First, a link to a Berkshire Eagle columnist’s update on centuries-long vying for control over the Dnipro rivergate to the Black Sea. Then, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM
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Following in the wake of John Paul Jones, Ukrainians fight for the Kinburn Spit, by James Brooke | The Berkshire Eagle Five years ago, U.S. Navy Seabees built a Ukrainian naval command center and boat repair center at Ochakiv. It was from there that Ukrainian special forces crossed the Dnipro to attack three Russian bases on a strategic strip of sand called the Kinburn Spit. In late October, a video circulated online that appeared to show Ukraine’s largest amphibious assault ship firing rockets at Russian positions on Kinburn. Two weeks ago, photos apparently showed a flattened Russian garrison. READ MORE . . .
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Can Ukraine pay for war without wrecking economy? by David McHugh | AP FRANKFURT, Germany — Even as Ukraine celebrates recent battlefield victories, its government faces a looming challenge on the financial front: how to pay the enormous cost of the war effort without triggering out-of-control price spikes for ordinary people or piling up debt that could hamper postwar reconstruction. The struggle is finding loans or donations to cover a massive budget deficit for next year — and do it without using central bank bailouts that . . . READ MORE . . .
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Russia says it won’t accept oil price cap and is preparing response, by Caleb Davis and Mark Trevelyan | Reuters Russia “will not accept” a price cap on its oil and is analysing how to respond, the Kremlin said in comments reported today, in response to a deal by Western powers aimed at limiting a key source of funding for its war in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. . . READ MORE . . .
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Oil price cap ‘will destroy’ Russia’s economy: Ukraine. From AFP. Ukraine’s presidency today said a $60 price cap on Russian oil agreed by the EU, G7 and Australia “will destroy” Russia’s economy. “We always achieve our goal and Russia’s economy will be destroyed, and it will pay . . . READ MORE . . .
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UN admits that Donetsk is freezing but refrains from saying who is to blame. From Tass. UNITED NATIONS — Donetsk residents cannot heat the homes amid the winter because of ongoing combat operations, UN Secretary General’s Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Friday. “As temperatures continue to drop . . . READ MORE . . .
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MAY BE CONTINUED