Just hours after the U.S. Senate blocked a White House request that would have allocated about$ 60 billion for Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked Japan for the additional$ 1 billion in aid, saying the funds will provide” significant support” to the nation.
President Joe Biden, who had previously urged Congress to swiftly review more military aid to Ukraine, warned that Russian president Vladimir Putin may be emboldened to seize more place if he wins on the battlefield, suffered a major defeat in the vote on whether to let the bill with the White House request to advance.
Life Presentation: Ukraine’s Invasion by Russia
The Life Briefing from RFE/RL provides you with all the most recent information on Russia’s full-scale invasion, Kyivs’ battle, Western military assistance, international response, and the plight of civilians. Click here to view all of RFE/RL’s policy of the conflict in Ukraine.
” If Putin seizes Ukraine, he wo n’t end there.” He’s pretty much made that clear, Biden said on December 6 in a televised statement, warning that if Putin took Ukraine, he might try to send his forces into one of the NATO nations.
Republicans, but, argued that the bill lacked immigration changes and blocked the complete$ 106 billion request, which also included money for Israel, Taiwan, and to strengthen the southern U.S. border.
With spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying on December 7″ It is to be hoped that there remain enough people with sober minds among American congressmen” and claiming that Biden wanted to” continue burning taxpayers ‘ money in the furnace of war,” the Kremlin expressed hope that Congress will continue to block military aid for Ukraine.
Zelenskiy canceled a meeting with U.S. lawmakers earlier this year because it was becoming increasingly unlikely that the support request would be granted.
He received the pledge from Japan on December 7 that has the potential to raise the total aid package to as much as$ 4.5 billion.
In the midst of intense fighting in the south, particularly in and around the industrial area of Avdiyivka near the Donetsk region, Ukraine has been preparing for a second protracted winter of war with Russia, which began its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
For several months, Russian forces have been attempting to surround the city, which has recently emerged as the most recent example of Ukrainian resistance.
Even after Russia took control of a sizable portion of the Donetsk region in 2014, including the town of Avdiyivka, which is only 10 meters to the south, Ukraine continues to control the area.
More than one-third of the 91 assaults that Kyiv’s forces fought off on the whole front range over the previous 24 hours were repelled by Russian forces in the Avdiyivivka area, according to the military public employees of Ukraine.
The reports from the field could not be independently verified.
On December 6, the United Nations issued a warning that Moscow was intensifying its attacks on Ukraine’s power system due to the country being hit by heavy storms and freezing conditions.
According to Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca, Russia’s attacks on crucial Ukrainian civilian facilities have worsened civil conditions in addition to killing civilians.
He commanded that all assaults on residents and civil facilities be stopped right away. They are just unacceptable and are against international humanitarian law.
After a power plant close to the front line was shelled, causing severe damage and crippling two strength products, Ukraine for the first time this warm season asked citizens to conserve electricity.
There is a brief lack of energy, according to the Energy Ministry, brought on by the closure of the two units and an increase in requirement. By using energy “wisely and commercially, especially during peak hours,” the government urged consumers to aid energy workers.
Russian attacks that have been ongoing and have resulted in significant damage have put pressure on Ukraine’s energy generator.
Important grain export facilities is still under attack by Russia.
The government of the Odesa area, Oleh Kiper, stated in a message on his Telegram channel on December 7 that it launched drone strikes on the Danube harbor of Izmayil, killing one person and damaging terminal services.
The 18 Iranian-made robots that Russia launched at the Odesa and Khmelnytskiy parts on December 7 were shot down by Ukrainian air threats, according to earlier reports. The military claimed in a Telegram information that the attack with Shahed-136/131 robots was launched from Cape Chauda in the Crimean region under Moscow’s occupation.
The Danube interface infrastructure was particularly attacked. Trucks, a grain elevator, and the inventory were all harmed. One of the truck drivers was killed, according to Kiper, who also mentioned that incident personnel quickly put out a fire that had started.
Ukraine has been shipping foods to Romania’s Black Sea port of Constanta through its Danube ports of Reni and Izmayil since the collapse of a UN-broken agreement in July that allowed Russian grain shipments to pass safely from dark sea ports.
Since then, Russia has launched aircraft attacks against Odesa, Ukraine’s primary Black Sea port, as well as the two Danube ports, severely damaging and interfering with grain exports from Ukraine. Romania, a NATO member, has also been hit by debris from fallen Russian drones.
