Putin’s war in Ukraine will not end in 2023 despite Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hopeful and inspiring message to Ukrainians, a native journalist has told GB News.
Waves of Russian drones targeted infrastructure in Ukraine's capital and surrounding areas on Monday, damaging energy facilities and causing some power outages, officials said, as Russia extended its bombardment into the second day of 2023.
Ukraine’s air force said that its air defence systems destroyed all of Russia's 39 Iranian-made Shahed drones that targeted Ukraine overnight in what it said was a “massive attack”.
UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SER
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Ukrainians for showing gratitude to the troops and one another and said Russia's efforts would prove useless.
"Drones, missiles, everything else will not help them," he said of the Russians. "Because we stand united. They are united only by fear."
But in a stern New Year's speech, Russian President Vladimir Putin signalled no let-up in his assault on Ukraine.
Ukraine's air defence systems worked through the night to bring down incoming drones and to warn communities of the approaching danger.
"It is loud in the region and in the capital: night drone attacks," Kyiv Governor Oleksiy Kuleba said.
"Russians launched several waves of Shahed drones. Targeting critical infrastructure facilities. Air defence is at work," he said on the Telegram messaging app.
Journalist Mircea Barbu has told GB News that there are “no signs of peace” heading in to 2023.
“We’ve been having a New Year that was dominated by attacks and drones, but also by an inspiring speech by Volodymyr Zelenskyy who managed to somehow inspire people to withstand the attacks that happened in the last few days.
“We don’t see an immediate end to the conflict.
“Both sides don’t send any signals that there’s room for negotiation at the moment. On one hand what we see from the Ukrainian side is that everyone is united behind President Zelenskyy and everyone wants to see all territorial integrity regained within this conflict. We have a huge support from western countries, from the international community, to do so.
"On the other hand, the Russians are sending military signals that they’re getting ready to attack perhaps from Belarus as we’ve seen, and also to strengthen the front in Donbas.
“And, on top of that, we’ve been having these ongoing attacks not only in Kyiv, but on Christmas Day we had it in Kherson where dozens of people lost their lives. And now even on the border in Poland, in western Ukraine, we had attacks the other.
“No signs of peace, unfortunately.”
GB News
Kyiv's police chief, Andrii Nebytov, posted a photo on the Telegram app, showing what was described as a piece of a drone used in an attack on the capital, with a handwritten sign on it in Russian reading "Happy New Year".
"This wreckage is not at the front, where fierce battles are taking place, this is here, on a sports grounds, where children play," Nebytov said.
Russia has flattened Ukrainian cities and killed thousands of civilians since Putin ordered his invasion in February, saying Ukraine was an artificial state whose pro-Western outlook threatened Russia's security.
Russia, which denies targeting civilians, has since claimed to have annexed about a fifth of Ukraine.
Ukraine has fought back with Western military support, driving Russian forces from more than half the territory they seized. In recent weeks, the front lines have been largely static, with thousands of soldiers dying in intense warfare.
Russia says its aerial strikes aim to reduce Ukraine's ability to fight; Kyiv says they have no military purpose and are intended to hurt civilians, a war crime.