Zelensky confronts Orban amid EU aid row

Only one in 10 Americans think the United States needs to send more aid to Ukraine, a poll has revealed.

A Financial Times-Michigan Ross poll found that just 11 per cent of voters believe the US is not spending enough on Ukraine, compared to 27 per cent who back current aid levels and 48 per cent who say too much is being spent.

The poll of 1,004 Americans comes amid the continuing deadlock in Congress over a proposed £48bn ($60bn) in new funding for Ukraine.

Hungary should not break “European unity” by vetoing Ukraine’s accession talks, the EU’s foreign policy chief has said.

“I hope that European unity will not be broken because this isn’t the moment to weaken our support to Ukraine,” said Josep Borrell ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

Elina Valtonen, Finland’s foreign minister, said Hungary’s opposition to Ukrainian membership was “very, very deplorable”.

“It is crucial that we keep on aiding Ukraine for as long as it’s needed, and it’s not only for the cause of Ukraine, but also for our own cause,” she added.

Every EU member state needs to approve talks with a prospective new member before they can begin.

The eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka is seeing the “most intense” fighting anywhere in Ukraine with as much as 40 per cent of all combat taking place there, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

“As reflected in official Ukrainian public release data, on some days approaching 40 per cent of all combat engagements have likely taken place in this small sector,” it said.

“The Russian offensives have continued to be characterised by largely dismounted infantry assaults, often by Storm-Z penal units.”

The MoD added that Ukrainian forces have “likely conducted” successful counter-attacks.

Ukraine has moved lorries to Poland by rail after roads were blocked by protesting truckers.

State railways company Ukrzaliznytsia said the trucks would “continue to their destination by road”.

Ukraine says 3,500 lorries are blocked on the Polish side of the border because of the disruption by disgruntled hauliers protesting against what they say is unfair competition.

Border blockades are also ongoing in Hungary and Slovakia.

It would be “devastating” if the European Union did not vote to start accession talks with Ukraine, foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has said.

“I cannot imagine, I don’t even want to talk about the devastating consequences that will occur shall the (European) Council fail to make this decision,” Kuleba told reporters as he arrived for a meeting with EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

The EU is meeting on Thursday and Friday to discuss commencing membership talks with Ukraine.

Britain will donate £3.7million ($4.6million) to Ukraine to support war crimes investigations.

Ukrainian prosecutors have recorded more than 110,000 war crimes by Russian forces since the invasion in February 2022.

The funding will be used to train prosecutors in open-source intelligence techniques and preparing well-evidenced cases.

Tariq Ahmad, a foreign minister of state, said the package would help Ukraine “hold perpetrators to account and ensure that survivor-centered justice is served”.

The funding is in addition to a previous pledge of £2.5million ($3.1million).

Russia made confirmed advances at multiple points along the frontline over the weekend, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank has said.

The ISW said Russian forces advanced to the north, west and south-west of Bakhmut, to the west of Donetsk city and also near Avdiivka.

The Ukrainian army’s general staff said on Sunday that 60 contacts took place over the course of the day.

“The enemy continues to conduct offensive actions along the entire frontline,” said Colonel General Alexander Syrsky, head of the Ukrainian army’s ground forces.

Russia’s long-awaited winter bombing campaign against Ukraine’s power grid has begun, the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

In a defence intelligence briefing on Sunday, the MoD said Russian missile strikes on Kyiv on Thursday were likely “the start of a more concerted campaign”.

Russia has long been expected to repeat the artillery, drone and missile campaign that it conducted on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in 2022.

“Russia has almost certainly been stockpiling these missiles for use in the winter campaign,” the MoD added.

“Despite at least one civilian reported killed, the damage currently appears to have been minimal.”

Slovakian truckers have resumed their blockade of the Ukrainian border.

The UNAS hauliers union is protesting against what it says is unfair competition from rival Ukrainian firms.

The union had “paused” its blockade of the Uzhhorod-Vysne Nemecke crossing on 4 December but has now restarted it.

Boss Stanislav Skala said it would continue “until further notice”.

Truckers in Hungary and Poland have also blocked border crossings in protest against Ukrainian competition.

Russian missile strikes on Kyiv injured four people in the early hours on Monday.

Serhii Popko, the city’s military chief, said that Russian missiles struck the Darnytskyi and Holosiivskyi districts at 4am.

One man, 31, suffered a shrapnel injury and three women – 31, 33 and 60 – were treated for acute reactions to stress.

The Ukrainian air force said it shot down eight missiles and 18 drones overnight.