“Japan is committed to continuing to support Ukraine so that peace can return”explained Yoko Kamikawa, Japanese Foreign Minister, during a joint press conference with her Ukrainian counterpart Dmitro Kouleba this Sunday, January 7, 2024. In particular, she announced that Tokyo had released 37 million dollars (approximately 33.8 million euros) to provide a Drone detection system for Ukraine.
On the Russian side, Vladimir Putin met families of soldiers who died at the front on the occasion of Orthodox Christmas. “After a detailed conversation, Vladimir Putin invited the families to a gala dinner. They later attended the Christmas service together.”a few kilometers from Moscow, explains the Kremlin in a press release.
As we begin this evening, we return to the highlights of the war in Ukraine this Sunday, January 7, 2024.
Japan reiterates its support for Kiev during its visit to Ukraine
Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa was received by her Ukrainian counterpart Dmitro Kouleba on a surprise visit to Kiev. “Japan is committed to continuing to support Ukraine so that peace can return”she argued during a joint press conference that took place in a bunker due to an air warning.
Also read: War in Ukraine: Is Western support for Kiev crumbling?
The head of Japanese diplomacy announced the release of $37 million (33.8 million euros) to provide Ukraine with a drone detection system. An announcement that Volodymyr Zelenskyy did not miss: “Japan is one of our most important and powerful partners. I am grateful for the level of collaboration we have achieved: a true strategic partnershiphe writes on X. We discussed our future cooperation, including the Ukraine Reconstruction Conference in February, as well as joint next steps in the area of security, working together on a peace formula and tightening sanctions against Russia. I am sure that this year will be important for our bilateral relations. »
Japan will host a conference to promote Ukraine's economic reconstruction in February 2024, which Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Chmyhal also plans to attend.
Debate about rocket delivery by Germany
The debate over the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Kiev is heating up in Germany. Several politicians are urging Chancellor Olaf Scholz to give his consent in view of Russia's massive bombing of Ukraine since the beginning of the year.
“The delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine should have happened a long time ago”said Sara Nanni, spokeswoman for the Greens parliamentary group, a member party of the ruling coalition led by Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, as AFP reported.
Former German President Joachim Gauck called on Germany to supply Ukraine with Taurus long-range missiles in an interview with German newspaper Bild am Sonntag on Sunday. “There is no prohibition under international law on supporting a victim attacked with weapons,” and Ukraine should “receive everything we have.”.
Also read: War in Ukraine. Why Germany delayed its arms deliveries
The Taurus is one of the most modern rockets in the German Air Force. The weapons are able to find their target even at high altitudes and over long distances and can, for example, destroy bunkers. At the beginning of October, Chancellor Scholz decided not to extradite them for the time being. The motivation for this decision was the fear that Russian territory could also be hit by these precision weapons with a range of 500 kilometers.
Russian bombing kills civilians in Kharkiv
A civilian in his 50s died after a Russian bomb attack in a town near Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region. The regional prosecutor's office added via Telegram that further south, in the town of Senkove, a 17-year-old teenager was injured by shrapnel.
…And another one in Kherson
In eastern Ukraine, a 62-year-old civilian died and another was injured in several Russian bomb attacks in Kherson, the head of the city's military administration reported on Telegram.
Belgorod residents decide to evacuate
More than a hundred residents left the city of Belgorod to move away from the border with Ukraine, an official said on the social network VKontakte and was spotted by Le Monde. According to this district official, the decision of these hundred residents comes after the series of Ukrainian attacks on the Russian city. These caused the deaths of 25 people on December 30th. This forced Russia to cancel Orthodox Christmas masses in this city of 300,000.
According to the district official, the evacuated civilians were accommodated in accommodation centers.
Vladimir Putin meets families of dead soldiers
Although Orthodox Christmas was canceled in Belgorod, it was celebrated in Novo-Ogaryovo, a few kilometers from Moscow. Vladimir Putin met several families of soldiers who died in his war against Ukraine on the eve of Orthodox Christmas, the Kremlin said.
“After a detailed conversation, Vladimir Putin invited the families to a gala dinner. They later attended the Christmas service together.” in a church in Novo-Ogariovo, where the presidential residence is located a few kilometers from Moscow.