Ukraine-Russia war latest: Russian bomber shot down over Snake …
A Russian bomber was shot down over Snake Island as Kyiv was bombarded with drones overnight.
Ukraine said it had downed a Russian Su-24 fighter plane over the Black Sea near Snake Island as the aircraft was on its way to attack Odesa region.
It comes as Kyiv said that Moscow had launched dozens of Iranian-designed attack drones towards Ukraine overnight from southern Russia and the annexed Crimean peninsula, in its latest aerial barrage.
Officials in Kyiv say Russian forces have been stockpiling drones and missiles for systematic attacks on Ukraine’s struggling energy grid over winter months.
“A total of 48 Shahed-136/131 strike UAVs were launched,” the Ukrainian air force said in a statement, adding that defensive systems had downed 41 of the unmanned aerial vehicles.
Follow the latest updates below
1:29PM [1]Russian and UAE flags on show outside presidential palace for Putin's arrival
Three soldiers shouted at cars to turn away from the gates, as I approached before Putin and his cavalcade of police and armoured jeeps with blacked out windows arrived at about 2.18pm, reports James Crisp in Abu Dhabi.
Behind the armed men under an imposing arch was a desert-sand armoured car with a machine gun mount.
Beyond, on either side of a stretching drive leading through an immaculate garden to an imposing white granite and limestone building , was a mounted guard of honour.
Half of the rifle-armed men in national dress sat on horses, the other on camels; all carried either the Russian or UAE flags.
Putin roared past on the cleared road with at least 14 cars around him, their flashing lights on. Parking outside some of the skyscraper hotels surrounded the palace was not allowed.
As he passed, I, and a group of about 10 waiting Russians, were ordered to “move, move” from the pavement by two shouting police officers from their car.
The men, wearing shades and berets, were clearly in no mood to brook any dissent after racing up to the group of either residents or tourists keen to see their President.
1:06PM [2]Pictured: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky poses for a picture with an injured Ukrainian serviceman in a hospital
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky poses for a picture with an injured Ukrainian serviceman in a hospital
Credit: UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/via REUTERS
12:48PM
[3]
Putin welcomed with 'pomp' of a visiting leader of a superpower
Vladimir Putin was welcomed in Abu Dhabi with all the pomp and circumstance of a visiting leader of a superpower, rather than as the internationally wanted war criminal he is, reports James Crisp, in Abu Dhabi.
Putin, a pariah since his unlawful invasion of Ukraine, is wanted by the International Criminal Court in the Hague for the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children,
But the United Arab Emirates, which has remained studiously neutral since the assault on Ukraine, has never signed the treaty which would oblige it to arrest Putin and deport to The Hague for trial.
Instead, Putin was greeted with a firm handshake rather than the handcuffs that await him if he dares to visit large swathes of the rest of the world.
Whisked into a heavily protected convoy at about 2pm local time, he was escorted to the presidential palace of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as military helicopters flew overhead.
Outside the Qasr Al Watan palace, security was tight. Usually the “palace of the nation” is open to the public but today it was open only for Putin.
12:46PM [4]UK announces new sanctions targeting 'Putin's war machine' in Ukraine
Britain announced a fresh round of sanctions against Russia’s “war machine” in Ukraine, as David Cameron headed to Washington for his first visit as foreign secretary.
The new curbs bar UK firms from dealings with businesses and individuals in countries such as Belarus, China, Serbia, Turkey, the UAE and Uzbekistan, among others.
The 46 new sanctions focus on “individuals and groups supplying and funding (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s war machine,” the UK’s foreign office said in a statement.
Among those included are “three actors supporting the Wagner Group network and four operators of the so-called ‘shadow fleet’ vessels used by Russia to soften the blow of oil-related sanctions imposed by the UK alongside G7 partners”.
Armed groups affiliated with the Russian army like the Wagner mercenary force have been active in Ukraine and stand accused of numerous violations of international humanitarian law.
12:34PM [5]Watch: Ukraine shoots down dozens of Russian drones during overnight attack
12:08PM
[6]
Pictured: Putin shakes hands with UAE's foreign minister
Vladimir Putin smiled as he shook hands with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s foreign minister, after he bounded down the stairs of his presidential plane.
Putin shaking hands with Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Credit: ANDREI GORDEYEV/AFP
As he arrived at Abu Dhabi’s Qasr al-Watan palace to meet Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the country’s ruler, the UAE’s military acrobatics team flew in formation with red, white and blue smoke trailing them in the colors of the Russian flag.
“I’m happy to meet you again,” Sheikh Mohammed said as he sat with Putin in the palace.
Four Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets accompanied Putin’s plane on the flight to the Emirates, Russian state-run media reported.
11:31AM [7]Russia-UAE relations at unprecedented level, Putin says
Relations between Russia and the United Arab Emirates are at an unprecedented high, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Russia and the UAE cooperate in OPEC+ and are involved in major oil and gas projects.
Putin said in televised comments that the situation in Ukraine and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would be among the topics of discussion.
Putin is visiting the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on a rare trip abroad.
11:30AM [8]Watch: Putin welcomed in UAE
This is how Putin was welcomed in the UAE today. pic.twitter.com/YlfObnD1Qk[9]
— Clash Report (@clashreport) December 6, 2023[10] 11:08AM [11]Zelensky assures Ukrainians of victory
President Volodymyr Zelensky told Ukrainians that Kyiv would defeat Russia and win a fair peace “against all odds” as the future of vital US military and financial aid hung in the balance.
Mr Zelensky delivered his defiant message in an unusual early-morning video that showed him walking through Kyiv on his way to pay his respects to fallen soldiers on what Ukraine marks as Armed Forces Day.
“It has been difficult, but we have persevered,” said the Ukrainian president, who filmed himself on a mobile phone as he walked from his office down the central Hrushevskoho street towards central Kyiv’s “wall of remembrance”.
“It is not easy now, but we are moving. No matter how difficult it is, we will get there. To our borders, to our people. To our peace. Fair peace. Free peace. Against all odds.”
10:43AM [12]Watch: Putin arrives in UAE
The Russian dictator has arrived in the United Arab Emirates. Later he will visit Saudi Arabia.
The jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court extends to countries that have signed and ratified the Rome Statute. The UAE and Saudi Arabia are not among them. The UAE has… pic.twitter.com/EftU22okMk[13]
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) December 6, 2023[14] 10:24AM [15]Zelensky congratulates troops on Ukraine's Armed Forces Day
Congratulations on Ukraine’s Armed Forces Day! 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/PGqG3Zy007[16]
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 6, 2023[17] 10:10AM [18]Putin arrives in Abu Dhabi
Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Abu Dhabi, Russian state news agencies reported on Wednesday.
Putin is visiting the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday in a rare trip abroad and will hold talks with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss oil, OPEC+ and the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.
The visit comes as armed UN police patrol a portion of Dubai’s Expo City now considered international territory for the talks, again highlighting the Emirates’ expansive business ties to Russia that have exploded in the time since grinding Western sanctions have targeted Moscow.
9:39AM [19]Ukraine December road food exports fall 30.6% amid Polish drivers' strike
Ukraine’s shipments of food by road decreased 30.6 per cent in the first four days of December amid difficulties on the Polish border caused by a drivers’ strike, brokers said on Wednesday.
Spike Brokers, which regularly tracks and publishes export statistics in Ukraine, said on the Telegram messaging app that 50,000 metric tons of agricultural goods were exported by truck from Dec. 1-4, versus 72,000 tons in same period in November and 71,000 tonnes in October.
Polish truckers have blocked roads to three border crossings with Ukraine to protest against what they see as government inaction over a loss of business to foreign competitors since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Before the protest, which started on Nov. 6, Polish border crossings accounted for about 50 per cent of all Ukrainian land road freight traffic.
8:18AM [20]Cameron to visit Washington DC to reaffirm British support for Ukraine
Lord Cameron will make his first visit to Washington DC as Foreign Secretary today to discuss maintained support for Ukraine.
He will announce £37 million of humanitarian funding for Ukraine.
He said: “The UK and the US are deeply bound by a shared mission to defend the values that provide security and prosperity for us all.
“That is why we remain unwavering in our support of Ukraine. If we allow [Vladimir] Putin’s aggression to succeed, it will embolden those who challenge democracy and threaten our way of life. We cannot let them prevail.”
The UK will target military suppliers who are propping up Putin’s war machine through a series of sanctions.
7:53AM [21]Russia attacked Ukraine with 48 drones overnight
Russia launched a total of 48 attack drones overnight on Ukraine from southern Russia and the annexed Crimean peninsula, Kyiv has said.
“A total of 48 Shahed-136/131 strike UAVs were launched,” the Ukrainian air force said in a statement, adding that defensive systems had downed 41 of the unmanned aerial vehicles.
russian terrorism shall not pass!
Overnight, the Ukrainian Air Forces shot down 41 out of 48 "Shahed" kamikaze drones in our sky.
Also yesterday, warriors of the Air Command “South” destroyed a russian SU-24M bomber near Zmiinyi Island.
Glory to Ukrainian defenders!
📹:… pic.twitter.com/8WD0aoMbcx[22]
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) December 6, 2023[23]The air force said all of the attack drones were Iranian-made Shahed kamikaze drones.
It did not say what happened to the drones that were not downed or whether there was any damage from the attack.
7:39AM [24]Pictured: Ukrainian soldiers take part in military training in the Chernihiv region
Ukrainian servicemen take part in military training which focuses on fighting sabotage groups, in the Chernihiv region
Credit: ROMAN PILIPEY/AFP
7:36AM
[25]
Putin to visit Saudi Arabia and UAE
Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as Dubai hosts the United Nations’ COP28 climate talks — despite facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over the war in Ukraine.
Neither Saudi Arabia nor the UAE has signed the ICC founding treaty, meaning they don’t face any obligation to detain Putin over the warrant accusing him of being personally responsible for the abductions of children from Ukraine during his war on the country.
However, the visit comes as armed UN police patrol a portion of Dubai’s Expo City now considered international territory for the talks, again highlighting the Emirates’ expansive business ties to Russia that have exploded in the time since grinding Western sanctions have targeted Moscow.
A readout on Putin’s trip from the state-run Tass news agency published early on Wednesday offered no suggestion Putin might come to the COP28 site, instead quoting Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov saying he’d land and have a “meeting at the palace” and one-on-one talks with Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
7:33AM [26]Zelensky to join G7 leaders video summit
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will join a video summit later with the leaders of the G7, chair Japan said, hours after unexpectedly skipping a virtual meeting with US senators.
The meeting from 9:30 am EST (1430 GMT) hosted by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will see Mr Zelensky “join the first part”, government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters.
Besides Ukraine, the talks will cover the Middle East, support for developing countries, and artificial intelligence, a White House official said.
7:32AM [27]Good Morning
Good morning and welcome to today’s Ukraine liveblog.
We will be guiding you through all the latest updates on Ukraine.
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