Putin Refused To Withdraw Troops By Christmas

Putin rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s call to withdraw its troops before Christmas on Tuesday, according to the media. Zelensky addressed before the G7 leaders on Monday this week, saying that the occupiers must leave on Christmas Day and that he saw no reason why Russia should not do it. The answer from Moscow will show what they really want: further confrontation with the world or an end to the aggression.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, however, rejected Zelensky’s suggestion on Tuesday and said that Ukraine must accept “new realities,” regarding annexed territory. Peskov also denied accusations from Ukraine’s state nuclear power company that Russia is placing heavy weapons at the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russian forces have launched renewed strikes with a fresh batch of Iranian-supplied drones. Britain has sanctioned several Russian individuals linked to drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian civilian targets. Vladimir Putin has canceled his yearly end-of-year press conference for the first time in a decade. The British Ministry of Defense suggested the cancellation was due to growing discontent with the war in Ukraine.