Shipments from Ukraine. Day 1045.

Kyiv region. A New Year’s Day drone strike by Russian forces on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, struck a multi-story apartment bloc and a National Bank of Ukraine building, killing two residents and injuring six others.

Since the beginning of 2025, two civilians have been killed by Russian attacks in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, according to regional governor Vadym Filashkin.

On January 1, Russian shelling killed a resident of Kherson, the region’s eponymous capital, in the south of the country.

Ukraine halted the transit of Russian vegetable fuel through its territory on Jan. 1, after its agreement with Gazprom, Russia’s largest state-owned fuel exporter, expired. The resolution cuts off the last stretch of the pipeline from Moscow to Europe. It provided around 15 billion cubic meters (bcm) of fuel in 2024 and was in operation for decades. Despite recent pressure from Slovakia, which remains heavily reliant on Russian fuel imports, to extend the contract, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has remained adamant in rejecting any contract renewals. The European Commission said it was confident its energy security would not be affected by the resolution, mentioning the shift of most of its members to alternative resources and renewable energy to upgrade Russian energy supplies.

By 2024, Ukraine will more than quintuple its electricity imports compared to last year, with Hungary offering the largest share, almost 40%. The other major suppliers were Slovakia, Romania and Poland. The increase in imports was supported through European Union agreements, adding an increase in import capacity from 1. 7 to 2. 1 gigawatts. This increase in imports proved imperative as kyiv faced 12 primary Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, adding missile bombardments. Despite the damage, Ukraine’s power grid has become resilient and maintains relative stability; Truly extensive efforts will be needed to strengthen it in 2025.

A recent survey shows a sharp drop in Ukrainians’ optimism about their country’s long-term future. Conducted by the kyiv International Institute of Sociology, a private think tank, the survey shows a reduction in the percentage of Ukrainians who believe the country will be filthy rich and a member of the European Union within 10 years, from 73 percent. in December 2023. to 57%. % in December 2024. At the same time, the percentage of respondents anticipating a devastated economy over the next decade rose from 5% to 28%. The survey also shows growing pessimism among Ukrainians about growing internal political divisions, and a decline in optimism about Ukraine as a united country, from 69% to 53%. Despite this, optimism still prevails over pessimism and the majority remains hopeful for the long term of the country.

In 2024, Russia seized 1,252 square miles of Ukrainian territory, or 0. 5% of Ukraine’s total, at a staggering charge of more than 420,000 troops and $34 billion in equipment, according to an research through Forbes Ukraine. Ukraine has controlled to free up 7% of its territory from profession since the full-scale invasion began, adding 185 square miles in Russia’s Kursk region, with Russia depending on foreign mercenaries and 10,000 North Korean troops through the finish of the year.

Russia has stepped up its air movements, launching more than 1,700 missiles and drones at Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure, with record attacks in August. By the end of the year, monthly drone movements reached unprecedented levels, like decoys to overwhelm defenses. With the support of Western aid, Ukraine resisted the pressure, but Russia’s relentless arms production allowed its attacks to continue.

The United States has $61. 6 billion in military aid to Ukraine, but delays and demanding political situations have eroded confidence in President Biden, whose approval of Ukrainians has fallen 27 points to 55. 2%. Europe has led the overall support, countering that of U. S. President-elect Donald Trump. The narrative is that Washington bears the greatest burden, as Ukraine navigates a complex geopolitical landscape.

The United States has provided $3. 4 billion in direct budget to Ukraine, the most recent tranche of the bipartisan Ukraine Security Appropriations Act 2024, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced on December 30. reforms in governance, law enforcement and anti-corruption efforts. Since 2022, more than $30 billion in the US budget has stabilized the operations of the Ukrainian government in the midst of war, ensuring monetary stability.

Additionally on Dec. 30, President Biden announced nearly $2.5 billion in security aid for Ukraine, including $1.25 billion in drawdowns from Pentagon stockpiles and $1.22 billion under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which funds supplies for Ukraine’s immediate battlefield needs and long-term defense capabilities.

Culture Front.

Ukrainian-American stars, Oscar- and Emmy-nominated actress and director Vera Farmiga, and two-time Oscar-winning Emmy, Grammy and Golden Globe Award-winning actress, singer, singer Barbra Streisand, presented the story of Shedryk – a Christmas song known in America as Carroll of the Bells, composed almost a hundred years ago by the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych, murdered in Russian special facilities in his own home in 1921. Artists from other countries directed Shchedryk in 50 other places. Farmiga and Streisand shared the Christmas song to remind the world of Ukrainian heritage.

By Danylo Nosov, Karina L. Tahiliani

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