Russo-Ukrainian war, day 1339: Western energy sanctions squeeze Russia as Ukraine pounds infrastructure

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Exclusives

Don’t bet on Budapest: Hungary’s opposition won’t help Ukraine, either. Péter Magyar drew massive crowds Thursday challenging Orbán. But he won’t back Ukraine’s fast-track EU membership or weapons deliveries either.

UK PM Starmer pushes allies for Ukraine long-range missiles as US sanctions hit Russia. US Sanctions on giant Russian oil companies fuel London missile push

Romania just stopped Russian sabotage—after years of letting it grow. Intelligence arrested two saboteurs with thermite devices targeting Bucharest’s Nova Post. What they ignored for years mattered more.

Sanction me softly: Trump, Orbán, and the oil that binds them. Trump sanctions the companies supplying his closest European ally, who immediately announces plans to evade them.

Frozen billions, frozen will: Belgium stops Europe’s Russian assets plan cold. Brussels won’t share. Belgium won’t pay alone. Ukraine waits.

Romania could’ve been Ukraine’s biggest ally. Hungary made sure it isn’t.. Romania shares 600 kilometers of border with Ukraine. Budapest decides what it does about the war.

Trap Aggressor: West ignores Crimean factory supplying Russia’s aviation industry despite decade-old sanctions. The Crimean Fiolent plant keeps building components for Russian jets like the SJ-100 and Tu-214, while only the US has sanctioned it since 2014.

Winter in Ukraine: when drones can’t see, tanks advance. The winter weather can ground and blind drones. That’s good news for vehicle crews on both sides. But don’t expect relief for the infantry.

The Swedish jets Ukraine could get were built to survive Russia—and that’s the point. Gripen jets, designed to outlast Soviet bombers, work well from small, dirty runways—the Ukrainian way

Military

Frontline report: Ukraine’s sustained strikes on Crimea fuel depots spark shortages and civilian unrest. A week-long Ukrainian strike campaign has destroyed at least 11 fuel tanks at Crimea’s Feodosia oil terminal and damaged critical power substations, pushing the peninsula into acute fuel and power shortages.

Ukraine wipes out two Russian radars and a Buk-M3 SAM in southern Ukraine — precision drone strike footage released (video). Ukraine’s military intelligence said its strike drones eliminated two Nebo‑SVU radars and a Buk‑M3 launcher across occupied regions.

More Mirage aircraft and Aster missiles are en route to Ukraine, says Macron after meeting Zelenskyy and allies. Meanwhile, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof emphasized that only sustained financial and economic measures can push Putin toward ending Russia’s war.

Russia throws female assault units to Pokrovsk axis amid catastrophic losses. Atesh sources confirm that lives of female assault troops depend solely on earning the “mercy” of officers.

Russia’s fourth-largest refinery in Ryazan halts core crude unit after drone-induced fire during latest attack, Reuters reports. Production continues at reduced volume, according to Reuters sources.

Before their role was limited to operations in Russia’s Kursk Oblast — now they support Russian strikes against Ukraine. Ukraine’s General Staff reports that North Korean units are filling gaps left by Russian losses.

Syrskyi discusses aid packages with NATO chief in Europe as Russia’s terror campaign intesifies. The US reportedly handed Grynkewich authority to approve Ukrainian long-range strikes inside Russia.

Three Russians killed, radios and maps captured — Ukrainian commandos strike from behind (video). SOF forces entered the Russian rear for intelligence gathering in Donetsk Oblast — but executed a swift and lethal assault before exfiltration.

ISW: Russia fakes battlefield gains in Kherson city to convince the West it’s winning the war—but Ukrainian troops filmed strolling there next day (updated). This staged operation fits a pattern of cognitive warfare in which Moscow manufactures illusions of strength to undermine support for Ukraine abroad.

Frontline report: From victim to retaliator – Ukraine targets Russian energy grid across multiple regions. After months of Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities, Ukraine has launched massive retaliatory strikes on Russia’s power infrastructure, plunging regions like Belgorod and Kursk into darkness.

Intelligence and technology

A mystery drone blew up in Kazakhstan — it might’ve been Ukrainian and headed for Russia’s gas hub. The border district sits next to Orenburg Oblast, where Ukrainian drones struck Gazprom’s facility just days earlier.

International

Over 20 countries pledge to remove Russian oil and gas from global markets. The pledge builds on new US and UK sanctions targeting Rosneft and Lukoil, while the EU imposed restrictions on Moscow’s liquefied natural gas exports.

US, EU sanction Russian energy; Putin downplays hit, Trump says “We’ll see”. Coordinated action targets Russia’s Rosneft, Lukoil, and LNG, hindering its capacity to continue bankrolling the war.

Russian envoy returns to Washington for more talks after Trump sanctions Moscow – CNN. Dmitriev’s second Washington visit since the 2022 invasion comes as Chinese and Indian refineries slash Russian oil purchases under the new US restrictions.

EU defense chief says Europe’s own €150 billion defense fund must now help Ukraine. Kubilius, speaking during the Berlin Global Dialogue, called on EU countries to support Ukraine using SAFE loans following the halt of US aid and its switch to a pay-for-weapons model.

China’s state oil firms halt Russian oil purchases following US sanctions – Reuters. Move follows India’s plans to slash imports as sanctions threaten Russia’s energy revenues from largest buyers.

Trump sanctioned Russia over “frustration with Vladimir Putin” – White House. Press secretary says Trump frustrated with Putin’s lack of action “moving the ball forward towards peace.”

Humanitarian and social impact

Intercepted conversations reveal Russian commanders instructing Colombian fighters to kill Ukrainian women and children in fog. Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence says they are being ordered to execute civilians, making foreign fighters accomplices in atrocities in Donetsk Oblast.

Russia plans winter humanitarian disaster in Ukraine, says Zelenskyy ahead of Coalition of Willing meeting in London. The Coalition of the Willing meeting will involve NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and over 20 allies.

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