Overview
- In a pre‑recorded address, Zelensky said many Ukrainians may privately wish Vladimir Putin would “perish” but urged prayers for peace and emphasized national unity.
- Ukrainian officials say talks with U.S. negotiators have yielded consensus on most elements of a proposed 20‑point framework to halt the war.
- Key disagreements persist over territorial arrangements in Donetsk and the future management of the Russian‑occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
- Zelensky signaled conditional openness to demilitarized or free economic zones monitored by international forces, stressing any such steps would require a nationwide referendum.
- Ukraine reported a Dec. 23 Russian barrage of hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles that killed and injured civilians and crippled power in several western regions, as officials also alleged recent cross‑border abductions of civilians from the Sumy region.