07.01.2023, Moscow.
We publish a summary of events concerning the situation around Ukraine as of 7 p.m., January 7.
Political situation
The Union State is ready to defend the regional grouping of troops of Russia and Belorussia, said Deputy Defense Minister of Belorussia to journalists on January 6.
Turkey hopes for an extension of the 36-hour ceasefire declared unilaterally by Russia and is ready to make every effort to form the conditions of a dialogue aimed at stopping the hostilities, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said.
Serbian President Vucic stated that he could not be “tamed” because “wolves do not perform in a circus.” Earlier, the German newspaper Die Zeit argued that the Serbian leader could be “tamed” if he threatened to suspend his country’s EU candidacy and cut off financial aid. In Serbian, the president’s surname is translated as “wolf cub.”
Ukraine
The secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine took responsibility for the arson and explosions in Russia, stressing that it will continue. “I said wait, it will blaze, it will explode, it will burn and you will read on the news every day what you will have the next day. We will not leave you alone until you leave us alone,” Danilov said.
Ukrainian aviation expert Valery Romanenko stated that the Geran drones have learned how to bypass the Ukrainian surface-to-air missile systems. He urged to shoot down Russian strike drones by all possible means, regardless of how much more expensive it is compared to the cost of one Geran, because losses from an effective “arrival” are much more serious.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov said that Ukraine does the dirty work for NATO. At the same time, he admitted that in the confrontation with Russia, Kiev is holding on only at the expense of Western resources.
Kiev has obtained a “secret weapon,” 2023 will be the year of an offensive war for Ukraine, NSDC Secretary Aleksey Danilov said.
Western countries and their supporters
The USA imposed sanctions on the management of an Iranian drone manufacturer.
The US is trying to force Russia to enter settlement talks with Ukraine by giving up its new regions, the head of the State Department press service said.
The full list of what the USA is transferring to Ukraine as part of the new military supply package:
– 50 Bradley BMPs with 500 TOW anti-tank missiles and 250,000 rounds of 25mm ammunition;
– 100 M113 armored personnel carriers;
– 55 MRAPS;
– 138 HMMWVS;
– 18 self-propelled 155mm howitzers and 18 trucks;
– 70,000 155-mm artillery shells;
– 500 rounds of 155mm Excalibur shells;
– 1,200 rounds of 155mm Remote Anti-Tank Mine Systems (RAAM);
– 36 towed 105-mm howitzers and 95,000 105-mm artillery shells;
– 10,000 120-mm mortar shells;
– HIMARS ammunition;
– RIM-7 Sea Sparrow anti-aircraft missiles;
– 4,000 Zuni aircraft missiles;
– about 2,000 anti-tank missiles;
– sniper rifles, machine guns and ammunition.
New US Ambassador Tracy intends to work with Russian authorities on the possibility of resuming the issuance of visas in Moscow, the State Department said.
The candidacy of NATO Secretary General for the Nobel Peace Prize was nominated by a Norwegian deputy. “Stoltenberg deserves the award for his outstanding work as NATO secretary general in a difficult time,” Tübring-Gedde wrote, stressing the importance of Stoltenberg ensuring that Ukraine was supported by arms from the alliance.
A convoy of Turkish BMC Kirpi MRAPs with mine protection and ambush protection was already spotted somewhere in Ukraine.
Germany says it will not supply Kiev with Leopard tanks. “No country is supplying [Kiev] with heavy tanks like the Leopard 1 or Leopard 2 right now,” Klingbeil noted, adding that US, French and German authorities are thinking about “whether we can get involved in this war now.” – Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland, RND.
By deciding to transfer AMX-10 RC wheeled tanks to Ukraine, French President Macron crossed a red line – The Daily Telegraph.
The US and Japanese authorities have agreed to intensify cooperation on cybersecurity – the press service of the US Department of Homeland Security reported.
Increasing cooperation between Russia and China threatens the world order established in the West, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at a conference in Norway. “They advocate values that violate our belief in freedom and democracy. In a more dangerous world, it is all the more important that we, who believe in freedom and democracy, stand together.”
