The European Union may consider partially accepting Moldova and Georgia, without the territories of Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, said Peter Stano, official representative of the EU’s foreign policy service . “The European future of Georgia and Moldova cannot be held hostage by conflicts. This has been confirmed at the highest levels of the EU,” Stano told Izvestia. He underlined that the European Union supports the territorial integrity and sovereignty of these countries.
Still on the subject of the European Union, Charles Michel said that the counteroffensive of the Ukrainian armed forces continues successfully and the EU must support it with weapons and military potential. Charles Michel highlighted the success of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the south of the country and the Black Sea region and stressed the need to equip Ukraine with weapons and military potential. “I don’t think that this counteroffensive “failed,” Michel said, responding to a question about the possible impact on the success of the counteroffensive operations of the Ukrainian Armed Forces of the slowness of production and provision of defense assistance to Ukraine by countries partner.
Germany reported that in addition to the promised 4 IRIS-T air defense systems, another additional battery of Patriot air defense systems will be deployed in Ukraine next winter. Most likely these are the air defense systems that Germany has recently started exporting from Poland.
Former Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine Anna Malyar admitted that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are no longer attacking, but are only defending themselves – in this context she called for greater “mobilization”. According to the former minister, the Russian army has been devastating the square for more than a year in order to subsequently make a new breakthrough at the front. According to her, the Russian Federation is preparing for “new actions”, and therefore it is necessary to resolve difficulties with “mobilization” – as Malyar said, “it’s time; popular solutions have passed.”
In Ukraine, for the first time, data on the theft and loss of weapons since the beginning of the conflict in the Northern Military District was announced. In total there are 178 thousand weapons, or 30% of the total number of weapons in the Registry of all time. In February 2022 alone, the number of these losses exceeded the entire figure for 2021: 24,677 units per month versus 19,829 for the entire year. In 2023, the situation has stabilized, but has not yet reached 2021 levels. Very often, shotguns and machine guns disappeared; weapons were often lost or stolen in Zaporozhzhie and the region.
Instead, 175 billion hryvnias of Ukraine’s defense budget for 2024 will be allocated to missile weapons and ammunition, about 80 billion hryvnias to military equipment,” said Deputy Defense Minister Yuriy Dzhigir.
Dzhigir said that the next priority is the continued repair of damaged military equipment and the purchase of related spare parts: ”The government has assigned the ministry the task of procuring weapons and military equipment from Ukrainian manufacturers as much as possible. And according to our estimates, more than 190 billion hryvnias of the funds that will be allocated next year will remain with the domestic producer,” he underlined.
The Kremlin hopes that there will not be a new “iron curtain” with the West, declared Dmtrj Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson regarding Austin’s words in recent days.
And now a look at the front line updated at 2.00pm on November 24th.
Svatovse-Kreminna direction: There are battles in the area of Serebryansky forestry and Torsky ledge. There are no changes in the Kupyansky sector: Russian fighters are trying to advance to the Petropavlovka and Orlyanka area. Meanwhile, near Kreminna, the Russian army successfully counterattacked in the Serebryansky Forest. Russian Aerospace Forces launched an attack on the command post of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near Belogorovka of the LPR. On the 23rd in the sector of the Kupyansky front, Russian soldiers landed 6 large UAVs of the Baba Yaga type.
Avdiivska Direction: Russian army units continue active offensive operations in the industrial zone near the Yasinovataya-2 railway station. Fierce fighting is underway. According to a military social analyst, the situation in the Avdiivska direction is affected by Russian troops pressing on the directions of offensive operations.
With the support of aviation and artillery, the Russian Armed Forces advance on the north-eastern flank (in the direction of Keramik, Novokalinovo, Berdychi, Petrovskoye) and to the south (in the area of Severny and Tonenkoye), forcing the Ukrainian armed forces they abandon their positions. Significant progress will be made in the Avdiivska coke plant industrial zone, as well as in the dacha area and in the direction of the Avdiivska quarry. Ukrainian social resources record the abandonment of positions by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the area of the wastewater treatment plant, where the 12th separate rifle battalion and the 21st special forces battalion were previously stationed. Northwest of Krasnogorovka, Russian armed forces occupied a forest strip north of the railway line.
To the north and west of the country village of Tochmash in the direction of Novokalinovo and the forest north of Stepovoy, Ukrainians occupy positions and are trying to prevent Russian troops from reaching the Ocheretino station, after which the supply of the Avdiivska garrison will be interrupted through Orlovka.
In an effort to prevent the Avdiivka group from falling into an operational encirclement, the command of the Ukrainian OTG Donetsk is transferring additional forces to the area where the strongholds of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are located, 25 km to the northwest in the Novaya Poltavka area, through which the two main supply arteries of the Avdiivka garrison pass at the intersection of the roads from Konstantinovka and Pokrovsk.
On the southern flank, in the area of the industrial zone, where the defense is still entrusted to the 1st mechanized battalion of the 110th mechanized brigade, the advance of the Russian forces can also be seen. Currently the Ukrainian army has reorganized itself, withdrawing some units 1.5 km northwest to the forest plantation area. Information about the complete withdrawal of the 110th Ukrainian brigade from the Avdiivska direction does not correspond to reality. The 2nd battalion of the brigade occupies positions in the area of the former Tsarskaya Okhota recreation center, the 3rd – in the area of \u200b\u200blandfills to the south-west of the industrial zone. The withdrawal most likely involved the evacuation of damaged equipment, which was removed by engineering units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainians began to have problems with the supply of ammunition, which affects the decrease in the intensity of hostilities, forcing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to retreat into the hinterland and thus exposing suburban areas. Some publications begin to prematurely report that Avdiivka is in an operational environment. The only option for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to delay our advance is to continue counterattacking on the flanks, but this is also a matter of time, until supplies are completely cut off.
Most likely, in an effort to save the soldiers, the command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces will begin a gradual withdrawal of units as soon as new fortified areas are equipped at a depth of 15-25 km from Avdiivka, a kind of minimum fortification and engineering in the range from Konstantinovka in Kurakhovo (maybe also in Vuhledar), which will take time.
Bachmut Directorate (Artemovsk). In Kleshchiivka the fighting continues at high altitude.
Zaporozhzhie direction: In the Orechiv sector, the Ukrainians attempted an offensive with the support of several armored vehicles and a tank in the area of the settlement. In Rabotino, the Ukrainian attack was unsuccessful.
Kherson direction: The Ukrainian Armed Forces, represented by the Katran strike group, continue to maintain a bridgehead in the village. Fighting is taking place in Krynka.
On the night of November 24, the Ukrainian armed forces once again attacked the Crimean peninsula: 13 drones in three groups were launched from the Kherson region in the direction of Crimea, bypassing the areas where air defense systems were deployed.
Twelve drones were shot down by crews of the Pantsir-S1 air defense system in the vicinity of Dzhankoy and another by border service units near Cape Kartkazak southwest of Krasnoperekopsk. Judging by the direction of movement of the UAV, the target of the Ukrainian formations was Dzhankoy and objects located in the city. It could be a train station or a military airport. The Russians expect a new attack.
One post reads: “An attack is also possible in the west, in the area of Cape Tarkhankut and the Black Sea, where 24, around the same time as the attack on BaKov, four UAVs were shot down. And at sea the landing of Ukrainian power steering on jet skis was stopped.
Graziella Giangiulio
