Ukraine war latest: Moscow accuses UK spies of trying to provoke attacks on Russian bases in Syria; Zelenskyy blames Russia for plane crash

Ukraine strikes drone depot in Russia

Ukraine says it has struck a storage and maintenance depot for long-range drones in Russia's Oryol region.

Kyiv's military general staff said the attack had "significantly reduced" Moscow's ability to launch mass drone attacks on Ukraine.

In a post on Telegram it said the strike was carried out by Ukraine's air force.

"As a result of the strike, a depot for storage, maintenance and repair of Shahed kamikaze drones, made of several protected concrete structures, was destroyed," it said.

"This military operation has significantly reduced the enemy's potential in terms of conducting air raids of strike drones on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure."

Earlier this morning Ukraine's air force said it had downed 15 out of 16 drones launched by Russia overnight - with the final one disappearing from radars.

Moscow has launched near-daily barrages of dozens of drones into Ukraine over the last few months.

Christmas in Ukraine

Pictures taken over the last few days show Ukrainian servicemen with a military chaplain in body armour near the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region in Ukraine, as well as Russian soldiers battling outside Vuhledar in the Donbas region of Ukraine's east.

Meanwhile pedestrians can be seen walking past Christmas decorations and a bomb shelter in the Black Sea port of Sevastopol in Crimea.

Russia has lost at least 784,200 troops in invasion, Ukraine says

Russia has lost at least 784,200 troops in Ukraine since it invaded the country in February 2022, according to the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces.

It said Moscow had suffered 1,690 casualties over the last 24 hours.

It said Russia had also lost:

• 9,651 tanks;
• 19,970 armoured fighting vehicles;
• 21,408 artillery systems;
• 32,328 vehicles and fuel tanks;
• 1,256 multiple launch rocket systems;
• 1,032 air defence systems;
• 369 aircraft;
• 329 helicopters;
• 21,013 drones;
• 28 ships and boats;
• One submarine.

Why Russia has banned 'childfree propaganda' and is promoting eight-child families

In Russia, size matters when it comes to family.

Just look at the Asachyovs. Vera and her husband Timofey have eight children - from 18-year-old Sofiya to 18-month-old Marusya - and they've just been crowned Moscow Family of the Year.

"It's a great honour and joy," Vera Asachyova told Sky News when asked how it felt to win.

"It brings pride to our family, not only my husband and I but for the children and their grandmothers and grandfathers."

And that's not their only award. Having had so many children, they've also been honoured with the prestigious Order of Parental Glory, which Vera proudly wears pinned to her chest.

The family's beaming faces are even on billboards around town. They're portrayed as the model family doing their patriotic duty.

That's because Russia's birth rate is at a quarter-of-a-century low and the state wants others to follow the Asachyovs' lead.

Official data shows 599,600 children were born in Russia in the first half of 2024, which is 16,000 fewer than in the same period in 2023 and the lowest since 1999.

The Kremlin called the figure "catastrophic" and is desperate to boost it.

The latest attempt is a ban on "childfree propaganda", which was passed unanimously by Russia's lower house of parliament last month. It's supposedly the promotion of life without children, and anyone caught spreading it can now be fined.

But does this propaganda really exist? Even if it does, surely there are more pressing reasons why a woman might not want to have children?

Azerbaijani minister suggests crashed plane was hit by weapon

An Azerbaijani minister has suggested the passenger plane that crashed this week was hit by a weapon, citing expert analysis and survivor evidence.

The Azerbaijan Airlines crash killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors with injuries.

Rashad Nabiyev, minister of digital development and transportation, told local media that "preliminary conclusions by experts" and witness testimony indicated the plane was struck from the outside.

"The type of weapon used in the impact will be determined during the probe," Mr Nabiyev added.

Yesterday, two US military officials told our partner site NBC News that America has intelligence indicating Russia may have misidentified the aircraft and shot it down.

The intelligence suggests Russian forces believed it was a drone and engaged it with their air defences.

Russian officials have warned against any speculation about what caused the crash, but the country's aviation authority has said the situation in Russia's airspace was "very complicated" when the plane was diverted to Kazakhstan.

NATO to step up Baltic Sea patrols after possible sabotage of undersea cables

NATO will step up patrols in the Baltic Sea region as Finnish investigators work to investigate whether a Russia-linked ship sabotaged undersea cables there this week, the alliance's boss has said.

Finnish authorities seized control of the ship, the Eagle S, on Thursday as they tried to establish whether it had damaged a power cable linking Finland and Estonia, as well as several data cables.

NATO secretary general Mark Rutte said he had spoken to Finland's President Alexander Stubb about the investigation into "possible sabotage of undersea cables" and added: "NATO will enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea."

In response to similar incidents in October last year, NATO and its allies deployed more maritime patrol aircraft, long-distance radar planes and drones on surveillance and reconnaissance flights, and a fleet of minehunters was dispatched to the region.

The Estlink-2 power cable which takes electricity from Finland to Estonia across the Baltic Sea went down on Wednesday, but had little impact on services.

The Eagle S's anchor is suspected of causing the damage, Finland's Yle state broadcaster reported, citing police statements.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was asked about the seizure of the ship but declined to comment yesterday.

It comes after damage to two data cables and the Nord Stream gas pipelines, both of which have been called sabotage.

Russia claims it thwarted Ukrainian plot to kill officer and blogger

Russia has claimed it has foiled a Ukrainian plot to kill a high-ranking Russian officer and a pro-Moscow war blogger with a bomb hidden in a portable music speaker.

The Federal Security Service (FSB) said a Russian citizen had established contact with an office from Ukraine's GUR military intelligence agency through the Telegram messaging application.

The Russian citizen then retrieved a bomb from a hiding place in Moscow on the instructions of the Ukrainian intelligence officer, the FSB said.

It said the bomb was packed with ball bearings and concealed in a portable music speaker.

The FSB did not name the target officer or blogger.

Ukraine has said Russia's invasion poses an existential threat to the Ukrainian state and it considers targeted killings legitimate.

But Russia has said they amount to illegal "acts of terrorism" and has accused Ukraine of assassinating civilians.

Earlier this month Ukraine's SBU intelligence service killed the boss of Russia's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Troops, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, in Moscow by detonating a bomb attached to an electric scooter.

Russia accuses British and US spies of provoking attacks against its military bases in Syria

Moscow's SVR foreign intelligence service has accused British and American spies of trying to provoke attacks against Russia's military bases in Syria in a bid to force their evacuation, the state-run RIA news agency has said.

The intelligence service provided no evidence for its allegation.

Zelenskyy says North Korean soldiers being sent into battle with 'minimum protection'

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russia of sending North Korean soldiers to the frontlines in Ukraine with the "minimum protection".

The Ukrainian president said North Korean soldiers were suffering a "lot of losses" and the Russian military, along with Pyongyang's supervisors, are "not at all interested" in their survival. 

"Today there were reports about several soldiers from North Korea," he said in an update on Telegram. 

"Our soldiers managed to take them prisoner. But they were very seriously wounded, and they could not be resuscitated."

Mr Zelenskyy continued: "The Korean people should not lose their people in battles in Europe."

He called on North Korea's neighbours, including China, to put pressure on Pyongyang to pull its troops out of Ukraine. 

"If China is sincere in its statements that the war should not expand, it needs to exert appropriate influence on Pyongyang," Mr Zelenskyy said. 

Biden administration expected to send $1.25bn to Ukraine before Trump takes office

The Biden administration appears to be pushing to get as much aid to Ukraine as possible before leaving office on 20 January. 

Officials have said the US will announce $1.25bn (£1bn) worth of military assistance for Ukraine. 

This includes a significant amount of munitions, including for the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems and the Hawk air defence system, as well as Stinger missiles and 155mm and 105mm artillery rounds.

The officials spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity. 

Senior defence officials acknowledged earlier this month that the US Defence Department may not be able to send all of the remaining $5.6bn in weapons and equipment stocks passed by Congress for Ukraine before Donald Trump is sworn in. 

Trump has pledged to end the war in Ukraine and it's believed he will push for a negotiated settlement between the two sides - which some believe may result in a poor deal for Kyiv. 

US intelligence suggests Russia 'misidentified plane as drone'

Earlier, we brought you comments from the White House saying early indications suggest the Azerbaijan Airlines plane could have been brought down by Russia. 

Two US military officials have now told our partner site NBC News that America has intelligence indicating the Russians may have misidentified the aircraft and shot it down. 

The intelligence suggests Russian forces believed it was a drone and engaged their air defences. 

This was in part due to the aircraft's irregular flight pattern and altitude, the officials said. 

Both, however, stressed that an investigation is still ongoing. 

Russian officials have cautioned against speculation about what caused the crash, but the country's aviation authority has said the situation in Russia's airspace was "very complicated" when the plane was diverted to Kazakhstan. 

-SKY NEWS