War in Ukraine, day 283: heavy fighting in the area of the city of Bahamut
On the 283rd day of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, heavy fighting took place in the area of the city of Bahamut, in the Donbas region. The International Atomic Energy Agency hopes to reach an agreement with Kiev and Moscow to create a buffer zone at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant by the end of the year, the head of the UN atomic agency said. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree approving a National Security and Defense Council proposal to ban Russian-affiliated religious groups and impose sanctions on a number of pro-Kremlin bishops.
Currently, Russian troops are intensively shelling the city of Bahamut and its surroundings. According to the Institute for the Study of War, the Russian Federation would benefit from a possible ceasefire negotiated with Ukraine and the West, as it would give the Russian military a break to prepare new offensives in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, the people of Bucha who were left without homes were sheltered in makeshift containers. During power outages, their new homes are not heated and people endure the cold.
"We dress the children in warm clothes, put hats on their heads and cover ourselves with the duvet. Here, the New Year has come to us."
"The most important thing is that I got my child out of this region. I don't want him to see what's going on there. The best is in Ukraine."
"When there's electricity, we try to cook something so we can eat later and cold."
Joe Biden and Emmanuel Macron pledged to hold Russia accountable for "widely documented atrocities and war crimes" in Ukraine. Biden said US support would continue in the face of Russian aggression.
Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy claims that food security is a point of Ukraine's proposed peace formula. Zelensky says that the third ship with grain will leave from the port of Odessa. According to the leader from Kyiv, in this way, the world will see that global stability is possible only together with Ukraine.
"We are moving quite actively on another point of the Ukrainian peace formula - food security. The third ship from our "Wheat from Ukraine" initiative entered the port of Odessa. 25,000 tons of humanitarian wheat will be sent to Somalia. The second vessel will head to Ethiopia with 30,000 tons of wheat on board," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said.
The International Atomic Energy Agency hopes to reach an agreement with Russia and Ukraine to create a buffer zone at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant by the end of the year, the UN atomic watchdog said. The nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, provided about a fifth of Ukraine's electricity before the Russian invasion and, as the war continues, has had to run on backup generators several times, according to Reuters.
