Ukraine-Russia war live: Furious Putin ‘orders revenge raids’ in Crimea after humiliating warship attack

The India-Russia relationship, rooted in defence, nuclear, and space collaborations, however, is increasingly facing strains amid concerns that Russia’s pariah status may drive it closer to China.

Russian fertiliser producer Uralchem-Uralkali Group said on Thursday that it had sent a humanitarian shipment of 34,000 tonnes of fertiliser to Nigeria.

This shipment of fertiliser is the fifth such delivery to Africa, Uralchem-Uralkali said, adding that it intends to cumulatively transfer about 300,000 tonnes of mineral fertilisers to developing countries.

Ukraine has said it has destroyed a Russian warship in occupied Crimea. It came as top Kremlin officials sat down for an end-of-year review of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Kyiv’s air force announced that it had hit a landing ship in the southeastern port of Feodosia in the early hours of Tuesday morning, marking another successful attack on Vladimir Putin’s prized Black Sea fleet.

Unverified footage posted by Ukrainian air force commander Lt Gen Mykola Oleschuk showed a 10-metre-high fireball erupting from the area where the 110-metre-long Novocherkassk ship was located.

Ukraine‘s air defence systems shot down seven out of eight Russia-launched Shahed drones overnight, the country’s air force said on Thursday.

Drones were downed in three central and southern regions, the air force said on the Telegram messenger. It was not clear whether the drone that was not shot down reached its target.

The Russian Defence Ministry also said it thwarted a Ukrainian drone attack over Moscow-occupied Crimea overnight.

There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin is “completely furious” after Kyiv missiles destroyed his warship in Crimea, a Ukrainian partisan group has claimed.

The Atesh group reported that the Russian president ordered raids throughout the city and is expected to punish the Crimean air defence forces.

They wrote on Telegram: “The flywheel of repression is spinning up… Since yesterday, local residents have been raided throughout the city, their smartphones are being taken away and their houses are being searched.

“It is reported that Putin is completely furious over the destruction of the Novocherkassk large landing ship. An order was issued to punish the Crimean air defense forces. It is expected that many commanders will be removed and sent to the front to participate in assault groups. They actually get rid of them.”

Images posted by a local Crimean Telegram channel have now shown that the vessel appears to be completely destroyed. The ship had been used to transport ammunition and personnel to the Zaporizhzhia front in southern Ukraine, according to a Ukrainian air force spokesperson.

Geolocated footage has shown dozens of Russian vehicles advancing north of Avdiivka, a Ukrainian town on the front line in the eastern region of Donetsk.

Their first battle plan was outdated the moment the dam crumbled. So the Ukrainian special forces officers spent six months adapting their fight to secure a crossing to the other side of the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine.

But it wasn’t enough just to cross the river. They needed backup to hold it. And for that, they needed proof that it could be done. For one of the officers, nicknamed Skif, that meant a Ukrainian flag — and a photo op.

Charities told The Independent that they are dealing with increasing numbers of cases in which Ukrainians have been tricked into paying hundreds of pounds for letters giving them “permission to travel” to the UK and fake British visas, by criminals taking advantage of their desperation to leave.

This has sparked concerns in Poland and other countries in the region.

The nation has traditionally used the Julian calendar, also used by Russia, where Christmas falls next month.

Many Ukrainians have embraced this year’s change with enthusiasm, viewing it as a positive step that will further strengthen their cultural separation from Moscow.

“The war has helped bring this about, but most Ukrainians have long dreamt about this change,” Father Heorhii told Al Jazeera.

“It is a desire to live with the whole world.”