Russia Ukraine war live: Putin’s forces hit by ‘mouse fever’

Ireland’s prime minister Leo Varadkar has become the latest victim of pro-Kremlin Russian phone pranksters Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov, his office confirmed.

The former YouTubers, who moved to streaming platform Rumble after their page was suspended, have tricked some of the world’s most high-profile politicians, including Justin Trudeau, Boris Johnson and most recently Italy’s Georgia Meloni.

The pranksters spoke to Mr Varadkar while pretending to be representatives of the African Union Commission, according to a video of the call posted online on Tuesday.

During the course of the call, the Irish leader appears to say it is “not very likely” that Ukraine will join the European Union in the near future, and that he hopes to see a united island of Ireland “in my lifetime”.

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The Russian army has about four times more active military personnel than Ukraine some 1,330,900 men and 250,000 reservists. As of 2021, Russia had a male population of around 66 million.

In July, the Russian parliament raised the maximum age at which men can be conscripted from 27 to 30, increasing the number of young men liable for a year of compulsory military service from 1 January 2024.

It means men will be required to carry out a year of military service, or equivalent training during higher education, between the ages of 18 and 30, rather than 18 and 27.

The law also prevents men from dodging the draft by banning them from leaving Russia from the day they are summoned to a conscription office.

Ukrainian troops were pictured shooting rockets from a self-made rocket launcher on Wednesday.

The photos were taken from the frontline in the Donetsk region and are of the 228 Separate Battalion of the 127th Separate Territorial Defence Brigade.

The U.S. imposed new sanctions on alleged violators of a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil and tightened compliance rules for insurance firms and shippers, Wednesday.

Firms across the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong were identified for economic sanctions, including UAE-based Sun Ship Management D Ltd., which Russian state-owned fleet operator Joint Stock Company Sovcomflot owns.

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As the Ukrainian army says they need another 500,000 troops mobilised, my colleague Alexander Bulter has calculated how many soldiers they already have:

The Ukrainian army counted around 500,000 servicemen, 200,000 of which are active military personnel, recent figures show.

If the figures are accurate, the Ukrainian army’s suggestion would bring the total number of servicemen to nearly one million.

Under Ukrainian law, only men aged 27 to 60 can be mobilised for the front line, although younger men can volunteer to fight. As of January 2022, Ukraine had a male population of 19 million.

Men aged 18 to 20 cannot be sent to the battlefield. Most Ukrainian soldiers at the front are believed to be volunteers, many of whom have been fighting since the start of Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

Estimates of the number of Ukrainian men killed in the conflict have varied between 30,000 and 70,000. In November, a Ukrainian civic group put the death toll at 30,000.

But US military sources have suggested the number is closer to 70,000. Kyiv treats its losses as a state secret and officials say disclosing the figure could harm its war effort.

Ukrainians are gearing up to celebrate their first Christmas according to a new calendar, another step towards erasing all traces of Russian influence as their military fends off a Kremlin invasion.

“It turns out that Ukrainians used to celebrate Christmas on December 25, just like the rest of Europeans,” said Tetiana, a 25-year-old believer who said she would celebrate on Dec. 25 for the first time.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has thanked countries who continue to support Ukraine.

His message of gratitude comes after the Empire State Building in New York was lit up in blue and yellow to show solidarity.

“I am grateful to every country that has stood with Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began,” Zelensky wrote on X. “This support provides strength to our people.”

Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian prime minister Mikhail Mishustin met in Beijing on Wednesday to discuss the two nation’s ties.

“Maintaining and developing China-Russia relations well is a strategic choice made by both sides based on the fundamental interests of the two peoples,” Xi Jinping was quoted as saying by the Chinese foreign ministry.

The South China Morning Post reported that Xi Jinping also pledged that Beijing would continue to develop “high-level” political and economic relations with Moscow.

Ukraine’s largest mobile network has restored all services following a large-scale cyber attack last week.

Ukraine’s Kyivstar, which provides cellular and internet services to 24.3 million mobile subscribers and over 1.1 million home internet users, came under a deadly cyberattack last Tuesday.

It silenced air raid alerts in some parts of Ukraine at a time Russia started firing ballistic missiles on civilian regions, wiped out services, and damaged IT infrastructure.

A source close to Kyivstar said military communications have not been affected by the attack.

Kyivstar said: “Our specialists have resolved the communication difficulties that arose this morning in a number of cities in the west and south of Ukraine.

“The services are now operating as usual.”

Kyiv plans to produce a million FPV (first-person-view) drones and more than 11,000 medium- and long-range attack drones next year, Ukraine‘s minister for strategic industries said on Wednesday.

Ukraine has used FPV drones – small drones originally for personal civilian use, but modified for the battlefield – since the first days of the 2022 Russian invasion as a cheap but effective option for attacks.

The tactic was subsequently adopted by Moscow’s troops, now estimated to have many more such drones at their disposal.

“All production facilities are ready, and contracting for 2024 begins,” Oleksandr Kamyshin, the minister, said on Telegram messenger.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy later said the issue of drones, both in stock and being deployed, was discussed at a meeting of commanders and officials on Wednesday

“Logistics will be faster. We are also working on making the use of drones, particularly FPV drones, more efficient in all areas,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.

“This is an obvious priority for our country and a very concrete way to protect the lives of our soldiers.”

Ukraine has been working to increase its domestic weapons production in order to secure stable deliveries, not rely exclusively on partners’ aid, and give a boost to the economy.