January 5, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Head of the Office of President of Ukraine, said Russia must leave “occupied territories” in Ukraine before any “temporary truce."

“First. Ukraine doesn't attack foreign territory and doesn't kill civilians. As RF [Russian Federation] does. Ukraine destroys only members of the occupation army on its territory," Podolyak said.  

“Second. RF must leave the occupied territories — only then will it have a ‘temporary truce’. Keep hypocrisy to yourself,” Podolyak said on Twitter.

Prior to Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement of a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine, Podolyak responded to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow’s appeal for a “Christmas truce," saying the statement was a “cynical trap and an element of propaganda”. 

“ROC called for the genocide of Ukrainians, incited mass murder and insists on even greater militarization of RF [Russian Federation]," he added.

Some background: Kirill has been a vocal supporter of the war in Ukraine and gave a sermon in which he said that “military duty washes away all sins."

The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church has also been locked in a feud with Pope Francis, who has described the invasion of Ukraine as Russian “expansionism and imperialism.”

Serhiy Hayday, head of Luhansk region military administration, also said, "Russia cannot be trusted. Not a single word they say."

“Regarding this truce, they just want to get some kind of a pause for a day or two to pull even more reserves, bring some more ammo,” he told Ukrainian television.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ordered his defense minister to implement a ceasefire in Ukraine for 36 hours on Jan. 6 and 7 to allow Orthodox Christians to attend Christmas services, according to a statement from the Kremlin. 

Many Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on Jan. 7. 

Earlier on Thursday, Patriarch Kirill — the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church and a vocal supporter of the war — had called for a temporary ceasefire.

At least four people have been killed in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region on Thursday, according to Ukrainian officials.

A family of three was killed in their home in the city of Beryslav due to shelling, said Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.

"This is all the baseness and meanness of Russia. In the morning, they talk about the ‘Christmas ceasefire,’ and in the afternoon they kill the whole family. What did the husband, wife and their 12-year-old son do wrong? The fact that they are just Ukrainians?" Tymoshenko wrote on Telegram, making a reference to Patriarch Kirill's call for a temporary ceasefire for Orthodox Christmas.

Shelling in the city of Kherson also killed an 18-year-old man, said Yaroslav Yanushevych, head of Kherson region military administration.

The city of Kherson was retaken from Russian forces in November.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has positioned himself as a broker in the Russia-Ukraine conflict throughout 2022, held separate phone calls Thursday with both President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky.

He told Zelensky that Turkey was ready to undertake a mediator and facilitator role for lasting peace between Russia and Ukraine and that it could provide diplomatic efforts regarding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, a Turkish government readout of the call said.

In his call with Putin, Erdogan told him that calls for peace and negotiations should be supported by a unilateral declaration of ceasefire and a vision of “a fair solution.”

Putin, however, told Erdogan that Moscow is open to "serious dialogue," but Kyiv must accept the “new territorial realities,” according to a Kremlin statement. 

Putin also emphasized “the destructive role of the West, pumping Ukraine with weapons and providing it with target designation,” the Kremlin said. 

The readout also mentioned that the two leaders discussed expanding ties in the energy sector and Putin also asked to lift barriers on Russian exports as part of the Black Sea grain deal.

What Zelensky says: Later on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he and Erdogan “discussed security cooperation” between their two countries and “nuclear safety issues, in particular the situation at ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station).”

“There should be no invaders there. We also talked about the exchange of prisoners of war with Turkish mediation, the development of the grain agreement. We appreciate Türkiye's willingness to take part in the implementation of our Peace Formula,” Zelensky said on Telegram, following a phone call between the two leaders.

The Belarusian Ministry of Defense announced Thursday it is continuing to increase its joint military grouping with Russia in Belarus.

The ministry also announced upcoming joint air force exercises between the two countries.  

“As part of ensuring the military security of the Union State, the build-up of the regional grouping of troops (forces) of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation continues,” the ministry said in a news release. 

“Further combat coordination activities are planned with the arriving units at the training grounds of the Republic of Belarus,” according to the release.

Planned joint air force exercises are aimed at increasing the level of combat training for Belarusian and Russian air force members, the ministry said.

Some background: Russian forces are based in Belarus and used its territory in the initial invasion of Ukraine in February. But President Alexander Lukashenko has gone to some lengths to ensure that Belarus' troops do not become involved in Russia's "special military operation," the euphemism that the country calls its war in Ukraine. 

Last month, Ukraine warned it does "not rule out" a "deliberate provocation" from Russia after Belarus said that the wreckage of a Ukrainian missile landed on its territory.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday warned of the danger of underestimating Russia during President Vladimir Putin’s “war of aggression against Ukraine.”

“The Ukrainian forces have inflicted heavy losses on Russia in Ukraine. But Russians have once again shown a willingness to take great risks and endure great human losses,” Stoltenberg said in a speech at a business conference in Oslo, Norway.

“It is dangerous to underestimate Russia,” Stoltenberg continued. 

Tennis Australia is to stand by its decision to allow Russian and Belarusian players to compete at the upcoming Australian Open in the face of demands from the Ukrainian ambassador in Australia to implement a ban.

A statement from Tennis Australia on Thursday said: “Players from Russia and Belarus are only able to compete in international tennis events as individuals – and without flags or country recognition – which will be the case for Australian Open 2023.”

“Tennis Australia stands united with the international governing bodies of tennis – the Grand Slams, the ATP and WTA Tours and the ITF – in its condemnation of Russia’s actions and its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine," it said. "The governing bodies of tennis issued a statement in March 2022 expressing shock, distress and sadness, along with a pledge to provide ongoing support for the people of Ukraine." 

“Russia and Belarus were immediately suspended from all tennis team competition and official WTA and ATP Tour events in those countries were cancelled,” Tennis Australia added. 

Some background: That statement came in response to Ukraine's ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, arguing that the tournament should not permit Russian players. A tweet Wednesday from the Embassy’s official account quotes Myroshnychenko as saying, “It doesn’t matter what flag Russian Federation players compete under. It has Ukrainian blood on it.”

On his own Twitter feed Tuesday, Myroshnychenko shared an interview with Sky News Australia, where he said, “We know how important it is for Russia to have their athletes perform.”

“Russians are really paying a great deal of attention to the performance of their athletes and this is pretty much an extension of their foreign policy, an extension of what they want to convey to the world,” he said. 

In 2022, Wimbledon banned all Russian and Belarusian players from competing in any guise as a result of the invasion.

The 2023 Australian Open runs from Jan. 16 through Jan. 29.

Video footage has emerged purporting to show Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin congratulating recruited prisoners who have been pardoned after serving six-month contracts in Ukraine.

Russian state media RIA Novosti published video in which Prigozhin is seen hugging, shaking hands and talking to alleged Wagner recruits who have finished their stint in Ukraine.

“The first, yes. You are the first,” he continues, suggesting that these recruits were the first to be recruited out of Russian prisons and given six-month contracts to serve as mercenaries in order to receive a pardon.

In the summer of 2022, videos began appearing showing Prigozhin in prisons offering amnesty for prisoners in return for a six-month contract on the front lines in Ukraine.

In the videos, Prigozhin is dressed in khaki military fatigues and is surrounded by a group of men.

“These are warriors. They were born warriors and now they've seen they are warriors," he says. "Today, there is a war going on. And they need to protect their homes during that war."

Prigozhin is then seen addressing other apparent recruits.

"Don't drink too much; don't do drugs; don't rape women. Don't cause trouble," he says.

RIA Novosti suggested that some of those who recently received their pardon will be returning to the Wagner ranks.

“We want to return to finish what we started and continue to defend our homeland. Beat the Nazis, as our grandfathers did," says an unnamed man quoted by RIA Novosti.

In August, CNN reported that recruiters, likely from Wagner, were touring Russian prisons searching for recruits. One prisoner told CNN that recruiters came to his prison in the first half of July.

Video of Prigozhin touring prisons himself began to surface online over the summer, and in recent weeks he has become more prominent in Russian state media.

Wagner forces are largely involved in fighting around the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. Over the weekend Prigozhin said there was a “fortress in every house” in the city.

CNN has previously reported on Wagner recruits being killed in fighting around Bakhmut. A Zambian national was killed there in September 2022. 

Ukraine suffered a 30% hit to its economy in 2022, according to new figures from its economy ministry, but that's a smaller decrease than some previous predictions.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Russian Orthodox church, Patriarch Kirill, has called for a ceasefire to mark Orthodox Christmas on January 7.

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