Europe Ukraine Allocates 44 Billion Euros for Defense, EU Parliament Calls for Tougher Sanctions on Russia NonoNovember 10, 2023020 views The Ukrainian government predicts that an international peace summit on the Russia-Ukraine war may be held in February 2024. Kyiv to Spend 44 Billion Euros on Defense Ukraine will allocate nearly half of its budget for defense and security next year. Russian President Putin advocates for stronger military cooperation in Kazakhstan. Thursday’s developments can be read below. Kyiv: Peace Summit Likely to be in February According to the government in Kyiv, an international peace summit on the war between Russia and Ukraine may now take place in February. At the end of November or the beginning of December, there will likely be a fourth meeting of national security advisors, according to a letter from Presidential Advisor Ihor Chovka. “And the global meeting could take place in February 2024.” Ukraine originally planned to hold the summit at the end of this year. However, the conflict between Israel and the militant Islamist Hamas has diverted some of the global attention. Ukraine Border: Long Queue due to Polish Protest Due to an ongoing protest by Polish transport companies, thousands of vehicles are stuck at the Polish-Ukrainian border. “Currently, more than 20,000 vehicles are blocked on both sides,” said Ukrainian Minister for Reconstruction Oleksandr Kubrakov. Trucks are mainly affected. The number of private vehicles affected was not disclosed by the Ukrainian side. Ukraine respects the right to protest and is ready to solve the problem collectively, Kubrakov said. However, he also emphasized that the blockade by Polish demonstrators disrupts logistic routes, which has already had an impact on the economies of Ukraine and the EU. Local Polish police told AFP news agency that, for example, around 500 trucks are in a 40-kilometer queue at the Hrebenne-Rawa Ruska border crossing. The waiting time for crossing the border is approximately 160 hours. EU Parliament Concerned about Sanctions Loopholes against Russia The European Parliament is calling for stricter enforcement of EU penalties against Russia. In a resolution, the MEPs urged EU member states to close loopholes and impose further restrictions. A new package of sanctions against Russia for the attack on Ukraine is currently being worked on. According to the MEPs, Russia is able to bypass measures such as the price ceiling for oil. The imports of oil products from countries like India, produced with Russian oil, have significantly increased – a backdoor for the Kremlin. Ukraine to Spend 44 Billion Euros on Defense Ukraine will allocate nearly half of its state budget for defense and security next year. The Parliament approved the corresponding bill. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance, approximately 44 billion euros will be allocated for defense next year, similar to the current year. The amount allocated for defense and security in 2024 is more than the combined expenditures for education, social issues, and healthcare, accounting for nearly half of the total planned expenditures of the country attacked by Russia last year. European Parliament Calls for Import Ban on Russian Liquefied Natural Gas The European Parliament has called for an import embargo on Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG). The MEPs urged member states to halt imports of liquefied gas (LPG) and autogas from Russia. EU member states are currently preparing the twelfth package of sanctions against Russia since the start of the aggression against Ukraine in February 2022. The European Union remains one of the largest consumers of fossil fuels from Russia, criticized the Parliament in its non-binding resolution. This is due to continued imports of pipeline gas and liquefied gas, as well as numerous exceptions to the import embargo on crude oil and oil products. The Parliament also called for a halt to Russian aluminum imports into the EU. Removing the lightweight metal from the previous eleven rounds of sanctions against Russia was “wrong,” emphasized CDU Member of the European Parliament Dennis Radtke. On average, around 370 million euros flow into Russia each month for the import of metals from Germany, he said. Diplomats say that EU member states could consider the new round of sanctions next week. The twelfth package includes entry and asset freezes for about a hundred more individuals, as well as “strict measures against third-country companies circumventing the sanctions,” as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in Kyiv. Medvedev: Russian Military Recruits 410,000 Volunteers According to Dmitry Medvedev, the Deputy Secretary of the Security Council and former President, the Russian military has recruited 410,000 volunteers so far this year. He stated that there is a steady influx of people wanting to join the armed forces. The current combat situation in Ukraine allows Russia to spend more time on training newly recruited soldiers, which is in contrast to Ukraine, which quickly deploys new recruits to the frontlines. Deaths and Injuries in Russian Attacks in Ukraine There have been deaths and injuries in several Ukrainian regions as a result of Russian attacks. In the southern city of Kherson, a civilian was killed and three others were injured in Russian shelling of a residential area, according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. The city is separated from Russian-occupied territory by the Dnipro River. According to the Ukrainian Presidential Office, three more civilians were killed in Russian attacks the previous day. In the Donetsk region, the Russian army targeted eleven cities and villages, according to Ukrainian reports. Two people were killed in Torez, and a civilian was injured in Chasiv Yar. Russia Sentences Ukrainian Prisoner of War to 19 Years in Prison A Russian military court has sentenced a Ukrainian prisoner of war to 19 years in a labor camp. According to reports from both Russian and Ukrainian media, the court accused the marine infantryman of shooting a civilian near the now-occupied Ukrainian port city of Mariupol in March 2022 during a check. The man’s lawyers, who fell into Russian captivity in April 2022, reportedly plan to appeal against the Russian verdict. While the Ukrainian soldier admitted to shooting a man in a village near Mariupol shortly after the start of the Russian aggression, he emphasized that the man had behaved suspiciously beforehand. Currently, trials are taking place in Russia against dozens of other Ukrainian prisoners of war. In the past, Kyiv has referred to Russian proceedings against members of the Azov Battalion, also fighting in Mariupol, as show trials. Pistorius: Germany Should Become the “Backbone” of European Security German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius wants Germany to become the “backbone” of European security. Pistorius stated that the threat situation in Europe has fundamentally changed with the Russian aggression against Ukraine during the presentation of the Defense Policy Guidelines for the Bundeswehr. “As the most populous and economically strong country in the center of Europe, Germany must be the backbone of deterrence and collective defense in Europe,” emphasized the SPD politician. Stoltenberg Calls for Continued Support for Ukraine NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has called on alliance partners to maintain their military support for Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggressors. “We must continue to provide the Ukrainians with the weapons they need to stay strong on the battlefield so that they can be strong at the negotiating table tomorrow,” he said ahead of a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. Stoltenberg praised Germany for being the second-largest supporter of Ukraine after the United States, specifically mentioning the delivery of infantry and combat tanks, as well as air defense systems. “These contributions help Ukraine defend its freedom and help keep Europe safe.” Kremlin: Putin to Hold Large Press Conference Again After a hiatus last year due to the war, Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a large press conference in December, according to the Kremlin. The press conference, where journalists can ask questions, will be combined with the television show “Direct Line,” where citizens can address their problems, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to the Interfax news agency. He did not provide a specific date, but December 19 has already been circulating on social media. The media event is scheduled prior to the presidential election in March, in which Putin’s candidacy and re-election are expected. Putin cancelled the press conference last December for the first time in ten years due to the war against Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022. Observers at the time believed that Putin wanted to avoid questions from international journalists. US Again Accuses North Korea of Military Shipments to Russia During a visit to South Korea, US President Joe Biden once again criticized alleged shipments of military equipment from North Korea to Russia. The US, as well as South Korea’s military and intelligence agencies, suspect that Russia may have received up to one million artillery shells and other military equipment from North Korea since early August, which it is using in its war against Ukraine. The Kremlin denies sourcing military goods from North Korea. Kuleba Rejects Calls for Negotiations Against the backdrop of the stalemate in the war, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has rejected all demands for negotiations with Russia. “Those who claim that Ukraine should now negotiate with Russia are either misinformed or misleading,” Kuleba declared on the X social network, formerly known as Twitter. He added that Ukraine must not “fall into this trap” and would not do so. Kuleba’s statement was in response to reports from Western media suggesting that some of Kyiv’s allies were increasingly raising the question of peace talks with Russia in light of the deadlock at the front. Deaths in Ukrainian Attack on Skadovsk Five people were killed in a rocket attack by Ukrainian forces on the city of Skadovsk in the Russian-controlled part of the Ukrainian region of Kherson, according to preliminary information reported by the TASS news agency. The agency cited the emergency ministry deployed by Russia in the Kherson region. London: War Weakens Russian Homeland Defense According to British military experts, the war in Ukraine is weakening Russia’s ability to protect its vast territory. This is stated in the daily intelligence report on the war in Ukraine by the Ministry of Defence in London. Moscow is likely to relocate SA-21 (SAM) air defense missile systems from remote areas to compensate for losses in Ukraine. These missiles are capable of hitting targets up to 400 kilometers away. Removing them from strategically important locations will undoubtedly weaken Russia’s ability to defend against aerial threats on the outskirts of the country, the British statement further emphasized. AfD argues EU accession criteria not met The AfD parliamentary group in the Bundestag criticizes the decision of the EU Commission to endorse accession negotiations with Ukraine. Petr Bystron, the group’s foreign policy spokesman, believes that the conditions for this are by no means met. “The country is at war, even before the war it had serious deficits in democracy and was one of the most corrupt countries in the world,” he writes in a statement published on the AfD parliamentary group’s website. Bystron described the “announcement” by the EU as fundamentally incorrect. Ukraine: Russian forces intensify siege of Avdiivka Russian forces, reinforced by reservists, are intensifying their siege of the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka, according to the Ukrainian military. A spokesperson for Ukraine’s 110th Mechanized Brigade said that Russian forces were concentrating on three sides of the city, speaking on state television. “They have brought about 40,000 men here, along with ammunition of all calibers,” said Anton Kotsukon. The Russian forces are playing “cat and mouse,” deploying a “huge number” of drones while simultaneously using artillery to gain a better understanding of the city’s defensive capabilities. General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, head of the Ukrainian forces in the south of the country, stated that the troops around Avdiivka were maintaining their defense steadfastly. Zelensky prepares government for EU accession negotiations Following the EU Commission’s recommendation to begin accession negotiations with the European Union, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree to prepare for this process. The President’s Office reported that the government would be instructed, among other things, to work on aligning Ukrainian legislation with EU law. “We are approaching the expected steps well-prepared,” Zelensky said in his evening address on Telegram. The EU Commission’s recommendation is conditional. Before the first round of talks, the country, which has been resisting the Russian aggression for more than 20 months, must complete ongoing reforms aimed at better combating corruption, ensuring more minority protection, and reducing the influence of oligarchs. It is believed that this can be accomplished by next March. Zelensky described the evening as a memorable day in Ukrainian history.