War in Ukraine
France is under pressure to finance Ukraine using €18 billion in Russian sovereign assets, whose location Paris has concealed for over two years. These assets, mostly immobilized in private banks, represent the second-largest accumulation of frozen Russian central bank assets in Europe.
Andriy Demchenko, spokesman for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, refuted information from the UN and Eurostat regarding a sharp increase in the number of Ukrainians who left the country in the autumn. According to his data, passenger traffic decreased from 4.4 million in August to 2.6 million in November, with 85% of crossings made by Ukrainian citizens.
In Ukraine, punishment for unauthorized abandonment of a military unit is provided in the form of imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years. However, a serviceman may be exempted from criminal liability if he voluntarily returns to service.
Seven EU countries have called for the use of frozen Russian assets to finance a reparations loan to Ukraine. This decision will strengthen Ukraine's position and ensure compensation for damages caused by the aggression.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved changes to the Procedure for booking conscripts, allowing defense industry enterprises to book employees for 45 days to eliminate violations. The 72-hour period for checking lists for critically important enterprises has been canceled.
The command of the Russian Armed Forces in the Pokrovsk direction is concealing real losses by registering the dead as "AWOL". This allows them to hide the number of "killed in action" and avoid claims from relatives.
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi emphasized the need to improve the process of basic military training and training centers. He also noted the importance of adapting recruits at the beginning of basic military training, as a significant number of AWOL cases occur during this period.
Russia attacked the energy infrastructure of the Donetsk region at night, which led to power outages for consumers in five regions of Ukraine. Today, hourly power outage schedules are in effect throughout the country.
EU countries will have to allocate billions of euros to guarantee loans to Ukraine totaling up to 210 billion euros, with Germany providing support of up to 52 billion euros. The European Commission presented these figures after proposing a "reparation loan" for Ukraine of 165 billion euros from frozen Russian assets.
Astrologer Ksenia Bazylenko predicts a week under the influence of Mercury, with tense and fateful aspects. Information leaks, scandals, natural anomalies, increased accident rates, and military escalation are expected, especially on December 10-11.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The meeting takes place amid fears that the US may pressure Ukraine to accept a peace deal with Russia.
The UN Security Council will hold a new open meeting on Ukraine on December 9 at 10:00 local time. The initiative was supported by Denmark, France, Great Britain, Greece, and South Korea at the request of Slovenia, which chairs the Security Council.
As a result of the UAV strike on Fastiv, the roofs of buildings caught fire over an area of 1500 square meters. The blast wave damaged a private house and administrative buildings.
On the night of December 8, Russia attacked Ukraine with 149 Shahed, Gerbera, and other attack UAVs. Ukrainian air defense shot down 131 enemy drones in the north, south, and east of the country.
Russian troops attacked Dnipropetrovsk region with FPV drones and UAVs, as a result of which a 51-year-old man was killed and five people, including children, were injured. An agricultural enterprise, private houses, a gas pipeline, and an administrative building were damaged.
Rustem Umerov and Andriy Hnatov held constructive talks with President Trump's representatives in the US. The Ukrainian team's task was to obtain full information about the conversation in Moscow and draft proposals for discussion with the President of Ukraine.
On the night of December 8, Ukrainian drones attacked Saratov, Engels, Volgograd, Tula, Rostov Oblast, Moscow, and St. Petersburg. Fires broke out in Saratov and Engels, and Russian air defense systems hit residential buildings in Volgograd.
As a result of a Russian UAV falling in Chernihiv, an apartment building was damaged, three people were injured, and one was hospitalized. Rescuers extinguished a gas fire, and State Emergency Service psychologists provided assistance to 24 people.
Brent crude futures rose to $63. 84 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude traded at $60.16. Investors are anticipating a Fed interest rate cut and monitoring geopolitical risks related to supplies from Russia and Venezuela.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 164 combat engagements over the past day. Ukrainian military repelled 53 attacks in the Pokrovsk direction, and also stopped enemy assault actions in other areas of the front.
Six people were injured due to enemy strikes on Zaporizhzhia and Polohy districts. The occupiers launched 615 attacks on 20 settlements in Zaporizhzhia region, including air strikes, UAV attacks, MLRS shelling, and artillery strikes.
In the Sumy region, an enemy strike on a high-rise building in Okhtyrka resulted in seven people being wounded. Two were hospitalized, and five received outpatient care.
Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council, stated that numerical superiority in personnel does not guarantee results in modern technological warfare. The effectiveness of drones, especially those with AI, will provide a "security wall" and become the basis of defense in the future.
UK Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden stated that the principle of negotiations between European leaders and the President of Ukraine in London is to give Kyiv the opportunity to decide its own future. These negotiations are a "turning point" for achieving a just peace and security guarantees for Ukraine.
US President Donald Trump expressed disappointment that Volodymyr Zelenskyy had not familiarized himself with the American "peace plan. " Trump discussed the situation with Putin and Ukrainian leaders, noting that Zelenskyy's team supports the document, but Zelenskyy himself "showed no interest."
In Chernihiv, on the night of December 8, an enemy UAV exploded near a high-rise building, wounding two people. The blast wave blew out windows, doors, and damaged cars, causing a gas pipeline fire.
The city of Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, was left without electricity after an emergency shutdown. Russian troops launched three strikes, damaging an apartment building, two residential buildings, and a gas station.
Russia seized more than 500 square kilometers of territory in November, twice as much as last month. At the same time, with the onset of winter, analysts expect a slowdown in the Russian advance on the front.
British historian Timothy Garton Ash argues that only Europe can help Ukraine resist Russian aggression and US diplomatic betrayal. He emphasizes the need for military and economic support for Ukraine to change Putin's strategy.
On December 7, 139 combat engagements were recorded at the front. Russian troops launched 2 missile and 32 air strikes, used 6 missiles and dropped 87 guided aerial bombs.