It is widely believed that Russian leadership expected its all-out invasion of Ukraine to succeed within days.
Twenty days later, Ukraine still stands, and Russia has no major victories to claim. It seized only one large city and regional center, Kherson in southern Ukraine.
To force Ukraine to surrender, Russia has shelled civilians in residential areas and attacked military and civilian infrastructure, including schools, kindergartens, and hospitals all across the country. Photos of Kharkiv's wrecked downtown and a destroyed maternity hospital in Mariupol have appeared on the front pages of newspapers all over the world.
Since Feb. 24, Russia's aggression has killed thousands of Ukrainians, forced some three million to flee, and left cities and villages in ruins.
"I truly believe this will be resolved in the next few months," Kellogg said in an interview on Fox Business. "The only person who can do this is President Donald Trump, and he will do it. They're tired of killing each other out there. This is time," Kellogg added.
The unnamed official said that Russia wanted to use the weapon to intimidate Ukraine and its supporters, but the Oreshnik "does not change the rules of the game on the battlefield."
Ukrainian forces are enjoying success in the Kupiansk sector, where two Russian bridgeheads that emerged during the crossing of the Oskil River were destroyed, Estonian intelligence said.
Regarding U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s repeated promises to quickly end the war, Yermak said, "There is no plan yet, and we have not seen it for sure. We know that several opinions and positions are being discussed."
The Supreme Court of the Netherlands has rejected Russia's appeal, upholding a decision by the Hague Arbitration Court requiring Russia to pay $5 billion in compensation to Ukraine’s state-owned Naftogaz for misappropriated assets in occupied Crimea, Naftogaz reported on Dec. 13.
"I hope to talk about peace, about peacekeeping, as soon as possible in Ukraine, but also in Gaza and Lebanon," Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told journalists in Madrid when asked about the possibility of Rome deploying peacekeepers in Ukraine.
Andrius Kubilius, the newly appointed European defense commissioner, spent the morning of Dec. 13 in a shelter in Kyiv during a large-scale Russian missile attack, EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarina Mathernova said on X.
Moldova's parliament on Dec. 13 voted to introduce a 60-day-long state of emergency starting Dec. 16 over the expected halt of Russian gas transit via Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for urgent measures to support the country’s coal companies, which face multibillion-dollar losses and risk mass bankruptcies, The Moscow Times reported on Dec. 12.
Moscow deployed four Kinzhal air-launched missiles, two Iskander-M ballistic missiles, one Kh-23 North Korean ballistic missile, 55 Kh-101 and Kh-55SM cruise missiles launched from Tu-95MS bomber planes, 24 sea-launched Kalibr missiles, seven Iskander-K cruise missiles, and one Kh-59/69 missile, the Air Force said.
The proposed changes include a revamped recruitment system with "zero tolerance for corruption," improved military training tailored to front-line needs, and integration of advanced technology into training and operational processes.
"DTEK thermal power plants were attacked. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties," the company said. The plants' equipment was "seriously damaged," with energy sector employees already working on repairs.
Google Play will indefinitely halt processing payments to app developers with bank accounts in Russia starting Dec. 26, Habr, a Russian IT portal, reported on Dec. 12.