Victory Chronicles-DAY 657

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, there have been ongoing attempts by Russian proxies to encircle the town of Avdiivka, as well as continued attacks in various other directions. In the past day alone, there have been 89 combat engagements on the frontline. The enemy has launched 10 missile strikes, 18 air strikes, and fired from multiple launch rocket systems at the positions of Ukrainian troops and populated areas.

In the Avdiivka sector, Ukrainian defenders have managed to hold back the Russian troops and prevent the encirclement of Avdiivka. The Ukrainian defenders have successfully repelled 42 attacks, causing significant losses to the Russians. Similar successful defense efforts have been carried out in other sectors, such as Kupyansk, Liman, Bakhmut, Maryinka, Shakhtarsk, and Zaporizhzhia.

In the Melitopol sector, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are inflicting losses on the Russian-terrorist forces, exhausting them along the entire front line. In the Kherson sector, ATO forces are holding positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River, conducting counter-battery activities and delivering fire strikes on the rear of the Russian-terrorist forces. The “North” operational and tactical group also remains without significant changes.

On the Siverskyi and Slobozhanskyi fronts, the Russians are maintaining a military presence along the border areas and engaging in subversive activities to prevent the deployment of Ukrainian troops.

In response to the attacks from the enemy, the Ukrainian Air Force has carried out two strikes on areas where Russian troops, weapons, and equipment were concentrated. Missile and artillery units have also targeted areas of concentration of Russian personnel, weapons, and military equipment, as well as ammunition storage sites, a command post, and an artillery installation belonging to the Russians.

Sweden has announced a new humanitarian aid package worth SEK 1.4 billion ($133 million) for Ukraine, the largest support package Sweden has provided to Ukraine so far. The aid is aimed at assisting Ukraine in dealing with the increased number of Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure during the winter months. Most of the aid, SEK 900 million ($86 million), will be allocated to energy, housing, health, and transportation infrastructure through the World Bank’s Ukraine Assistance, Recovery, Reconstruction, and Reform Trust Fund. Another SEK 300 million ($29 million) will be allocated to the European Development Bank’s Environmental and Energy Fund for Ukraine. SEK 100 million ($9.5 million) will support the Grain from Ukraine initiative for agricultural exports. Additionally, UNESCO will receive SEK 75 million ($7.1 million) to construct bomb shelters in schools and kindergartens, and the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency will receive SEK 25 million ($2.4 million) to support critical infrastructure such as heating. Since the start of Russia’s invasion, Sweden has provided SEK 5.2 billion ($495 million) in humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has published photos of the “landscapes” on the front line and the challenging conditions in which Ukrainian defenders must fight.

The 110th Brigade published a video of fighting in the Avdiivka sector. The video shows Ukrainian defenders destroying a Russian ATGM and an electronic warfare device.

The Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) announced on December 11 that Russia will conduct voting for the 2024 presidential election in occupied Ukraine, likely in an attempt to legitimize the Russian occupation and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rule. The CEC reported that it made the decision to hold the election in occupied territories – all of which except Crimea are under martial law – in consultations with the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD), the Federal Security Service (FSB), and occupation authorities.

Russian law notably requires the CEC to consult with these agencies when considering holding elections in areas under martial law, including occupied Ukraine. Russia will likely use the March 2024 presidential election to further establish a veneer of legitimacy for its occupation of Ukraine as it has done during the illegal 2022 annexation referenda and the 2023 regional elections.

Russian CEC Chairperson Ella Pamfilova stated on December 7 that elections in occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson oblasts “will differ somewhat” in procedure from elections in Russia and occupied Crimea. The C EC will likely use these differing procedures to falsify votes in Putin’s favor and claim a high voter turnout while falsely portraying occupied Ukraine’s participation in the election as legitimate to the international community.

A 47-year-old fighter, Volodymyr Korotetskyi, with the call sign Cactus, died during the liberation of the territories near the village of Levadne, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, from the occupiers. For more than 3 months, the defender was considered missing.

Volodymyr was born in the village of Nova Vodolaha, Kharkiv Oblast. In 1998, he graduated from the Odesa State Academy of Food Technologies with a degree in fermentation and winemaking. He was a creative person. He regularly posted practical videos on professional topics on YouTube. He spoke pure Ukrainian, for which his friends and acquaintances nicknamed him a “sincere Ukrainian.” He lived in Kharkiv. He worked as an entrepreneur, designing, installing, and repairing heat boilers.

The man joined the local security company at the beginning of the full-scale invasion. He later became the squad leader of the 23rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Since January 2023, he has been performing combat missions on the front line.

“He had a sincere nature, an open, kind heart, was not indifferent to other people’s misfortunes, always with a smile on his face, joked and had an unbridled thirst for life, was intelligent and determined. He started a family with his beloved girlfriend, they had twins, wonderful sons who missed their father every day since he left to defend Ukraine. He sincerely and devotedly loved them and his wife, was the most caring father, supported them in everything, and was a true role model. For his mother, Volodymyr was the son she was always proud of, the one she prayed for all those dark days when she lost contact with him. And to the last she believed that he would definitely come back…” the Nova Vodolaha community said.

The defender was buried in his native village. He is survived by his mother, brother, wife, and two sons, who were 9 years old at the time of their father’s death. 

*Volodymyr’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

• The Guardian: Europeans open to Ukraine joining EU, survey shows before key summit
• 58% of Ukrainians stand for continuing to fight Russia, even without Western help
• Austin: U.S. to help Ukraine build forces to repel Russia
• UK intelligence: Russian troops face challenges when fighting at night
• NYT: U.S. advises Ukraine to hold on to current positions, dig in, and build up strength