Key developments on Dec. 4:
- Ukraine's new Palianytsia missile-drone enters serial production, minister says
- German FM doesn't rule out deploying troops to Ukraine in case of ceasefire
- Russia gathers 300 boats to cross Dnipro River amid attempted attacks in Kherson Oblast, military says
- Abducted mayor tortured to death in Russian captivity, governor says
Ukraine’s recently developed Palianytsia, a lightweight missile-drone hybrid, has entered serial production, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov wrote in an op-ed on Dec. 4.
"A new start-up implemented the Palianytsia missile project, which has already entered serial production thanks to the support of the Defense Ministry," Umerov wrote in the op-ed, published by the Lb.ua outlet.
Domestically produced long-range weapons are of key importance to Ukraine's defense strategy, as Western partners only recently allowed strikes in Russia’s Kursk Oblast with foreign-made missiles but prohibited attacks deeper in the rear.
One of these domestic-made weapons is the missile-drone hybrid named Palianytsia, which combines existing technologies to effectively strike deep into Russian territory.
"The use of foreign missiles often requires coordination with partners… Ukrainian cruise and ballistic missiles will allow our Armed Forces to act independently, delivering pinpoint strikes on key enemy targets," Umerov wrote.
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced in November that Ukraine has produced its first 100 missiles. According to Umerov, Ukraine also resumed and scaled up serial production of Neptune cruise missiles, modifying them to have a greater range.
Chris York
German FM doesn't rule out deploying troops to Ukraine in case of ceasefire
Germany does not rule out deploying troops to Ukraine to ensure a ceasefire, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said during a NATO ministerial meeting in Brussels on Dec. 3.
Baerbock told journalists that in order to achieve long term peace in Ukraine, security guarantees such as Ukraine’s NATO membership and deployment of international troops, including German ones, are conceivable.
The comments follow media reports about the U.K. and France also discussing sending its soldiers to monitor a ceasefire in Ukraine. European troops overseeing a peaceful post-war situation in the country were reportedly included in a peace plan of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's team.
Baerbock, a member of Germany’s Green party, has represented a more pro-Ukrainian voice in the governing coalition with Social Democrat Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who adopted a more cautious approach on certain issues. Earlier this year, the chancellor rejected a proposal by French President Emmanuel Macron to send military trainers to Ukraine.
Martin Fornusek
Russia gathers 300 boats to cross Dnipro River amid attempted attacks in Kherson Oblast, military says
Russian troops are storming the Kherson direction in an attempt to gain a foothold on some islands in the Dnipro River delta, Vladyslav Voloshyn, the spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Southern Command, told Suspilne on Dec. 4.
Russian forces are trying to conduct attacks near the Kozatskyi and Kruhlyk islands, Voloshyn said.
His comments came after Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin told the Financial Times that Russia "wants to launch another offensive" in the direction of Kherson.
Kherson and other regional settlements west of the Dnipro River have been subjected to near-daily Russian strikes since Ukraine liberated the area in November 2022, and Russian troops were pushed to the river's east bank.
Russia has assembled "300 boats to cross the river" Prokudin said in an article published earlier on Dec. 4.
"Their goal is to capture a certain foothold, hold it and bring as much of our forces and means as possible," he said.
Russia is now training its forcing assault groups in occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts, the spokesperson said, citing Ukraine's intelligence data.
According to Voloshyn, Moscow's troops are practicing how to cross water obstacles and transfer landing groups.
"There has not been a single successful attempt at this assault or enemy crossing in a month. The Ukrainian Defense Forces are now reliably defending the city of Kherson and Kherson Oblast, and the entire right bank," Voloshyn told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL).
Kateryna Denisova
Abducted mayor tortured to death in Russian captivity, governor says
Yevhenii Matvieiev, the mayor of the occupied Dniprorudne town, was tortured to death in Russian captivity, Zaporizhzhia Oblast Governor Ivan Fedorov said on his Telegram channel on Dec. 4.
"People are the most valuable thing we are losing in this merciless war waged by the terrorist country of Russia," the governor said.
Russian forces occupied the southeastern town of Dniprorudne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast during the early days of the war, taking the mayor to captivity and submitting him to torture, Fedorov said.
Matvieiev spent two years and eight months in captivity before dying. His body was returned to Ukraine during the latest exchange.
"Yevhenii was a true patriot, not indifferent to the fate of his country and his community. He always worked with people and for people, listened, and helped everyone who needed it," Fedorov said.
"During the occupation, he did not leave the town or the people, did everything to ensure the (continuation of the) life of the community, constantly informed the population about the course of events and supported them."
Asami Terajima
