PUTIN'S battered forces retreated from parts of the Kherson frontline today, as Russian losses continued to grow.
The Kremlin's troops continued their humiliating retreat from the region, as the army pulled back from towns on the bank of the Dnipro River opposite Kherson city.
Ukrainian military sources confirmed the retreat, saying: "A decrease in the number of Russian soldiers and military equipment is observed in the settlement of Oleshky.
"Enemy troops were withdrawn from certain settlements of the Kherson oblast and dispersed in forest strips along the section of the Oleshky - Hola Prystan highway.”
This comes as Russian losses near 90,000 in just ten months, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence. As of December 1, 2022, Putin's army has seen 89,440, with over 500 coming in the last 24 hours.
Read our Ukraine-Russia live blog below for the latest news...
Kherson left without electricity amid Russian bombing
The recently liberated city of Kherson has reportedly been without electricity this afternoon, reports CNN.
Energy company Khersonoblenergo is "already working to fix the problem."
Outages have also been reported today in Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia.
Russain losses near 90,000 as Ukraine invasion rages on
Russian losses are approaching 90,000 as the war enters its tenth month.
In the last 24 hours, the Kremlin has reportedly lost 560 more soldiers, bringing the total to 89,440.
Ukrainian official calls for stronger sanctions
A top Ukrainian official has called on the EU to hit Russia with more sanctions.
This comes as Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met with EU leadership today.
Taking to Twitter, Mr Kuleba said: “In Łódź, Josep Borrell and I agreed: total war against Ukraine means total support for Ukraine. I thanked the EU for its continued defence assistance and stressed that next EU sanctions should include those hitting Russia’s missile production industry: it must be put to a halt.”
Russia condemns German parliament for declaring Ukraine Soviet-era famine a genocide
Russia said on Thursday the German parliament’s move to recognise the 1932-33 famine in Ukraine as a Soviet-imposed genocide was an anti-Russian provocation and an attempt by Germany to whitewash its Nazi past.
In a decision welcomed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German lawmakers passed a resolution on Wednesday declaring the death by starvation of millions of Ukrainians – the Holodomor – was genocide.
In November 1932, Soviet leader Josef Stalin dispatched police to seize all grain and livestock from newly collectivised Ukrainian farms, including the seed needed to plant the next crop. Millions of Ukrainian peasants starved to death in the following months from what Yale University historian Timothy Snyder calls “clearly premeditated mass murder”.
Ukraine hands 50 prisoners over to Russia in POW exchange
Russia's Defence Ministry said Ukraine had handed over 50 captured Russian service personnel on Thursday in the latest prisoner exchange between the two sides.
Earlier on Thursday, the top Russian-installed official in Ukraine's partly-occupied Donetsk region said Moscow and Kyiv would each hand over 50 prisoners of war.
Russia said it would fly the released prisoners to Moscow for medical checks and rehabilitation.
Switzerland freezes nearly $8bn in Russian assets
Switzerland said confirmed that it has frozen a total of 7.5 billion Swiss francs (£6.5billion) in Russian assets to date.
The move is in connection with the sanctions imposed over Moscow's war in Ukraine.
The amount, which has been fluctuating for months, is nearly one billion francs more than the figure provided by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) in July.
Switzerland, a favoured destination for wealthy Russians and their assets, has also seen 15 Russian properties seized, it said.
Erwin Bollinger, in charge of bilateral economic relations at SECO, stressed to reporters that the amount frozen at any given time does not necessarily "reflect the efficacy of the sanctions."
That is because Swiss authorities seeking to implement the string of sanctions on Russia sometimes freeze assets as a precautionary measure, which may be released again once clarifications have been completed.
EU praises Irish citizens for taking in Ukrainian refugees
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has thanked the Irish people for their "outstanding" support in welcoming Ukrainian refugees.
Speaking on the steps of Government Buildings in Dublin, Ms von der Leyen said: "I want to personally thank you (Micheal Martin) for the excellent cooperation we had in the last two and a half years.
"These were very eventful years indeed. As you said, first of all the pandemic.
"You have steered very skilfully, Ireland through the pandemic and out of the pandemic, and I highly appreciate how you've always been a strong supporter of our vaccine strategy.
"You have presented an excellent national recovery resilience plan and the next generation EU where I had the honour and pleasure to be here to present it together with you.
"Now, indeed, we are in difficult times because Russia unleashed an atrocious war against Ukraine.
"First and foremost, I want to thank the Irish people, for opening their hearts and their homes to Ukrainian refugee.
"This is outstanding. I want to thank you for the strong support for Ukraine to become a candidate Member of the European Union."
Air raid warning issued over all Ukraine say officials
Air raid alerts were issued across all of Ukraine on Thursday following warnings by Ukrainian officials that Russia was preparing a new wave of missile and drone strikes.
"An overall air raid alert is in place in Ukraine. Go to shelters," country's border service wrote on Telegram messaging app.
Ukraine sacks engineer accused of collaborating at occupied nuclear plant
Ukraine sacked a top engineer at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Thursday, accusing him of collaborating with Russian forces, and urged other Ukrainian staff at the plant to remain loyal to Kyiv.
The head of state nuclear energy firm Energoatom made the appeal a day after Russia said it had promoted Ukrainian engineer Yuriy Chernichuk to serve as director of the vast plant in southeastern Ukraine.
"Instead of taking all efforts to liberate the station as fast as possible, he decided to help the Russian occupiers legalise its criminal seizure and is now inciting other atomic workers to do this," Energoatom chief Petro Kotin said.
Chernichuk could not immediately be reached for comment.
Moscow said in October it was putting Europe's largest nuclear power plant under the control of Russian nuclear authorities. Kyiv says the move is illegal.
"The only worthy option is to hold on!" Kotin told nuclear workers in a statement on the Telegram messaging app. "Hold on and don't sell your soul to the devil - don't sign pathetic 'contracts' with criminal Rosatom and affiliated firms."
Installed Donetsk official claims Ukraine & Russia to swap 50 PoWs in prisoner exchange today
The top Russian-installed official in Ukraine's partly occupied Donetsk region said on Thursday that Moscow and Kyiv would each hand over 50 prisoners of war in the latest exchange between the two sides.
In a post on his Telegram channel, Denis Pushilin said the exchange would take place later today.
Lavrov says Ukraine war affects prospects for nuclear talks
Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov claims Moscow is willing to play a responsible part in nuclear arms control.
However, he argued it is "impossible to discuss nuclear stability" while ignoring Western involvement in the war in Ukraine.
"It is crystal clear that it is impossible to discuss strategic stability today while ignoring everything that is happening in Ukraine.
"Because the goal in Ukraine has been declared - not to save Ukrainian democracy, but to defeat Russia on the battlefield, or even destroy Russia," he said.
Ukraine's Western allies say they are arming Kyiv to help it defend itself against Russian aggression, rejecting Russia's assertions that they are exploiting Ukraine as part of a strategy to weaken and defeat Russia or even break it up.
Lavrov said Moscow had expressed willingness in the past to discuss extending its New START nuclear arms treaty with Washington to take account of its latest hypersonic weapons.
MoD map reveals latest Russian attacks and locations
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) tweeted: "The illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is continuing.
"The map below is the latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 01 December 2022."
Take a look at the ministry's map in the tweet below.
Lithuania says Russia sanctions will work in medium and long term
The European Union needs patience as it sanctions Russia, as most measures will only have an impact in the medium and long term, Lithuania's prime minister said in an interview at the Reuters NEXT conference on Thursday.
"My message is - we need to have patience. Because there are no sanctions that can switch Russia off overnight.
"It is not possible, we should not look for this," Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said.
Russia to invest in nuclear weapons infrastructure
Russia yesterday announced it will be investing in “strategic nuclear forces” next year.
“When preparing the list of major construction facilities for 2023, special attention will be paid to construction in the interests of the strategic nuclear forces,” Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said according to Russian state media RIA news agency.
The Kremlin will reportedly develop new military systems at five bases.
UK sanctions Russian officials who enlisted criminals to fight in Ukraine
Senior Russian prison officials who helped to enlist convicted criminals to fight in Ukraine have been targeted in the latest round of UK sanctions, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has said.
Arkady Gostev (pictured below), director of the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, and Dmitry Bezrukikh, head of the Federal Punishment Service of the Rostov region, are among 22 officials to be made the subject of asset freezes and travel bans.
The FCDO said the two men are reported to have worked closely with Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the notorious Wagner Group of mercenaries, which has been linked with some of the worst atrocities in the conflict, to fill its ranks with inmates from Russia's jails.
Prisoners - including murderers and sex offenders - were offered pardons from President Vladimir Putin if they agreed to sign up to fight in Ukraine.
Sanctions have also been imposed on officials associated with the partial mobilisation of Russian reservists, including deputy prime minister Denis Valentinovich Manturov, who is responsible for equipping the troops.
Japan tells China & Russia it has 'severe concerns' over joint air patrols
Japan has told China and Russia it has "severe concerns" over their frequent joint air force activities around Japan's territory, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Thursday.
"We will closely monitor the increasing cooperation between the two countries with a sense of concern," Matsuno, Japan's top government spokesperson, told a regular press conference, adding that Japan would "decisively protect" its territories.
The Russian defence ministry on Wednesday announced its military and Chinese counterpart conducted joint patrols of strategic warplanes over the Sea of Japan and East China Sea
Russia says Germany 'is trying to justify its own guilt'
Russia on Thursday rejected the claim that this was a genocide and said millions of people across other parts of the Soviet Union, including in Russia, also suffered.
"There is another attempt to justify and push forward a campaign - being planted in Ukraine and sponsored by the West - to demonise Russia and to pit ethnic Ukrainians against Russians," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.
"The Germans are trying to rewrite their history ... downplay their own guilt and muddy the memory of the unprecedented nature of the countless crimes committed by Nazi Germany during World War Two," it added.
Russia condemns German parliament for declaring Ukraine Soviet-era famine a genocide
Russia said on Thursday the German parliament's move to recognise the 1932-33 famine in Ukraine as a Soviet-imposed genocide was an anti-Russian provocation and an attempt by Germany to whitewash its Nazi past.
In a decision welcomed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German lawmakers passed a resolution on Wednesday declaring the death by starvation of millions of Ukrainians - the Holodomor - was genocide.
In November 1932, Soviet leader Josef Stalin dispatched police to seize all grain and livestock from newly collectivised Ukrainian farms, including the seed needed to plant the next crop. Millions of Ukrainian peasants starved to death in the following months from what Yale University historian Timothy Snyder calls "clearly premeditated mass murder".
Russian losses continue to mount as fighting rages on
According to Ukrainian military sources, Russian losses have reached 88,880 as of November 30.
This makes a further 500 losses for Putin’s forces.
Who controls what in Ukraine?
The Ministry of Defence has once again shared a look at the battlefield in Ukraine.
Take a look at the current situation below.
EU to set up court targetting Russian war crimes
Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission’s president, shared a video address on Twitter yesterday where the EU declared it will set up a “specialised” court to try Russian war crimes.
In the video, she said: “Russia must pay for its horrific crimes, including for its crime of aggression against a sovereign state. This is why, while continuing to support the international criminal court, we are proposing to set up a specialised court backed by the United Nations to investigate and prosecute Russia’s crime of aggression.
“We are ready to start working with the international community to get the broadest international support possible for this specialised court.
“Russia must also pay financially for the devastation that it has caused. The damage suffered by Ukraine is estimated at €600bn. Russia and its oligarchs have to compensate Ukraine for its damage and for the costs for rebuilding the country.”
Putin extends powers to crush opposition voices
According to the latest intel released by the British Ministry of Defence, Putin has pushed through legislation giving him greater powers to crush opposition in Russia.
The statement reads: “In July 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved amendments to the 2012 ‘Foreign Agents Law’, which has been widely used to repress opponents of the regime. The new measures are scheduled to come into force on 01 December 2022.
“The 2012 law defined ‘foreign agents’ as individuals or organisations who have received financial support from abroad. The amendments will extend the definition to those which are merely under undefined ‘influence or pressure’ of foreign actors.
“The Ministry of Justice will also have the power to publish the personal details and addresses of designated ‘foreign agents’, almost certainly placing them at risk of harassment.
“The new laws will further extend the repressive powers available to the Russian state. This continues a trend since Putin returned to the presidency in 2012, but which has dramatically accelerated since the invasion of Ukraine.
“The Kremlin is likely acting pre-emptively to prevent greater domestic dissent as the conflict remains unresolved and increasingly impacts Russians’ everyday lives.”
Russia attempting to ‘freeze the Ukrainians into submission’ – James Cleverly
Speaking ahead of NATO’s meeting on Tuesday, the UK’s Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, accused Russia of attempting to “freeze Ukrainians into submission” this winter.“
We have seen Vladimir Putin attempting to weaponise energy supplies right from the very start of this conflict,” he said.“
This targeting of civilian infrastructure of energy infrastructure is obviously designed to try and freeze the Ukrainians into submission.”
Top Putin ally becomes Kremlin’s highest-profile resignation since invasion began
One of Putin’s closest allies has resigned his post in the Russian government, becoming the highest-profile official to do so since the invasion of Ukraine began in February.
Alexei Kudrin, who held the role of head of the Audit Chamber, had his resignation approved yesterday and is reportedly set to join Russian technology company Yandex.
Ukraine signs new digital trade agreement with Britain
Ukraine and Britain signed a new digital trade agreement yesterday, giving the under-siege nation access to the UK’s financial services as it looks to rebuild its economy.
The deal was signed in London yesterday by British trade secretary Kemi Badenoch and Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
According to PA Media, Ms Badenoch said: “The landmark digital trade deal agreed today between our two countries paves the way for a new era of modern trade between us.
“This agreement will mean our businesses and governments can collaborate even more and ensure Ukrainians have access to essential goods and services [that] digital trade opens up.”
