December 6, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Kathleen Magramo, Jack Guy and Adrienne Vogt, CNN

Updated 2:01 a.m. ET, December 7, 2022
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7:48 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Strong international support for Ukraine has likely impacted China's thinking on Taiwan, Blinken says

From CNN's Jennifer Hansler

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that the strong international support for Ukraine has likely impacted China's thinking about Taiwan.

Blinken reiterated that the United States is determined to preserve peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and indicated that robust support to Ukraine would help rather than deter that goal.

His comments came in response to a question from CNN’s Kylie Atwood about a letter to Blinken from Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, who voiced “concern about reports that U.S. arms transfers to Ukraine are impeding our ability to prevent a war in Asia by supplying Taiwan with the weapons it needs to deter a Chinese invasion.”

Blinken said he couldn’t speak to the issue of weapons systems, but pushed back on the argument that Hawley put forward: “Taiwan is more important for U.S. national interests than Ukraine.”

“I think, in fact, if it's exactly the opposite, in the sense that China is watching very carefully what's happening in Ukraine, watching very carefully the response of the United States and countries around the world to the Russian aggression,” Blinken said at a press conference at the State Department with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and their Australian counterparts.

Blinken said Beijing has seen “countries coming together in extraordinary ways to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs to defend itself, to put tremendous pressure on Russia to ends its aggression, and as well, to make sure that, in the case of NATO, we're strengthening our own capacity to defend ourselves in case that aggression were to spread.”

“And I think that has to have an impact on China's thinking about the future and about what it may be looking at in terms of Taiwan,” he said.

Some context: Under the “One China” policy, the US acknowledges China’s position that Taiwan is part of China but has never officially recognized the Communist Party’s claim to the self-governing island of 23 million. The US provides Taiwan with defensive weapons but has remained intentionally ambiguous on whether it would intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack.

6:20 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

US is not preventing Ukraine from developing long-range strike capabilities, defense secretary says

From CNN's Kylie Atwood, Michael Conte and Jennifer Hansler

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks at a press conference at the State Department in Washington, DC, on December 6.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks at a press conference at the State Department in Washington, DC, on December 6. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)

The US is not working to prevent Ukraine from developing its own long-range strike capabilities that could potentially target inside Russian territory, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.

“We are not working to prevent Ukraine from developing their own capability,” Austin said on Tuesday. 

His comments come after a top US State Department official on Tuesday suggested that the Ukrainians were behind the recent drone strikes on two Russian bases, and directly accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of committing war crimes by targeting civilian populations and infrastructure.

Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland told CNN that “nobody has claimed responsibility” for the drone strikes, but added that “the Ukrainian people are incredibly innovative; they are making their own drones, air and sea, that are incredibly effective.”

Additionally, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that the US has “neither encouraged nor enabled the Ukrainians to strike inside of Russia.”  

Speaking at a press conference with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and their Australian counterparts, Blinken said he was aware of the reported drone strikes on Russian territory, but had no further information.

4:23 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Ukraine is reaching out to former Soviet states for help with energy equipment

From CNN's Julia Kesaieva

Ukraine says it is working with international partners to help restore its energy sector after several waves of Russian missile attacks against critical infrastructure over the last several weeks.

A large delivery of equipment from France is about to be delivered, Herman Halushchenko, the Ukrainian minister of energy, said in a statement Friday.

The manufacture of new power equipment is a rather long process, so the Ukrainian side "accepts assistance in the form of used equipment that is in working condition," he added.

Notably, he said Ukraine was talking with former Soviet republics, including Azerbaijan.

"The Baltic countries also help us significantly. I would like to highlight Lithuania, which has already transferred a large amount of equipment, and another part is on its way to us," he said.

5:12 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Ukraine reduces power deficit as Russian strikes continue in south

From CNN's Tim Lister and Julia Kesaieva

People walk down a street in downtown Kyiv on December 6.
People walk down a street in downtown Kyiv on December 6. (Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP/Getty Images)

Ukraine said it has reduced its "power deficit" as engineers work to restore infrastructure damaged by waves of Russian missile strikes.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that after Monday's attacks, "power engineers promise to eliminate the consequences" in the coming days.

"At the same time, the power deficit in the energy system will remain. Currently, it is 19% of the forecast consumption," he said. It has been higher than 30% in recent weeks.

Even so, Shmyhal said, "35% of key facilities of the main power grids have been damaged by massive attacks by the Russians in recent months."

"The enemy fired seven missiles at once at one of the substations in the Odesa region. Therefore, power outages schedules are still in effect in the country," he added.

Odesa Mayor Hennadii Trukhanov said that water supply and sewage treatment had been restored by Tuesday evening.

Eleven district and quarter boiler houses —used for heating — were operating, serving about 88% of consumers. "This means that more than 600,000 Odesa residents have heat," Trukhanov said.

More strikes in the south: Russian missile and artillery attacks have continued elsewhere in southern Ukraine.

Yaroslav Yanushevych, the head of Kherson region military administration, said Tuesday that "Russian occupiers shelled Kherson city again, hitting an "infrastructure facility and residential buildings."

One person had been killed and a large fire was extinguished, he said.

Further north, Russians attacked the city of Kryvyi Rih.

Valentyn Reznichenko, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, said an industrial enterprise had been hit.

Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih district, said the strike appeared to have been by a ballistic missile, calling them "very significant destructions."

Vilkul said that after Monday's missile attacks, the gradual restoration of electricity had begun. But hourly and scheduled outages would continue "to keep the power system of Ukraine intact."

3:25 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

State Department says US is not "enabling" or "encouraging" Ukraine to strike within Russia

From CNN's Michael Conte and Jennifer Hansler

State Department spokesperson Ned Price speaks during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, DC, in November.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price speaks during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, DC, in November. (Susan Waslh/AP/File)

The US State Department said the US is not “enabling” or “encouraging Ukraine to strike beyond its borders” with lethal aid, after Russia blamed several recent attacks on Russian military infrastructure on Ukraine.

“We are providing Ukraine with what it needs to use on its sovereign territory, on Ukrainian soil, to take on Russian aggressors, Russian aggressors that have crossed over the border,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said.

Price said that the US has not “provided Ukraine with weapons that it is to use inside of Russia.”

“We have been very clear that these are defensive supplies,” Price said.

In an earlier interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland suggested that Ukrainians were behind the recent drone strikes on two Russian bases.  

“The Ukrainians are enormously innovative. They are working very hard with their own technologies and their own equipment,” she said. 

Nuland, who just returned from a trip to Kyiv, said the US policy of not providing Ukraine with offensive weaponry that could strike Russian territory has not changed.

2:35 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Ukrainian foreign minister says allies are assisting in strengthening country's defense

From CNN's Tim Lister

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the country is strengthening its defense industry in association with Western partners.

In an online briefing, Kuleba said Ukraine's allies had also stepped up weapons production and improved supply chains to help Ukraine.

"We continue to work on strengthening the military production capacities of Ukraine's defense industry with the participation of international partners," he said.

"Partner governments are already mobilizing industries and allocating additional funds for training and retention of personnel, as well as investments in supply chains," Kuleba added.

He said Ukraine was receiving military aid from "at least 20 countries," which include many NATO members.

"Allies have announced the transfer of 155mm artillery, shells and armored vehicles to Ukraine. I am especially grateful to our American partners: in early December, the Pentagon signed a $1.2 billion contract with Raytheon Technologies for the production of six NASAMS anti-aircraft missile systems for Ukraine," Kuleba said.  

NASAMS are highly advanced anti-air systems which have helped Ukraine intercept and destroy a growing proportion of Russian missiles.

Kuleba also said he was grateful to Germany for strengthening their air defenses by transferring a further seven Gepard anti-aircraft systems.

3:40 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Senior US official suggests Ukraine is behind drone strikes on Russian bases

From CNN's Jennifer Hansler

CCTV footage geolocated by CNN to the Russian city of Engels, where a Russian air base is located, appears to show an explosion lighting up the sky at around 6 a.m. on Monday morning.
CCTV footage geolocated by CNN to the Russian city of Engels, where a Russian air base is located, appears to show an explosion lighting up the sky at around 6 a.m. on Monday morning. (From Twitter)

A top US State Department official on Tuesday suggested that Ukrainians were behind the recent drone strikes on two Russian bases and directly accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of committing war crimes by targeting civilian populations and infrastructure.

In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland noted that “nobody has claimed responsibility” for the drone strikes on the Russian bases Monday.

“But the targets were the very precise bombers that the Russians have been using to attack critical infrastructure,” she said, noting that “the Ukrainian people are incredibly innovative; they are making their own drones, air and sea, that are incredibly effective.”

Nuland, who just returned from a trip to Kyiv, said the US policy of not providing Ukraine with offensive weaponry that could strike Russian territory has not changed. 

“As I said, the Ukrainians are enormously innovative. They are working very hard with their own technologies and their own equipment,” she told Amanpour.

Although US officials have said that war crimes are being committed in Ukraine, they've often shied away from definitively naming specific acts or actors, citing ongoing investigations into the crimes. President Joe Biden in March did label Putin a "war criminal."

Nuland directly called out the Russian leader for war crimes.

“What we have to remember is that Putin has now brought this war to every civilian home, and that is a war crime,” she said. 

Nuland said Putin had initiated a new phase to the war, noting that “when he couldn't win on the battlefield, he decided to try to freeze Ukraine.”

On Monday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the Ukrainians were collecting war crimes evidence, but said he did not “want to prejudge where this is going.”

“I don’t want to prejudge it, but all I can say is this: Accountability for what’s happened is very important,” he said.

1:04 p.m. ET, December 6, 2022

Ukrainian defense chief claims Russia has nearly exhausted its stocks of precision missiles

From Olga Voitovych

The head of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine said Russia has nearly exhausted its arsenal of high-precision missiles and has so far not received ballistic missiles from Iran.

Kyrylo Budanov said on Ukrainian television that Russian stocks of high-precision missile weapons "are already coming to an end."

"However, as we see, they decided to go to the end, to zero, which, in fact, is very bad for the Russian Federation itself and the military there are aware of this problem," he said.

CNN is unable to verify the level of Russian missile stocks, which has previously been underestimated by Ukrainian officials.

"There is production of new missiles, but it is absolutely meager, compared to the huge number that they are using," Budanov said. "Only a few types of high-precision missile weapons are produced."

"In reality, they have [missiles] for a few more large-scale attacks and they will reach full zero," he claimed.

Budyanov also said that "as of now, Iran has not delivered any ballistic missile to Russia."

He also sounded bullish about the overall military situation, saying, "Ukraine has already won, everyone in the world feels it. We also understand it. ...There will be some more difficult times, but Russia's loss is a done deal. They themselves are well aware of this."