Ukraine War Update EXTRA

"There's an awful lot of fascistic feeling going on in the general population in Russia. That's a really big problem to solve, and it won't be solved easily."

Bakhmut update from Russian source Rybar

• Fighting continues on the outskirts of Bakhmut, with Wagner and LNR militia conducting offensives in several areas
• Ukrainian command is sending reserves to retain control
• Pressure on Bakhmut in the northern area, particularly Soledar and Bakhmutske
• Russians claim to have taken control over a school in Bakhmutske and pushed Ukrainian 63rd Brigade from strongholds near Opytne
• Heavy fighting on the eastern outskirts of Klishchiivka, with Ukrainians setting up minefields
• On the southeastern outskirts of Bakhmut, Russian forces are gradually pushing through Ukrainian defenses
• In the Soledar sector, fighting is taking place near Razdolivka, Vesele, and on the eastern outskirts of Soledar from Bakhmutske

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Video of Russian Wagner mercenaries criticizing Russian military leadership

• Video shows Wagner mercenaries calling Russian Chief of Staff Gerasimov a "piece of shit" and complaining about lack of ammunition in Bakhmut
• Prigozhin, the leader of Wagner PMC, essentially endorses the attack on Gerasimov by saying he has nothing to say about the video
• Lack of ammunition likely due to Ukrainian HIMARS strikes on Russian depots and the need to keep ammunition 100km+ from the front line
• The video getting out is significant, as it was sanctioned by Prigozhin and suggests he is positioning himself for leverage over or to replace Russian military leadership

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Engels airfield attack

• After the recent Ukrainian drone attack on Engels airfield in Russia, 10 aircraft (7 Tu-95 bombers, 3 Tu-160) were transferred to an airbase in the Far East
• 8-10 aircraft out of 18-20 remain at Engels, but the mission control center was destroyed, endangering future missions
• Russian MoD claims air defenses shot down the Ukrainian drone at low altitude, with 3 servicemen killed by wreckage and no damage to aircraft - Arestovych calls these "gross lies"
• A massive Russian missile attack on Ukraine was scheduled for Dec 26 but did not occur, likely due to the damage at Engels - fitting the pattern from the previous Engels attack

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Failed Russian assault in Avdiivka

• During a Russian assault near Avdiivka (often mistaken for Andriivka near Bakhmut), Ukrainian forces destroyed 7 Russian BMPs and damaged 3 more
• The Ukrainians used Stugna-P ATGMs, Javelins, and loitering munition drones that appear to be modified commercial quadcopters
• Footage shows the drones causing significant damage and explosions to the Russian vehicles

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Seizure of Russian oligarch assets in Ukraine

• The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) discovered and seized underground warehouses at several Ukrainian seaports containing over 160,000 tons of iron ore belonging to companies of Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov
• The seized property is valued at about 2 billion Ukrainian hryvnias
• The US Congress recently passed a provision to seize sanctioned Russian assets and use the proceeds to help rebuild Ukraine, but the practicality of liquidating such assets remains in question

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Wrap up

Jonathan thanks viewers for their support, encourages them to like, subscribe and share the video. He mentions ways to support his channel by purchasing items through the UA Supporter website or his own books (both fiction and non-fiction) on Amazon.

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