Russia and North Korea have agreed to boost military cooperation, with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressing unwavering support for Moscow’s war in Ukraine. This comes as tensions rise over the deployment of North Korean troops in western Russia to assist in the conflict. Meanwhile, Ukraine is seeking to join NATO to bolster its defences against Russia, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calling for Ukrainian territories under his control to be taken under the “NATO umbrella”. The head of MI6 has warned that abandoning Ukraine would compromise British, European, and US security, urging continued support for Kyiv from the incoming US administration.
In response to the ongoing conflict, Ukraine has appointed a new commander for its land forces, Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi. Russia launched a drone attack on Ukraine, killing one person and injuring eight others, while also seizing the village of Rozdolne in southern Ukraine. Russia claims to have downed 47 attack drones fired by Ukraine, while also suffering retaliation in the form of missile strikes on its own territory.
French President Emmanuel Macron has pledged intensive support to Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion, condemning Russia’s indiscriminate strikes on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure. Ukrainian authorities have announced the return of over 500 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers killed in combat, while Russia sentenced Alexei Gorinov, the first person to speak out against Moscow’s military offensive in Ukraine, to an additional three years in prison.
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