An alleged Ukrainian drone attack on President Vladimir Putin's residence earlier this week was deemed "laughable", a spokesperson for Kyiv's foreign ministry said on Wednesday. In their respective New Year's addresses, Putin said his country believed it would win in Ukraine, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he believed that his country was "10 percent" away from an agreement to end the war. Follow our liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded.
This liveblog is no longer being updated.
This liveblog is no longer being updated. Follow our coverage of the war in Ukraine here.
Zelensky says in New Year address that he will not sign a 'weak' peace agreement
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his New Year address to the nation late on Wednesday that Ukraine wanted the war to end, but not at any cost, adding that he would not sign a “weak” peace agreement that would only prolong the conflict.
“What does Ukraine want? Peace? Yes. At any cost? No. We want an end to the war but not the end of Ukraine,” Zelensky said in the address from his office, issued just before midnight. “Are we tired? Very. Does this mean we are ready to surrender? Anyone who thinks so is deeply mistaken.”
Zelensky said any signature “placed on weak agreements only fuels the war. My signature will be placed on a strong agreement. And that is exactly what every meeting, every phone call, every decision is about now.”
We are '10 percent' away from peace, says Zelensky on NYE
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his New Year's Eve address that his country was "10 percent" away from an agreement to end the war with Russia.
"The peace agreement is 90 percent ready. Ten percent remains. And that is far more than just numbers," Zelensky said in the video message posted on his Telegram account.
"Those are the 10 percent that will determine the fate of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe," he added.
US finds Ukraine did not target Putin in drone strike, WSJ reports
US national security officials have found that Ukraine did not target Russian President Vladimir Putin or one of his residences in a recent drone strike, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
Macron says allies will make commitments on protecting Ukraine at Jan 6 meeting
European leaders meeting in Paris on January 6 will make firm commitments towards protecting Ukraine after any peace deal with Russia is brokered, French President Emmanuel Macron said during his New Year's address.
Macron has convened a meeting of the so-called Coalition of the Willing next Tuesday. The Coalition grouping led by Britain and France includes more than 30 nations.
"On January 6 in Paris, many European states and allies will make concrete commitments to protect Ukraine and ensure a just and lasting peace on our European continent," Macron said.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff earlier said that ways to strengthen security guarantees for Ukraine were discussed during Wednesday's talks between US officials, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and national security advisers from the UK, France and Germany.
Ukrainian negotiator Umerov says Kyiv coordinated positions with US, Europe in talks with security advisers
Top Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov said that Kyiv coordinated positions with the United States and its European allies in telephone talks with security advisers.
Umerov, writing on Telegram, said he "reported" to President Volodymyr Zelensky on the telephone talks. An account by US envoy Steve Witkoff said Zelensky took part in the discussions.
"We coordinated positions and planned further meetings with European and American partners in January," Umerov wrote. Work would continue in the New Year to produce "tangible" results in work to resolve the war pitting Ukraine against Russia.
Ukraine says it struck oil refinery in Russia's Tuapse, terminal in Krasnodar
Ukraine's military said that it had struck an oil refinery in the southern Russian port of Tuapse and an oil terminal on the Taman Peninsula in Russia's Krasnodar region.
In a statement, Kyiv's General Staff added that processing units at the refinery and two piers at the Krasnodar terminal had been damaged.
Ukraine says video footage of alleged drone attack is 'laughable'
Ukraine's Foreign ministry says the video footage presented by Russian authorities as evidence of an alleged drone attack on Putin's residence is 'laughable'
Ukraine says it struck oil depot in Russian city of Rybinsk
Ukrainian long-range drones struck the Temp oil depot in the Russian city of Rybinsk, an official from Kyiv's SBU domestic security service said on Wednesday.
In a statement, the official said the attack on the facility, which the SBU said is a key logistics hub for fuel, sparked a large fire.
Russia will win in Ukraine, Putin says in New Year address
Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country believed it would win in Ukraine, where Moscow has led an almost four-year offensive, in his New Year's Eve address.
Putin's traditional speech was first aired in the far-eastern Kamchatka peninsula – the first Russian region to enter 2026.
He called on Russians to "support our heroes" fighting in Ukraine, saying: "We believe in you and our victory."
He wished a happy New Year to "fighters and commanders" in Ukraine and said: "Millions of people across Russia, trust me, are thinking of you."
The conflict in Ukraine has had a huge human cost – with military deaths on both sides believed to be in the tens, or even hundreds, of thousands.
Ukraine current account deficit widens to $30.6 billion from January to November
Ukraine's current account deficit widened to $30.6 billion in the first 11 months of the year, according to central bank data released on Wednesday.
The figure is up from a deficit of $14.5 billion over the same period last year, the bank said.
Putin says Russia believes it will win in Ukraine in New Year address
Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country believed it would win in Ukraine, where Moscow has led an almost four-year offensive, in his New Year's Eve address.
In the comments, Putin called on Russians to "support our heroes" fighting in Ukraine.
"We believe in you and our victory," he said.
Finnish police say vessel seized after new cable damage in Gulf of Finland
Finnish police said they had seized a vessel suspected of damaging a telecommunications cable that runs between Helsinki and Tallinn in the Gulf of Finland several hours earlier.
No details about the identity of the vessel were disclosed.
The ship is suspected of being "responsible for the damage to the cable", which is owned by Finnish telecoms group Elisa and located in Estonia's exclusive economic zone, police said in a statement.
Part of the Baltic Sea, the Gulf of Finland is bordered by Estonia, Finland and Russia.
Elisa had early Wednesday detected a fault in its cable and reported it to Finnish authorities.
A Finnish border guard patrol vessel and helicopter located the suspected vessel in Finland's exclusive economic zone, and its anchor chain was found to be lowered into the sea, police said.
Putin home attack claim 'aims to derail' peace push, EU's top diplomat says
The EU's top diplomat accused Russia of pushing "unfounded claims" that Ukraine fired drones at a residence of President Vladimir Putin, branding the allegation a "deliberate distraction" from peace efforts.
"Moscow aims to derail real progress towards peace by Ukraine and its Western partners," EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas wrote on X.
Russian attacks on Odesa left more than 170,000 people without power, energy ministry says
Ukraine's energy ministry said that a Russian overnight air attack on the southern Odesa region had left more than 170,000 local consumers without power.
In a statement, it said emergency repairs were ongoing. Earlier on Wednesday, top Ukrainian energy firm DTEK said two of its energy facilities in the region had been targeted in the attack.
Russia releases video of drone it says Ukraine fired at Putin residence
Russia's defence ministry published a video of a downed drone that it says Ukraine launched at President Vladimir Putin's residence in north-west Russia this week – a claim Kyiv has denied as a "lie".
The video, shot at night, showed a damaged drone lying in snow in a forested area. The ministry said the alleged attack was "targeted, carefully planned and carried out in stages".
The video has not been independently verified.
Russian Defence Ministry handout via Reuters
Number of wounded in Russia's Odesa drone strikes rises to at least six
Russian strikes on Odesa wounded six people including three children, the Ukrainian city's military administration said.
Two children aged eight and 14 were wounded in the attack, as well as a seven-month-old baby, Sergiy Lysak, head of the city's military administration, said in a Telegram post.
A 42-year-old man was also wounded and is in "serious condition", he added. In his latest update he put the overall toll at six.
Russia's Odesa strikes caused 'significant' damage, Ukraine's main private energy provider says
Ukraine's leading private energy provider said that Russian overnight strikes on the southern Odesa region targeted two of its energy facilities, causing extensive damage.
"The damages are significant. Restoring the equipment to working condition will take time," DTEK said in a statement.
Russia's top general says Putin ordered 'buffer zone' expansion in northeast Ukraine for 2026
Russia’s top general said its forces were pressing forward in northeastern Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin had ordered expansion of territory Moscow calls a buffer zone there in 2026, Russian news agencies.
Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said Putin ordered expansion in 2026 of the buffer zone in Ukraine’s regions of Sumy and Kharkiv near the Russian border, RIA said, adding that he inspected the “North” troop grouping.
The grouping, formed in early 2024, has operated in northeastern Ukraine, seeking to create a buffer along the border and trying to push back Ukrainian forces there for further advances.
Putin has repeatedly portrayed the buffer zone as a way to push Ukrainian forces and weapons farther from Russia’s border, citing cross-border shelling and drone attacks on regions such as Belgorod and Kursk.
Kyiv has rejected Moscow’s buffer zone calling it an idea Russia is using to justify deeper incursions into Ukrainian territory.
