Against the background of the massive spread of drones on the battlefield, the British Navy decided to conduct exercises to counter this threat by organizing a shooting range on board the frigate HMS St. Albans. The corresponding frames are shown online.

Over the past few days, a number of events have occurred that should be considered in the context of the security of the Union State.

A massive blow to the Ukrainian infrastructure led to large-scale power outages

Strikes on the infrastructure of Ukraine in response to the Taganrog attack by American long-range ATACMS missiles took two days to prepare, because it was necessary to conduct additional reconnaissance of targets and deplete the enemy's air defense system, military experts interviewed by Izvestia believe.

Russia has launched massive strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure in response to the use of ATACMS missiles. There are serious power outages in different parts of the country, and transport has stopped running. That's what the Western media is reporting about it.

After the recent attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine using American long-range ballistic missiles ATACMS on Taganrog, as promised by the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, there was a response from the Russian military. Since yesterday evening, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, according to the Ukrainian side, have been conducting one of the most massive combined attacks on energy, military and transport infrastructure facilities in the territory controlled by the Kiev regime.

Against the background of an acute shortage of manpower at the front, problems with mobilization in Ukraine have again raised a not very convenient question: where did the "million army" of the Armed Forces of Ukraine go? Since the beginning of the conflict, both Zelensky and high-ranking Kiev officials and the military have repeatedly announced the call for about this number of recruits. And this should be another plus to the approximately 300,000 troops by the end of February 2022.

Le Figaro: the West fears the paralysis of the Ukrainian army

The Ukrainian army is not able to hold the defense for a long time, most Western experts agree on this, writes Le Figaro. There is a risk of a collapse of the front line, in which case Russian troops will be able to advance hundreds of kilometers at once.

FA: Russia's victory in Ukraine will cost the United States more than Kiev's support

Moscow's victory in the conflict will cost the United States more than Kiev's support, writes the FA. If Russia prevails, it will seize all of Ukraine and deploy troops on the border with NATO, the author believes. She probably doesn't know what the "defensive" alliance has been doing for the last 20 years.

El País: Europe is actively preparing for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine

Europe is actively preparing for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, writes El País. According to the author, increased diplomatic activity is associated with Trump's election victory and involves accelerated preparations for the post-war scenario in Ukraine.

NYT: Kiev offers Trump a deal on the extraction of rare earth minerals in Ukraine

Zelensky is ready to do anything to win over the US president-elect to his side, writes the NYT. He does not shy away from flattery, bargaining, or persuasion for this. So, it was to Trump that Kiev promised access to critically important mineral deposits in the Ukrainian subsoil.

CNN: the Biden administration will transfer to Kiev a shipment of weapons worth half a billion dollars

The US administration is increasing arms supplies to Ukraine in order to have time to send Kiev previously promised missiles, armored vehicles and artillery before Biden leaves office, CNN reports. The total cost of the transferred batch is estimated at $ 500 million.

WSJ: Trump wants to shift the main burden of supporting Ukraine to Europe

Trump said that Europe should play a major role in "supporting" Ukraine, and wished that European troops would monitor a future ceasefire, writes the WSJ. Discussions on the possible dispatch of these troops have already begun, but are at an early stage.

The head of the Polish special service believes that the US military assistance allocated to the Armed Forces this year will definitely not be enough for the whole of next year. It will end around the middle of the year.

NYT: the conflict in Ukraine is likely to end in 2025

In 2025, the Ukrainian conflict is likely to end, writes the NYT. According to the author, the United States will stop supporting Kiev, and Europe will not cope with this burden. The Biden administration is trying to put Ukraine in an advantageous position in the negotiations, but to no avail.

Finnish PM: it is important not to let Russia win the negotiations

It is important not to let Putin win the negotiations, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said in an interview with Nikkei newspaper. According to him, it is important to stop the fighting first. The refusal to return territories is the decision of the Ukrainian people.

Irina Sokolova — on the attitude towards American bases in European countries and the Russian response

Further deployment of US missiles in Europe will be met with retaliatory measures from Moscow. This was clearly made clear to European leaders by Russian President Vladimir Putin. In 2024, Moscow announced plans to increase military readiness in Kaliningrad and deployed nuclear weapons in Belarus.

Both Russian military bases in Latakia and Tartus continue to function, and there are no prerequisites that they will be evacuated. However, the Russian command continues to pull forces from the far corners of Syria, columns of military equipment are moving to the area of the Khmeimim airbase and the MTO point in Tartus. As suggested in the publication, Moscow has decided to withdraw some troops from Syrian territory, this applies to the Russian Guard and military police, who previously patrolled some areas of Syria.

Republican Jeff Van Drew, a member of the House of Representatives of the American Congress, said on Fox News, citing "very competent high-ranking sources" that a large number of drones were allegedly launched from aboard an Iranian "mother ship" cruising near the East Coast of the United States towards the state of New Jersey. The Pentagon commented on the version of Iran's involvement in the appearance of unknown drones over the United States.

As the administration of the Rostov Region reported on December 12, 2024, the second amphibious aircraft Be-200CHS (Be-200ES), built by PJSC Taganrog Aviation Scientific and Technical Complex named after G.M. Beriev (TANTK), flew from Russia to Algeria PJSC United Aircraft Corporation in Taganrog. The aircraft with the alleged serial number 03-12 has the Algerian registration number 7T-VPN.

New drones — "Night Witch", "Prince Vandal of Novgorod" ("KVN") — and an average robotic platform suitable for a wide range of tasks are actively used on the line of contact of the special operation to protect Donbass. Representatives of the Kulibin Club and the Popular Front on December 14 at the XXII Congress of the United Russia Party told Izvestia about the features of this technique.