There is also propaganda in the arsenal of war in Ukraine . Moscow claims responsibility for an alleged Russian raid on an enemy troop settlement in Kramatorsk. "An attack with sensational results - according to Moscow - which claimed the killing of 600 soldiers in one fell swoop".

" Nothing more false ," replies Kiev . The fake Orthodox Christmas truce ordered by Vladimir Putin ended as it began. After midnight, when the occupying troops officially reopened hostilities, the bombing of the hottest areas of the conflict resumed. Starting from Kramatorsk.

"More than 600 soldiers were killed in a massive missile raid on temporary enemy bases," Russian Lieutenant General Igor Konashenkov said , adding that two dormitories housing around 1,700 soldiers were targeted. A retaliation that would have come in response to Kiev's illegal attack on a temporary Russian military base in the settlement of Makiivka, during the New Year's Eve dinner.

However, Moscow's announcement of the blow in Kramatorsk has not been confirmed. The Ukrainian armed forces of the Eastern Command dismissed the news as " nonsense ", while the mayor Oleksandr Honcharenko spoke only of damage to buildings (two schools, eight condominiums and a garage). Even international media reporters on the spot, such as CNN and Reuters, found no obvious traces of an attack of this magnitude.

It is hypothesized that Moscow wanted to send a signal of strength for internal use , perhaps to motivate the population, in view of a possible new maxi-recruitment (which Kiev believes is imminent).

In addition to the raids on Kramatorsk , the Ukrainian General Staff recorded about fifty rocket attacks by the invasion forces in different regions of the country. At least three civilians dead and nine injured in Donetsk , Kherson and Kharkiv , while "cluster bombs" were allegedly used in Zaporizhzhia , but without causing any casualties.

Moscow denounces instead that Ukrainian rockets hit two power plants in the occupied Donetsk oblast , killing a woman. On the fighting front, Kiev's deputy defense minister Ganna Maliar admitted a "difficult" situation in Donbass, especially in Soledar, the city close to Bakhmut which remains the bloodiest area.

Meanwhile, Belarus , an ally of Moscow, has announced that joint military exercises will be extended. Putin is putting more and more pressure on Lukashenko to go to war. Putin however, for Western diplomacy , would have already lost: " He underestimated the Ukrainian army ", while his troops showed "an organization that leaves something to be desired. For him it is a political defeat," underlined the Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani .

(Unioneonline/vf)

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