10:33am: Kremlin says no plans for Putin-Grossi meeting in Moscow

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that President Vladimir Putin had no plans to hold talks with International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi during his trip to Russia, which a senior Russian diplomat said earlier was planned for Thursday.

10:32am: Kremlin says no chance of Ukraine talks as Zelensky travels to Washington

The Kremlin said that it sees no chance of peace talks with Ukraine after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a visit to Washington on Wednesday.

In a call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that continued Western arms supplies to Ukraine would lead to a “deepening” of the conflict.

10:31am: Kremlin says Putin to launch gas field feeding pipeline to China

Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in a video conference on Wednesday to mark the launch of the Kovykta gas field, which feeds into the Power of Siberia pipeline carrying Russian gas to China, the Kremlin said.

10:30am: Putin to make significant speech to defence chiefs, Kremlin says

Russian President Vladimir Putin will make an important, substantive speech later on Wednesday when he meets his defence chiefs for an end-of-year meeting to assess the progress of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine, the Kremlin said.

10:02am: IAEA’s Grossi to visit Russia on Thursday

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, will visit Russia on Thursday for discussions on the creation of a security zone around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, the RIA Novosti news agency reported, citing Russia’s envoy to the international institutions in Vienna.

The plant, in Russian-occupied territory, has come under repeated shelling attacks that each side has blamed on the other, raising fears of a nuclear disaster

9:40am: EU not conducting fair investigation into Nord Stream explosions, Lavrov says

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday it appeared no EU countries were “objectively” investigating the series of explosions that ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September.

“After the explosions on Nord Stream, which, it appears nobody in the European Union is going to objectively investigate, Russia stopped gas transportation through the northern routes,” Lavrov said.

Russia has blamed the UK for the explosions, a claim rejected by London, while investigators in Sweden and Denmark said the blasts were the deliberate results of sabotage, though they did not name any possible culprits.

9:05am: ‘They will try to underplay the setbacks’ in Ukraine: FRANCE 24’s Nick Holdsworth on Russia’s scheduled defence meeting

FRANCE 24’s Nick Holdsworth reports from Yerevan, Armenia on a defence meeting in Moscow he says “will be all about optics”.

04:35

 

8:29am: Russia’s Medvedev says discussed Ukraine war in meeting with China’s Xi

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday posted a video on social media of him meeting China’s President Xi Jinping in a visit to Beijing. Medvedev, who is now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said he and Xi discussed Russia and China’s “strategic partnership”, cooperation between the two countries and the conflict in Ukraine.

Xi told Medvedev that China hopes all parties in the Ukraine crisis will resolve security concerns through political means, Chinese state media Xinhua reported.

7:16am: Zelensky says ‘on my way to US’ for talks on Ukraine defence 

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said early on Wednesday he was on his way to the United States for talks with US President Joe Biden and to address Congress. “On my way to the United States to strengthen resilience and defence capabilities of Ukraine,” Zelensky said on his Twitter account.

“In particular @POTUS and I will discuss cooperation between Ukraine and the United States. I will also have a speech at the Congress and a number of bilateral meetings”.

On my way to the US to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities of 🇺🇦. In particular, @POTUS and I will discuss cooperation between 🇺🇦 and 🇺🇸. I will also have a speech at the Congress and a number of bilateral meetings.

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 21, 2022

7:04am: Ukraine’s Zelensky plans US visit in first trip abroad since war began

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet US President Joe Biden and address Congress on Wednesday during a visit to Washington, his first trip outside his country since Russia invaded in February, the White House said.

Zelensky will join Biden at the White House for the announcement of a “significant new package of security assistance”, said White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. A senior administration official said the package included advanced Patriot air defence missiles.

>> Ukraine’s Zelensky plans to travel to US, first trip abroad since war started

01:41

 

6:49am: Belarus restricts access to parts of region bordering Ukraine, Russia

Belarus issued a ruling on Wednesday temporarily restricting access to parts of the southeastern Gomel region that borders Ukraine and Russia. The government said on its website it would “temporarily restrict entry, temporary stay and movement in the border zone within the Loevsky, Braginsky and Khoiniki districts of the Gomel region”.

Russian forces used Belarus as a launch pad for their abortive attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in February, and there has been growing Russian and Belarusian military activity in recent months.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)

© France Médias Monde graphic studio

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