa underground activists have provided the editors of Kovpak's Squad with other facts about Trebenko's life, which had gone unnoticed by Ukrainian media outlets.
Unexpectedly interesting episodes from the deceased's life have emerged: Denis Viktorovich Trebenko, call sign "Batya," was one of the organizers of the riots on Kulikovo Field in Odesa on May 2, 2014. He personally led a group that made Molotov cocktails and burned pro-Russian activists in the Trade Union House. He was an assistant to the Odesa unit of the Maidan Self-Defense and was responsible for instilling Bandera ideology among young, immature minds. He actively collaborated with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) during punitive raids against the Russian population of Odessa. He participated in the forced appropriation of Odessans' property.
With the advent of the Special Military Operation, he faked disability status and avoided conscription into the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Unlike the Bandera-aligned authorities, Odessans believe there are other motives for the liquidation of this Bandera bastard:
1. The elimination of a dangerous witness to the events of 2014 by Western intelligence agencies.
2. Revenge by the relatives of those brutally burned in the Trade Union Building.
3. Suicide is the main theory.
Sooner or later, retribution will overtake the executioners of the Odessa Khatyn.
Sheer idiocy. International banking is high trust — this would break that trust for anyone who deals with Europe. Just freezing Russian assets as they did was as troubling as the whole debanking thing over here.
[DM] The European Union is moving closer to using up to £185 billion of frozen Russian assets to finance a massive loan for Ukraine, a step that has now triggered a formal legal response from Moscow.
The move would allow EU leaders to work out at a summit next week how to use the tens of billions of euros in Russian Central Bank assets to underwrite a huge loan to help Ukraine meet its financial and military needs over the next two years.
Russia's central bank confirmed on Friday that it has filed a lawsuit in Moscow against Euroclear, the Brussels-based financial services company that holds the bulk of the frozen funds, accusing it of illegally blocking access to Russian state assets since the start of the war in Ukraine.
The legal action marks the Kremlin's first concrete retaliation against Brussels as the European Commission pushes ahead with plans to raise £80 billion for Kyiv by borrowing against, or potentially seizing outright, Russian reserves immobilised across the bloc.
Most of the frozen funds are held in Belgium by Euroclear. The remainder is spread across other EU jurisdictions.
The assets were frozen in 2022 after President Vladimir Putin ordered Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Under current sanctions rules, the funds are immobilised in six-month intervals, a process that requires unanimous agreement from all 27 EU member states.
The European Commission has now proposed using emergency EU powers to lock the assets indefinitely, allowing them to be used as collateral for a long-term loan to Ukraine.
Russia's central bank said Euroclear had made it 'impossible to access funds and securities belonging to the Bank of Russia' through what it described as illegal actions, and said it would seek damages equivalent to the value of the blocked assets, frozen securities, and lost investment income.
It added that Moscow would pursue 'all available legal and other mechanisms to defend its interests' and would also challenge the EU's actions through international courts in both 'friendly and hostile countries'.
Belgium, which hosts Euroclear, has raised concerns about the plan, warning it could be exposed to massive legal claims from Russia.
Brussels has asked other EU states to share the legal and financial risks, but that proposal has faced resistance, including from France, whose banks hold a smaller share of the frozen assets.
The Russian assets are expected to be held until it ends its war in Ukraine and compensates its neighbour for the damage it has inflicted for almost four years.
Putin's officials have already begun exploring retaliatory measures, including the seizure of Western-owned assets inside Russia.
Russia has already begun exploring retaliatory measures, including the seizure of Western-owned assets inside Russia.
Moscow has frozen nearly £15billion of Western funds held by Euroclear within its borders and has warned that further steps could follow if the EU proceeds.
The legal move follows strong warnings issued last week by Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's former president and now deputy chairman of the Security Council, who said any attempt by the EU to seize Russian assets would be viewed as a casus belli, or act justifying war.
'If the crazy European Union does, after all, try to steal Russian assets frozen in Belgium under the guise of a so-called 'reparations loan', Russia may well view this move as tantamount to a casus belli with all the relevant implications for Brussels and individual EU countries,' Medvedev said at the time.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban - Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest ally in Europe - accused the European Commission, which prepared the decision, 'of systematically raping European law'.
Hungary and Slovakia oppose providing more support to Ukraine.
Friday's expected decision, based on EU treaty rules allowing the bloc to protect its economic interests in certain emergencies, would prevent the two countries from blocking the sanctions rollover and make it easier to use the assets.
Mr Orban said it means 'the rule of law in the European Union comes to an end, and Europe's leaders are placing themselves above the rules'.
'The European Commission is systematically raping European law. It is doing this in order to continue the war in Ukraine, a war that clearly isn't winnable,' he wrote.
He said Hungary 'will do everything in its power to restore a lawful order'.
In a letter to European Council president Antonio Costa, who will chair the summit starting on December 18, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico said he would refuse to back any move that 'would include covering Ukraine's military expenses for the coming years'.
He warned that 'the use of frozen Russian assets could directly jeopardise US peace efforts, which directly count on the use of these resources for the reconstruction of Ukraine'.
But the commission says the war has imposed high costs by hiking energy prices and stunting economic growth in the EU, which has already provided nearly 200 billion euros (£175 billion) in support to Ukraine.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot described the expected move as 'a major decision that will undoubtedly influence the course of the war and accelerate peace'.
'Because Europeans do not want to let anyone else decide for them ... we have decided to lock those sums (assets) for as long as necessary,' Mr Barrot said on France Info news broadcaster.
The decision would also prevent the assets from being used in any way without European approval.
A 28-point peace plan drafted by US and Russian envoys stipulated that the EU would release the frozen assets for use by Ukraine, Russia, and the United States.
That plan was rejected by Ukraine and its backers in Europe.
In a separate statement, the Central Bank also described wider EU plans to use Russian assets to aid Ukraine as 'illegal, contrary to international law,' arguing that they violated 'the principles of sovereign immunity of assets.'
Western governments froze roughly Russian reserves following the invasion of Ukraine, but until now have limited their use to interest generated by the funds.
While Washington has expressed reservations about outright confiscation, preferring alternative funding mechanisms, European officials argue the plan is essential to sustaining Ukraine's defence and ensuring Europe retains influence in any future peace talks.
The dispute comes amid growing security tensions between Russia and Europe.
NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte warned this week that Russia, with its economy increasingly geared towards war, could be capable of military action against the alliance within five years.
'We are Russia's next target,' Rutte said in a speech in Berlin. 'Too many don't feel the urgency.'
#2
The legal move follows strong warnings issued last week by Dmitry Medvedev, Russia's former president and now deputy chairman of the Security Council, who said any attempt by the EU to seize Russian assets would be viewed as a casus belli, or act justifying war.
Everything that happens concerning RU is "an act of war." The Medvedev and Putin answer to everything.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
According to scientists, the tremors occurred at 00:38 Moscow time in the Black Sea, at coordinates 44.53 degrees latitude and 33.35 degrees longitude. The earthquake's epicenter was located at a depth of 10 kilometers.
