Ukraine’s No. 1 Priority: Delivery of Air Defense Systems and Missiles

Air Defense Ukrainian servicemen, who took part in the defense operations during recent attacks on Kyiv, prepare their weapons near Kyiv on Jan. 3, 2024.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday Ukraine’s No. 1 priority is delivery of additional air defense systems and missiles because many Ukrainian locations have been subjected to Russian shelling and missile and drone attacks.

Speaking in his daily address, Zelenskyy also said support packages “for our warriors,” consisting of artillery, electronic warfare equipment and drones, are also a top priority.

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Zelenskyy said Russia is trying to break Ukraine’s spirit by threatening the destruction of its energy sector, which the president described as "the foundations of our life.”

Meanwhile, the British Defense Ministry said Friday in its daily intelligence report on Ukraine that ground combat over the last week has maintained a static front line for Ukraine but has also included some loss. In central Donetsk, the ministry said, Avdiivka is “still heavily contested,” but Russian forces in Marinka have finally advanced to the western edge of town “after nine years of combat in the area.”

Meanwhile, in southern Ukraine, the ministry said Russian airborne forces have “highly likely made minimal progress” in dislodging the Ukrainian Bridgehead on the eastern bank of the Dnipro, near the village of Krynky.