Russia claims to have foiled Ukraine attack on facilities in Crimea Russia’s defence ministry on Thursday said its forces had foiled a Ukrainian attack on Russian facilities in Crimea and had destroyed 10 Ukrainian missiles over the peninsula. Ukraine has staged a string of damaging attacks on Russian-annexed Crimea and the bridge linking it to Russia in the course of the 22-month war, Reuters reports. Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv has demanded that Moscow hand it back. Summary It is just after 6pm in Kyiv. Here is a summary for the main events from today: Russia’s defence ministry on Thursday said its forces had foiled a Ukrainian attack on Russian facilities in Crimea and had destroyed 10 Ukrainian missiles over the peninsula. Ukraine attacked a Russian military unit near Yevpatoria in Russian-occupied Crimea on Thursday, Ukrainian air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said. On Telegram, he said: “Thanks to the air force pilots and everyone who planned the operation for perfect combat work.” Russian hackers were inside Ukrainian telecoms company Kyivstar’s system from at least May last year in a cyber-attack that should serve as a “big warning” to the west, Ukraine’s cyber spy chief told Reuters. Illia Vitiuk, head of the Security Service of Ukraine’s (SBU) cybersecurity department, disclosed details about the hack in an interview with Reuters. Polish farmers blockaded the Medyka border crossing with Ukraine on Thursday, private broadcaster Polsat News reported, resuming a protest intended to secure government subsidies for corn and prevent tax increases. The Nato chief, Jens Stoltenberg, will convene a meeting between Nato diplomats and officials from Ukraine on 10 January, after a recent wave of heavy Russian airstrikes on the country, the transatlantic defence alliance said on Thursday. A missile strike last week killed 32 people in Kyiv, authorities said Thursday, raising the toll of the deadliest attack on the Ukrainian capital since the war began. The strike took place on 29 December. Russia is planning to buy short-range ballistic missiles from Iran, a step that would enhance Moscow’s ability to target Ukraine’s infrastructure, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing US officials. One civilian was killed and eight wounded on Thursday in a Russian missile strike on Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine, damaging energy company buildings and causing power and water supply cuts, the regional governor said. Vladimir Putin has issued a decree allowing foreign nationals who fight for Russia in Ukraine to obtain Russian citizenship for themselves and their families. Seventeen Ukrainian journalists imprisoned in the occupied territories have been added to the international list of persecuted journalists whose release is demanded by the European Federation of Journalists, the former deputy prosecutor general of Ukraine said. Nuclear inspectors have been denied access to the main halls of reactors one, two and six at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia power station in Ukraine. Rafael Grossi, director general of the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency, said inspectors at the plant had for two weeks had no access and were yet to receive 2024 maintenance plans for the plant. Russia and Ukraine have exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the biggest single release of captives since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukrainian authorities said 230 Ukrainian prisoners of war returned home in the first exchange in almost five months. Russia’s defence ministry said 248 Russian servicemen were freed under the deal sponsored by the United Arab Emirates. Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for restoration, said a family returning from abroad had become the first to conclude a property purchase agreement under a compensation scheme for destroyed housing. “We want those Ukrainians who need it to feel confident applying for governmental support toward repairing houses or buying new property. Especially if this will let them come back to Ukraine from abroad as did this first family.” The house was in Bucha, Kubrakov said. The Polish foreign minister has called on allies to deliver long-range missiles to Ukraine to help Kyiv target Russian “launch sites and command centres”. The Nato support and procurement agency said it would support a group of countries with a contract for up to 1,000 Patriot guidance enhanced missiles. Polish farmers would resume their blockade at a border crossing with Ukraine, Reuters reported. “I will try to convince carriers not to use blockades as a method of defending their interests. We will do everything to effectively protect their interests,” said the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk. Norway will send two F-16 fighter jets to Denmark to contribute to the training of Ukrainian pilots, the Norwegian defence minister has said. Thank you for following along. Our live updates will be back tomorrow and you can find more coverage here in the meantime. Ukraine hit Russian military unit in Crimea, air force commander says Ukraine attacked a Russian military unit near Yevpatoria in Russian-occupied Crimea on Thursday, Ukrainian air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said. On Telegram, he said: Thanks to the air force pilots and everyone who planned the operation for perfect combat work. He was referring to a screenshot from local media saying the unit came under attack, Reuters reports. Russia’s defence ministry earlier said its forces had foiled the Ukrainian attack. The Estonian foreign ministry on Thursday said Russia would close a key border checkpoint to road traffic for two years citing renovation works as the reason behind the move. The authorities in Tallinn said they had received an official note from Russia saying the Narva-Ivangorod crossing would close on 1 February, AFP reports. The foreign minister, Margus Tsahkna, said: According to the note, the renovation works are planned to last until the end of 2025. We’ll see what really happens. From our side, we’ll continue our usual business at the border. The crossing – which links Narva, Estonia’s third largest city, and its Russian neighbour Ivangorod – will remain open to pedestrians. A former Soviet republic and now a staunch Ukraine supporter, Estonia and Russia share a 333km (207-mile) border with five crossings left open once the Narva checkpoint closes. In November 2023, Estonia warned its citizens against “any travel” to Russia, saying Tallinn might temporarily close the border with its eastern neighbour on migrant influx concerns. Seventeen Ukrainian journalists imprisoned in the occupied territories have been added to the international list of persecuted journalists whose release is demanded by the European Federation of Journalists, the former deputy prosecutor general of Ukraine said. Gyunduz Mamedov added: “Crimes against journalists in the occupied territories have signs of being systematic.” Russian gas transit through Ukraine in 2023 was down by 28.4% compared with the previous year, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported, citing data from Ukraine’s gas operator. The total transit of Russian gas in 2023 accounted for 14.65bn cubic meters, Reuters reports. Russia claims to have foiled Ukraine attack on facilities in Crimea Russia’s defence ministry on Thursday said its forces had foiled a Ukrainian attack on Russian facilities in Crimea and had destroyed 10 Ukrainian missiles over the peninsula. Ukraine has staged a string of damaging attacks on Russian-annexed Crimea and the bridge linking it to Russia in the course of the 22-month war, Reuters reports. Russia seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv has demanded that Moscow hand it back. A Ukrainian military doctor has become engaged to a soldier she served with, their commander has said, a day after she was released from nearly two years of captivity in Russia. The couple were reunited when Ukraine and Russia exchanged more than 200 soldiers each in the biggest prisoner swap of the war on Wednesday. Video on social media showed ex-prisoner of war Galyna Fedychyn kissing her fiance Mykola Gritsenyak after he proposed to her. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) has published a video it says shows a Russian Su-34 fighter jet being set on fire at an airbase deep inside Russia. HUR did not claim the sabotage, adding “the causes of the plane’s ignition are being determined”. The multimillion dollar jet was reported to be at the Shagol airbase in Chelyabinsk, which is hundreds of miles from Ukraine’s borders. Andriy Kostin, prosecutor general of Ukraine, visited the sites of Russia’s attacks on civilian infrastructure in the Kharkiv region with international criminal court to investigate potential war crimes since Russia invaded almost two years ago. In a tweet, he said: We are closely cooperating with the ICC in investigating the facts of civilian killings, torture, deprivation of liberty, sexual violence, and shelling of critical civilian infrastructure. We also visited the village of Hroza. On 5 October 2023, a missile strike from an Iskander missile targeted a cafe in the village, resulting in the tragic loss of 59 lives – nearly a quarter of Hroza’s population. The investigation has already identified those who directed the enemy fire. We are working to identify the Russian servicemen who executed this attack and the officers who gave this criminal order. Our commitment to restoring justice is unwavering, and I am grateful for all the support in these efforts. Here are some more images from the news wires. Vladimir Putin has issued a decree allowing foreign nationals who fight for Russia in Ukraine to obtain Russian citizenship for themselves and their families. The order on Thursday said people who had signed contracts during what Moscow calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine could apply to get Russian passports for themselves and their spouses, children and parents. They must provide documents showing they signed up for a minimum of one year, Reuters reports. Those eligible include people who have signed contracts with the regular armed forces or other “military formations” – a description that could apply to groups such as the Wagner mercenary organisation. The measure appeared to be aimed at creating additional incentives for foreigners with military experience to apply to join Russian ranks. Moscow does not publish data on the number of foreigners fighting on its side in Ukraine. However, Reuters has reported previously on Cubans who signed up for the military in return for bonuses equivalent to more than 100 times the average Cuban monthly salary, and three Africans recruited by Wagner, of whom two were killed in action.