Key developments on Nov. 12:
- Ukrainian drone strikes oil depot in Russia's Belgorod Oblast, local official claims
- Russia deploys assault groups to Zaporizhzhia Oblast, military says
- Ukraine's 2025 budget includes $1.3 billion for weapons production, minister says
- Ukrainian volunteers in Poland sign contracts with Armed Forces
- British PM Starmer to press Biden to release $20 billion aid for Ukraine before Trump takes office, Telegraph reports
A Ukrainian drone struck an oil depot in Russia's Belgorod Oblast, igniting one silo, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported on his Telegram channel on Nov. 12.
"Ten fire crews worked at the scene and quickly extinguished the fire," Gladkov said, adding there were no reports of casualties.
The oil depot is located near the city of Stary Oskol, he added.
In recent months, Ukrainian forces have launched a series of drone strikes aimed at damaging Russia's oil industry, whose profits fuel Moscow's war efforts.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's concerted campaign to get permission to use Western-supplied weapons like the U.S-made ATACMs and the U.K's Storm Shadows to strike deep inside Russia has, to date, failed.
However, drones can potentially have an outsized impact when they hit highly flammable and less protected targets, such as ethanol distilleries or fuel depots.
Ukraine in September established the Unmanned Systems Forces, a separate branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces dedicated to drone warfare.
Kyiv said it aims to produce 1 million drones this year, in addition to the thousands pledged by foreign partners.
Russia deploys assault groups to Zaporizhzhia Oblast, military says
The Russian army is deploying trained assault groups to frontline positions in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Vladyslav Voloshyn, the spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Southern Command, told the news outlet Suspilne on Nov. 12.
A day before, Voloshyn said that a new Russian assault in Zaporizhzhia Oblast could begin "any day."
In early October, Russian troops reportedly renewed their attack in the Zaporizhzhia sector. Kyiv warned of a potential Russian push in the southern region, just as Moscow's troops continue advancing in Ukraine's east.
According to Voloshyn, Russia is preparing to intensify its offensive toward the town of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
This move will allow the Russian military to gain control of the logistics routes from Zaporizhzhia to eastern Ukraine, the spokesperson added.
Another Russian target in Zaporizhzhia Oblast is the Hulyaipole sector, where "important" logistics routes for the Russian military are located, he said. Besides, Russian troops intensified their assault actions towards the village of Vremivka, trying to break through Ukrainian defensive positions near the settlements of Rivnopillia and Velyka Novosilka, according to Voloshyn.
Voloshyn said in October that Russian forces were massing for a breakthrough in the direction of Orikhiv and Mala Tokmachka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The area was the main axis of Ukraine's southern counteroffensive in 2023, which led to the liberation of the settlement of Robotyne but achieved no major results.
Russian troops have intensified attacks against Zaporizhzhia, targeting its civilian infrastructure with guided aerial bombs.
Dinara Khalilova
Ukraine's 2025 budget includes $1.3 billion for weapons production, minister says
Ukraine's budget for 2025 envisages Hr 55 billion ($1.3 billion) for weapons production, Strategic Industries Minister Herman Smetanin said on Nov. 12.
Ukraine began actively developing its defense production after Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Some Hr 54.55 billion ($1.3 billion) will be directly allocated for the development and implementation of new technologies, and the expansion of defense production capacity, according to Smetanin.
The minister added that the 2025 figure is almost Hr 3.5 billion ($84.4 million) more than in 2024.
Another 500 million will be allocated to an affordable loans program for defense companies. This program, created in 2024, allows manufacturers to take out loans at 5% per annum. The state budget will cover the rest of the interest, according to the minister's statement.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the draft state budget for 2025 on Sept. 13. The state expects to get Hr 2 trillion ($48.2 billion) in revenues, while expenditures are planned at Hr 3.6 trillion ($86.8 billion).
The draft state budget for 2025 envisages spending Hr 2.2 trillion ($53 billion) on Ukraine's defense, which is 26.3% of the country's projected gross domestic product (GDP).
Ukraine's proposed 2025 budget passed its first reading in parliament on Oct. 31. The budget law will go through additional rounds of consideration before lawmakers hold a final vote, expected by Dec. 1.
Chris York
Ukrainian volunteers in Poland sign contracts with Armed Forces
The first Ukrainian citizens have signed contracts with the Ukrainian Armed Forces as part of the Ukrainian Legion in Poland, Ukraine's Defense Ministry reported on Nov. 12.
The legion was unveiled in July as a volunteer military unit made up of Ukrainian men living in Polandand trained by the Polish Armed Forces. The first volunteer recruitment center was opened in October at the Ukrainian consulate in the eastern Polish city of Lublin.
The unit is part of an effort to replenish the ranks of Ukraine's military as the all-out war with Russia continues into its third year.
After signing the contracts, the volunteers went to a Polish Armed Forces military training ground to undergo 35-day basic training. Upon completing the training, the servicemen can continue training in their chosen specialties at European NATO bases.
The training will be conducted under the guidance of Polish instructors using modern weapons. Commanders of the Ukrainian Armed Forces with combat experience will also participate in the exercises, according to the ministry.
As of Nov. 12, the Legion's recruitment center had received about 700 applications from Ukrainians around Europe to join the military, the statement read.
The legion will allow Ukrainians to join the fight while being able to return to Poland after completing their service. Under martial law instituted in 2022 after the start of the full-scale war, Ukrainian men aged 18-60 are not permitted to leave Ukraine without permission.
The U.N. estimates that 6.7 million Ukrainians were driven abroad as a result of Russia's all-out invasion. This is in addition to a sizeable diaspora living in Europe, the U.S., Canada, and elsewhere since before 2022.
Dinara Khalilova
British PM to press Biden to release $20 billion aid for Ukraine before Trump takes office, Telegraph reports
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is preparing to press outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden to release a $20 billion loan for Ukraine during next week's G20 summit in Brazil, the Telegraph reported on Nov. 12.
The loan is part of the Group of Seven (G7) has reached an agreement to provide Ukraine with approximately $50 billion in loans backed by the revenue from foreign Russian assets, the G7 announced on Oct. 25.
The United States will contribute the bulk of the loan with $20 billion in assistance. The U.S. is closely followed by European Union countries, including France, Germany, and Italy, with a combined $19.4 billion.
The remaining approximately $10 billion will be divvied up with Canada providing $3.7 billion, Japan providing $3.07 billion, and the U.K. providing $2.9 billion in loan funding.
This would be the latest part of European power's attempt to persuade Biden to step up help to Ukraine before Donald Trump takes office in January, including allowing Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia's territory with Western-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.
The U.K. prime minister will also press for a one-on-one discussion with Biden during the G20 summit, according to the Telegraph.
Starmer also met and released a joint statement on Nov. 11. with French President Emmanuel Macron, "stressing their determination to support Ukraine unwaveringly and for as long as necessary to thwart Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine."
The two leaders will meet with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk soon as the trio attempts to "Trump-proof" the Western bloc's aid to Ukraine in case the incoming U.S. president decides to radically cut aid for Ukraine.
Trump has repeatedly promised to end the war "in 24 hours," and though he hasn't yet elaborated a plan, it is largely expected to involve Ukraine ceding land to Russia.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio is expected to become the US next chief diplomat, who said on air shortly after Trump's victory that Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine has reached a "stalemate" and "needs to be brought to a conclusion."
He also voted against the U.S' $61 billion aid package for Ukraine in April 2024.
Olga Rudenko
