Ukraine has urged Western embassies, which closed today over fears of Russian shelling, not to stoke tensions, stressing that since Russia’s invasion began, the threat of Russian strikes it is “everyday” in the country, France Press reported, BTA reported.
At least five Western embassies – of the US, Spain, Italy, Hungary and Greece announced they were temporarily closing today due to the threat of an air strike amid increasingly harsh rhetoric from Russia.
The air raid warning system sounded in Kiev several times last night and today during the day. Russian drones were shot down and there were no reports of casualties, AFP notes.
The closure of diplomatic missions today followed a US embassy warning of a “possible significant air attack” against Ukraine.
“The threat of strikes […], unfortunately, has been a daily reality for Ukrainians for more than a thousand days,” said a spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
The ministry urged the West not to fuel the “tensions” maintained by Moscow for several days. Russia once again resorted to its nuclear rhetoric after Kiev received a “green light” to use American long-range missiles to strike deep into Russian territory.
Ukrainian military intelligence said Russia was carrying out a “massive psychological and information attack” against Ukraine through false messages circulating on social networks warning of impending bombings.
The latest massive strikes against Ukraine four days ago again targeted the country’s energy system, causing blackouts. Since then, across Ukraine, several residential buildings have also been hit, causing many deaths.
Ukraine’s first long-range US missile attack was a strike on a military facility in Russia’s Bryansk region, using US ATAKMS missiles with a range of 300 kilometers, Moscow and Kiev confirmed.
Also, the administration of American President Joe Biden, which in January will pass the baton to that of Donald Trump, announced today that it intends to supply Ukraine with anti-personnel mines – a weapon that has been heavily criticized for the number of civilian casualties it causes, including long after the conflict has ended. However, this weapon could help slow the Russian troop advance, which is accelerating.
The United States “is fully committed to prolonging the war in Ukraine and is doing everything possible to that end,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
According to a US official, the mines supplied to Ukraine will be “unsustainable”, i.e. equipped with a self-destruct or self-disabling device. They aim to bolster Ukraine’s defenses at a time when its troops are on the retreat.
In response to this US support for Kiev, Russia again issued warnings about using nuclear weapons, while accusing the West of “seeking escalation”.
According to the new Russian doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons, officially announced yesterday, Russia can now use them in the event of a “massive” an attack by a non-nuclear state but backed by a nuclear power.
This change “de facto precludes the possibility of defeating the Russian armed forces on the battlefield,” Russian foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin said today, hinting that Russia would resort to a nuclear bomb rather than risk defeat in a conventional war.
Washington, Paris, London and the European Union condemned the “irresponsible” attitude of Moscow. Ukraine called on its allies “not to give in to fear”.
China, a key partner of Moscow, called on “all countries” to “calm down” and “contain”.
The Russian army continues to advance on land, saying today that it has captured a new town on the eastern front, near Kurakhovo.
Russia itself has been accused by Kiev and the West of escalating the conflict after receiving the support of at least 10,000 North Korean troops. In addition, North Korea is accused of supplying large quantities of shells and missiles to Moscow.
