This is the moment a Ukrainian soldier unwraps an explosive early Christmas present that he plans to gift the Russian invaders.
The footage shows a Ukrainian soldier opening a metal container that can be seen holding a shell inside, wrapped in what appears to be thick paper.
He can be seen cutting the paper and ripping it off the large pieces of ordnance, looking at the camera and grinning as he goes.
The images were obtained from the Office of Strategic Communications (StratCom) of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Saturday, 3rd December, along with a statement saying: “Unwrapping a gift for the katsaps.”
‘Katsap’ is a derogatory Ukrainian term for a Russian.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February in what the Kremlin is still calling a “special military operation”. Today marks the 285th day of the war.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February and 5th December, Russia had lost about 91,690 personnel, 2,924 tanks, 5,900 armoured combat vehicles, 1,914 artillery units, 395 multiple launch rocket systems, 211 air defence systems, 281 warplanes, 264 helicopters, 1,582 drones, 531 cruise missiles, 16 warships, 4,497 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 163 units of special equipment.
Russia has claimed that its casualties have been much lower but provides infrequent updates on its latest figures.
Avril Haines, the United States Director of National Intelligence, has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is now “better informed” about the challenges his army is facing in Ukraine.
It had previously been assessed that Putin was being shielded by his inner circle from the worst news about his troops’ performance in Ukraine.
Haines said that Putin was “becoming more informed of the challenges that the military faces.”
Haines also said that there will likely be a “reduced tempo” in fighting over the winter, adding: “Most of the fighting right now around Bakhmut and the Donetsk area has slowed down with the withdrawal of Russia from the western Kherson area to the east of the river. And we expect that’s likely to be what we see in the coming months.”
There is ongoing heavy fighting near the key town of Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, where the Russian military has struggled for the last six months to make any substantial progress.
Ukrainian forces are also said to be making headway on the east bank of the Dnipro River after taking control of the city of Kherson.
Russia has also been intensifying its artillery attacks on the Kherson region since abandoning it and withdrawing to the east bank of the river.
There is reportedly a draft resolution circulating at the United Nations proposing a Nuremberg-style tribunal to hold Moscow to account for its crimes in Ukraine.
Rob Malley, the US special envoy on Iran, has said that the Islamic Republic has locked itself into a “vicious cycle” regarding the ongoing protests gripping the country and over providing Russia with weapons.
He said: “The more Iran represses, the more there will be sanctions; the more there are sanctions, the more Iran feels isolated.”
Malley added: “The more isolated they feel, the more they turn to Russia; the more they turn to Russia, the more sanctions there will be, the more the climate deteriorates, the less likely there will be nuclear diplomacy. So it is true right now the vicious cycles are all self-reinforcing.”
Some 500 localities in Ukraine remained without electricity on Sunday after weeks of Russian missile strikes targeting the country’s power grid, according to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry.
