For the first time, Russia used over 600 attack drones simultaneously during a massive attack on Ukraine, launching 673 "Shaheds" and missiles at energy infrastructure facilities. This is the ninth massive attack on energy facilities this year, and it has become the largest in terms of the number of drones used in all previous years of the full-scale war.
The Ministry of Development has decided on the mandatory evacuation of children from 19 settlements in Donetsk Oblast. About 200 people with limited mobility are also being evacuated from Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
During the night, the enemy attacked energy facilities in several regions, leading to new power outages in Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions. Today, hourly blackout schedules and power restrictions for industry and business are applied in all regions of Ukraine until 23:59.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has for the first time unveiled 20 points of a "basic document on ending the war. "
Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War stated that these "attacks" are provocative and accompanied by loud statements from Russian officials and propagandists.
The head of the OMA, Hryhorov, reported that 4,000 residents of Sumy region refuse to evacuate from the border zone. Evacuation has been ongoing since 2023 as a preventive measure to save civilian lives.
During the day, 67 combat engagements took place on the front, of which 27 enemy attempts to advance were recorded in the Pokrovsk direction. According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, battles continue in several directions, including the Northern-Slobozhansky, Kupyansk, and Huliaipole directions.
About 100 Russian servicemen entered the village of Hrabovske in the Sumy region, trying to advance to Riasne. Currently, fighting is ongoing in the settlement, Ukrainian servicemen are driving out the occupiers.
The Russian army captured 13 Ukrainian soldiers and 52 civilians in the village of Hrabovske in the Sumy region. President Zelenskyy reported that among the civilians were women and children who had not been evacuated.
Viktor Trehubov, head of the communications department of the Joint Forces Group, stated that the forced removal of about 50 residents of the village of Hrabovske, Sumy region, is a planned provocation. The occupiers use civilians as a "human shield" for manipulation on the battlefield and in the information space.
Since the beginning of the day, 93 combat engagements have taken place at the front, with the enemy being most active in the Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka directions. In the Siversk-Slobozhanskyi and Kursk directions, one enemy attack occurred, and the enemy carried out 49 shellings, four of which were from MLRS.
Fighting continues in the village of Hrabovske, Sumy region. Ukrainian troops are pushing the occupiers back into Russian territory, while there are no Russians in the neighboring village of Riasne. Russian troops forcibly removed 50 Ukrainians from Sumy region, the Human Rights Commissioner demands information about their whereabouts.
Russian servicemen illegally detained and forcibly removed about 50 civilians from Sumy region to Russia. The Ombudsman of Ukraine appealed to his Russian counterpart and the ICRC regarding their return.
Ukrainian forces advanced in the central part of Kupyansk, Kharkiv Oblast, as confirmed by geolocated video footage from December 20. Russian forces intensified activity in Sumy Oblast but did not achieve confirmed progress.
As of 4 PM, 128 combat engagements have been recorded on the front line, which is twice as many as the day before. The most intense battles are taking place in the Pokrovsk direction, where 50 enemy attacks have been repelled.
The Minister of Defense heard a report on the construction of fortifications in six regions. 2,130 platoon strongholds and over 3,000 km of anti-tank ditches have already been built.
As of 4:00 PM on December 19, 52 combat engagements were recorded at the front. The enemy is showing the greatest assault activity in Donetsk Oblast, terrorizing the border areas of Sumy Oblast with artillery shelling.
Due to Russian attacks on energy facilities in five regions of Ukraine, consumers have been cut off from power, with over 99,000 of them in Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Blackout schedules remain in effect, but additional capacities have been freed up to shorten them.
At night, Russia attacked 5 regions, blacking out over 180,000 consumers, most of whom have already been reconnected. In Odesa region, 12,000 subscribers remain without electricity, and the cancellation of outage schedules is impossible.
The Russian dictator confirmed his intention to seize territories that he considers "historical lands of Russia. " This primarily refers to the south and east of Ukraine.
On the evening of December 17, Russian drones attacked Cherkasy, Sumy, and Kryvyi Rih regions, causing infrastructure damage and destruction. As a result of the shelling, there are casualties, including two in Kryvyi Rih and one person in Sumy region.
The Ministry of Digital Transformation explained how to stay online using xPON technology, which provides internet for up to 72 hours without electricity. To connect, you need to find a provider that uses xPON and arrange for the installation of an optical cable to your home.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 151 combat engagements over the past day, more than half of which occurred in the Pokrovsk, Oleksandrivka, and Kostiantynivka directions. The enemy launched 90 airstrikes and used 5,471 kamikaze drones.
Ukraine has introduced a new approach to air raid alerts with district-by-district notification, which will reduce the duration of alerts in communities without a real threat. This has already shortened the time of alerts in frontline and central regions, allowing businesses to operate more stably.
Natalia Didenko reported that from December 15, a warming trend is expected in Ukraine, with temperatures rising to +1…+5°C, and in the West to +3…+6°C. In Kyiv, the temperature will rise to +2…+4°C, with possible drizzle and wet snow in the East.
Russian troops launched over 1,500 drones, almost 900 guided aerial bombs, and 46 missiles at Ukraine in a week. This resulted in damage to energy infrastructure and left hundreds of thousands of families without electricity.
On December 13, 154 combat engagements were recorded at the front, with the most intense actions in the Kostiantynivka, Pokrovsk, Oleksandrivka, and Huliaipole directions. The enemy launched two missile strikes, 37 air strikes, and used 5,180 kamikaze drones.
Russia launched an overnight attack on Ukraine, using over 450 attack drones and 30 missiles, with the main strike targeting the energy infrastructure of the south and Odesa region. Thousands of families were left without electricity in 7 regions, and two people were injured in Odesa region.
Dictator Vladimir Putin ordered to continue military operations in Ukraine to achieve all the goals of the so-called "SVO". He emphasized the next Ukrainian city that needs to be attacked and captured is Siversk in the Donetsk region.
Russian troops dropped a guided aerial bomb on a store in the Velyka Pysarivka community of Sumy region. A saleswoman and a local resident were killed, and two more people were injured.
