As the year draws to a close, esconced in his 'germ free' bunker, Putin [Pu-truschev] has thrown everything at the people of Ukraine to try and bomb them into submission.
As reported by James Callery and Will Stewart,
"Russia launched 'everything it has' on Friday in its most intense aerial attack since the start of the war, with missiles raining down on Ukrainian cities including Kyiv.
The overnight attacks came days after Ukraine struck a Russian warship in the occupied Crimean port of Feodosia in a major setback for the Russian navy.
It is seen as the most intense aerial attack of the brutal and bloody war Vladimir Putin unleashed 22 months ago, killing at least 27 civilians and injuring at least 144 across the country.
'Russia attacked with everything it has in its arsenal,' President Zelensky said on Telegram." (Mail Online : 29 December 2023) (my emphasis)
Mail Online : 29 December 2023
"Ukraine has come under attack by Russian air strikes again, officials say, after two days of major aerial assaults by both sides.
Most attacks were concentrated on Kharkiv in the east, but explosions were also reported in elsewhere.
Moscow said it was retaliating against Ukrainian strikes on the Russian border city of Belgorod on Saturday, which killed at least 24 people.
That came after Russia carried out air strikes across Ukraine on Friday.
Kyiv said those attacks, which killed at least 41 people, were the biggest missile bombardment of the war so far.
...
Ukraine's interior ministry also reported damage to 12 blocks of flats, 13 homes, hospitals, a hotel building, a kindergarten, commercial premises, a gas pipeline and cars.
"These are not military facilities, but cafes, residential buildings and offices," Kharkiv's mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram.
"On the eve of the New Year, the Russians want to intimidate our city, but we are not scared - we are unbreakable and invincible." (BBC News : 31 December 2023) (my emhasis)
If Putin [Pu-truschev] thought that the stalling of the US aid package to Ukraine by US Republican Senators was working in his favour, he has another thing coming.
The Telegraph understands that the announcement by Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, was brought forward over fears that Moscow could strike again over the New Year holiday weekend.
Western intelligence chiefs believe Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, could be plotting another wave of missiles and drones as part of a winter campaign against civilian targets." (The Telegraph : 29 December 2023) (my emphasis)
"The Netherlands has released to Ukraine the first 18 Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft, with others potentially to follow.
Dutch Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren made the announcement on 22 December, saying that with the export approvals in place, the jets are being prepared for delivery. No details on the delivery timeline were provided, except that it would happen when trained pilots and suitable infrastructure were in place in Ukraine." (Janes : 28 December 2023) (my emphasis)
USA Military Power : February 2023 : YouTube
"Meanwhile, Biden, on Wednesday announced a $250 million weapons package to Ukraine in what officials said could be a final amount of aid from the U.S. unless Congress approves new funding.
...
The package included air defense munitions, anti-armor munitions, ammunition for high mobility artillery rocket systems, and more than 15 million rounds of small arms ammunition." (Mail Online : 29 December 2023) (my emphasis)
"Russian despot Vladimir Putin has pushed his nation onto a permanent war footing, after signing a three-year draft budget that has committed to spending more than 6% of Russia's GDP on war spending.
A third of government spending in 2024 will be on the military alone, according to the draft budget.
While some of this is set to be paid for by increased oil revenues, spending in other public sectors, including housing, education and healthcare, are set to be slashed.
Education is expected to decline from 4.8% of total government spending in 2023 to 4.2% in 2024, while healthcare spending is expected to fall from 5.2% in 2023 to 4.4% in 2024.
Russia has also diverted funds for a $400bn (£314bn) 'national projects programme' that aimed to improve living standards in Russia, by spending money on infrastructure and diversifying the economy away from natural resources. (Daily Mail on MSN.com : 31 December 2023) (my emphasis)
For how long the people of Russia are prepared to suffer the privations caused by Putin's war against Ukraine since 2014 now remains to be seen.
Like Stalin before him, the upcoming 2024 presidential election in Russia has already been won by Putin.
Putin's fate is now in the hands of the Russian people.
UPDATE : 3 January 2024
Perkin Amalaraj and Will Stewart : Mail Online : 3 January 2024
(to be continued)
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