Victory Chronicles-DAY 1393

Russian forces launched a series of airborne strikes on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia and surrounding areas on Dec. 17, hitting residential buildings and civilian infrastructure and injuring at least two dozen people, Ukrainian officials said.

According to Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia regional administration, Russian aircraft dropped guided aerial bombs on densely populated neighborhoods, damaging apartment buildings, an infrastructure facility and an educational institution. At least 26 civilians, including one child, were wounded. Medical teams continued treating the injured as authorities said casualty figures were still being updated.

Norway funds U.S. weapons purchase for Ukraine. Norway says it will spend more than 3.2 billion Norwegian kroner, about 267.5 million euros ($290 million), to buy U.S.-made weapons for Ukraine, reinforcing Kyiv’s defenses as Russia continues its full-scale war.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said on Dec. 17 that the package will include air defense missiles and weapons and ammunition for F-16 fighter jets that Ukraine has begun integrating into its air force. Air defense systems are critical for protecting cities and energy infrastructure from Russian missiles and drones, especially during the winter months.

Støre said part of the equipment will be procured directly from the United States under existing support frameworks, allowing the weapons to reach Ukraine more quickly.

Ukraine police destroy unexploded Russian cruise missile warhead. Ukraine’s National Police say bomb disposal specialists have safely destroyed the unexploded warhead of a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile that landed in the central Kirovohrad region after it failed to detonate.

The incident occurred during a large-scale Russian aerial attack on Dec. 17, when air defenses intercepted several incoming weapons. Debris from one Kh-101 missile fell on the outskirts of a population center, leaving behind its high-explosive fragmentation warhead intact.

Police explosive ordnance disposal teams located the warhead, which weighed about 400 kilograms (roughly 882 pounds), posing a serious danger to nearby residents. The Kh-101 is a long-range, air-launched cruise missile designed to strike targets hundreds of miles away and is frequently used by Russian forces against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.

Specialists evacuated the area, secured the site and carried out a controlled detonation, following safety procedures to prevent casualties or damage. 

Ukraine’s air assault forces destroy Russian armored convoy near Pokrovsk. Ukraine’s Air Assault Forces say they have repelled a Russian mechanized assault and destroyed an armored convoy in the Donetsk regional area of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, underscoring the intensity of fighting in one of the war’s most contested areas.

According to Ukraine’s military, paratroopers from the 46th Separate Airmobile Podillia Brigade, working alongside neighboring units, detected Russian movements as enemy forces attempted to advance under cover of fog. The assault involved up to 10 armored vehicles and several dozen infantry troops moving toward Ukrainian positions.

Ukrainian engineers, artillery units and drone operators coordinated strikes that halted the advance. During the clash, Ukrainian forces destroyed two Russian tanks, two infantry fighting vehicles, a multipurpose tracked vehicle and two quad bikes. Another armored vehicle and a motor vehicle were damaged. The Air Assault Forces said 49 Russian troops were eliminated and five wounded. 

Key Takeaways

1. The Council of the European Union confirmed that European countries and the United States will provide “robust” security guarantees to Ukraine as part of the peace deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.
2. The Kremlin explicitly rejected US and European offers to provide Ukraine with “NATO-like” security guarantees as part of a peace deal and continued to signal its unwillingness to compromise on Russia’s territorial claims to Ukraine’s sovereign territory.
3. Russia launched an information campaign to frame the European Union and individual European countries as an enemy of the Russian people comparable to Nazi Germany in an effort to further militarize Russian society.
4. The Kremlin is trying to downplay ongoing Ukrainian counterattacks in Kupyansk as Russian ultranationalist milbloggers continue to acknowledge the severity of the situation for the Russian forces.
5. Ukrainian forces recently advanced near Pokrovsk and marginally advanced near Kupyansk. Russian forces recently advanced in the Dobropillya and Kostyantynivka-Druzhkivka tactical areas.

• European Parliament approves EU plan to phase out Russian gas imports by end of 2027
• Putin threatens again to seize territories “by military means” if talks fail
• Luxembourg allocates 10 million euros to restore Ukraine’s energy sector
• Russia recruiting Africans for war against Ukraine under guise of work and study
• Ukrainian forces regain control in northern part of Pokrovsk, says Ukraine’s commander-in-chief
• Bloomberg: US prepares new sanctions against Russia’s energy sector if Putin rejects potential peace deal
• Ukraine’s General Staff: Battlefield sees surge in clashes: Ukrainian forces have repelled 278 Russian attacks in one day
• NYT: US and European countries prepare proposals for post-war support plan for Ukraine
• Germany’s Merz: Western troops in Ukraine will be able to resist Russians