Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv retaking territory, Zelenskyy says, as Nordic leaders urge Putin to end the conflict

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukrainian forces are retaking territory through a series of offensives, adding Kyiv’s battlefield ⁠position was the strongest it had been ⁠in some ​time. The Ukrainian president, citing ⁠a report by senior commanders, noted for the first time the “Veles” operation using pipelines in Ukraine’s northeast. He also referred to an air assault operation in ⁠eastern Ukraine and the “Vivaldi” operation further to the north, designed to prevent Russian advances in ​key areas.

The leaders of Finland and Norway phoned Russian president Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to urge him to end the war in Ukraine. The call by Finnish president Alexander Stubb and Norwegian prime minister Jonas Gahr Stoere was an attempt to ⁠influence the diplomatic process after US president Donald ⁠Trump stunned allies by agreeing to buy Russian diesel, plunging ties with Ukraine to their lowest point in 18 months.

While a localised ceasefire appears to holding in Ukraine’s south, Russian strikes damaged a university campus and Kyiv’s important Southern Bridge overnight, in what Zelenskyy described as “a serious escalation” against ​Ukrainian logistics. A Ukrainian military source told Reuters that Russia ‌had hit the bridge with four Iskander ​ballistic missiles. Zelenskyy said energy facilities, logistics and infrastructure in ​10 other regions had also been attacked overnight.

Kyiv plans to allocate 1 billion hryvnias ($22 ⁠million) to build water crossings over the River Dnipro that divides ⁠the capital into two ⁠parts, ​the city’s mayor has said, as Russia escalates its attacks on ⁠bridges.

Romanian president Nicusor Dan has called an alleged Russian sabotage plot last month a “grave violation” of the Nato member’s sovereignty and security. Dan’s remarks on Tuesday came a day after the Romanian intelligence service said it identified a Russia-coordinated “sabotage network” linked to a fire in central Brasov County last month, which damaged the premises of several commercial entities. Three foreign nationals – two Belarusians and one Ukrainian, all residing in EU countries – were being investigated in connection with the fire. Romania’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday it had summoned Russia’s ambassador in Bucharest. The Russian embassy in Romania said its ambassador rejected the “baseless” accusations.

France has temporarily relocated a maritime patrol aircraft to ⁠Romania to help identify navigation dangers and bolster the protection of critical energy infrastructure ⁠in the Black ⁠Sea. At least eight cargo ships have been hit ⁠near the coast Romania and Bulgaria in the past three weeks, ⁠with about 34 sailors reported dead or missing. Romania’s defence ministry said on Tuesday the purpose is “to identify dangers to navigation and increase the ability to protect critical infrastructure in Romania’s exclusive ⁠economic zone”.

Poland will host a maintenance centre for the US-made Patriot air-defence system. The centre in Poland will be the only one outside the US, deputy defence minister Sobkowiak-Czarnecka said on social media. Poland, a Nato member bordering Ukraine, serves as a major logistics hub for military aid sent by Kyiv’s allies. Patriot interceptor missiles are regarded as among Ukraine’s most important air-defence assets as it seeks to repel escalating Russian missile and drone attacks.

Pope Leo XIV’s chief almsgiver, Monsignor Luis Marín de San Martín, on Tuesday began a three-day visit to Ukraine and was bringing several trucks worth of winter clothes, blankets and food to Kyiv for distribution. Marín de San Martín was planning to visit the capital, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro and Fastiv, Vatican News said. Leo had called for a ceasefire and the delivery of food and medicine in Oleshky, and the safe and voluntary evacuation of its people during a phone calls with Putin and Zelenskyy.