Here is the situation on Monday, December 2:

Fighting

One person was killed and several others injured following Russia’s drone attack on Ukraine’s western city of Ternopil, according to Viacheslav Negoda, the head of the military administration of Ternopil region. Parts of the residential building, where the victims were staying were also damaged by fire.

At least three people were killed in a Russian drone attack on the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, according to regional Governor Oleksandr Prokudin. Seven others were wounded in the attack.

A Russian missile strike on a town in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region killed at least four people, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. More than a dozen others were wounded, including a child.

One child was killed in Russia’s western Bryansk region following a massive Ukrainian drone attack, Governor Alexander Bogomaz said, adding that the attacks destroyed one house in the Starodubsky district.

Russia’s air defence systems destroyed 15 Ukrainian drones over several Russian regions overnight, the RIA state news agency reported citing Russia’s Ministry of Defence.

The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces had gained control over two settlements, Illinka and Petrivka, in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.

The ministry also said its air defence shot down 55 Ukrainian drones in the past 24 hours.

Politics and diplomacy

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has pledged additional military support worth 650 million euros ($680 million) as he made a surprise visit to war-torn Ukraine, to reaffirm Berlin’s support for Kyiv in its fight against Russia.

Zelenskyy called on the outgoing United States President Joe Biden to help convince NATO members to invite Ukraine to join the alliance.

In Kyiv, Zelenskyy met European Council President Antonio Costa for talks and praised his decision to visit Ukraine immediately after starting his job. He told Costa and the European Union’s new head of diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, that Ukraine needs security guarantees from NATO and more weapons to defend itself before any talks with Russia.

The US is not considering returning to Ukraine the nuclear weapons it gave up after the Soviet Union collapsed, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said, following reports that some unidentified Western officials had suggested to Biden to do just that before he leaves office.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has accused China of providing Russia with weapons for its war against Ukraine and threatening peace in Europe and the Asia Pacific. Baerbock is scheduled to visit Beijing next week for a meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a military-focused budget for 2025-27, a document published on the official legal acts website showed. It includes a 25 percent hike in military spending as the country continues its military operation in Ukraine.

European Council President Antonio Costa, left, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attend a joint news conference after their meeting in Kyiv, December 1, 2024 [Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA]