Pope suggests buying fewer Christmas presents and donating to Ukraine instead
From CNN's Delia Gallagher in Rome
Pope Francis speaks as Prefect of the Pontifical House, Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza, left, looks on during the weekly general audience on December 14, at Paul-VI hall in The Vatican. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty Images)
Pope Francis has suggested buying fewer presents at Christmas this year and donating the proceeds to Ukraine instead, as Russia's invasion approaches the ten-month mark.
"Let's have a Christmas with Ukrainians in our hearts," the Pope said during his general audience at the Vatican Wednesday morning.
"They are suffering so much, so so much," Francis added, citing the cold weather and the lack of food and medicine.
"It's good to celebrate this Christmas.
"But let's spend less, have a more humble Christmas with more humble presents and send what we save to the people in Ukraine."
4:55 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Zelensky says "all 13" drones were shot down in Kyiv strikes
From CNN's Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's air defense shot down “all 13” drones used to strike Kyiv on Wednesday, as Moscow launched a barrage of attacks on the capital.
“This morning terrorists started with 13 Shaheds … All 13 were shot down by our Ukrainian air defense. Well done. I am proud. Dear citizens, we thank the air defense, and do not forget about the sirens," Zelensky said.
The assaults were “aimed at the critical infrastructure of the region and capital," according to Oleksii Kuleba, the head of Kyiv regional military administration.
Russia has targeted power facilities across Ukraine in recent months, using missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, in an attempt to wipe out the country's energy infrastructure amid a grueling winter season.
3:31 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
"For Ryazan": Message on downed drone appears to reference alleged air base attack
From CNN's Victoria Butneko and Olga Voitovych in Kyiv, Ukraine
Parts of a drone with "For Ryazan" written in Russian on it are seen at the site of a building damaged by a drone attack in Kyiv on Wednesday. (Gleb Garanich/Reuters)
A drone launched by Russian in assaults on Kyiv Wednesday carried the message "For Ryazan" — an apparent reference to an alleged Ukrainian attack last week on an air base inside Russian territory.
The message was seen in a video posted to Telegram by a Kyiv municipal TV channel.
Last week, Russian officials claimed Ukrainian drones carried out strikes on two air bases and an air field in Russia, with satellite imagery and photographs indicating some damage was done to Russian military planes at one base in the western Ryazan region.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has offered no official comment on the explosions, and the Ukrainian government has not acknowledged adding long-range attack drones to its arsenal.However, a top Ukrainian official last week tweeted a cryptic message hinting at the possibility that Kyiv was indeed behind the attacks.
Kyiv attacks: Serhii Popko, head of Kyiv's military administration, said the number of Russian drones taken out by Ukrainian air defenses over the capital region on Wednesday had climbed to 13.
Popko said “two waves” of drones were launched toward the city, but did not specify the total number of devices.
Fragments of one of the downed drones hit an administrative building and four more residential buildings were "slightly damaged," he said. No casualties were reported.
3:09 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Drone attacks were launched from Sea of Azov, Ukrainian Air Force says
From CNN's Olga Voitovych
The Russian drones that targeted Kyiv in a series of attacks on Wednesday morning were “strike UAVs flying from the east coast of the Sea of Azov,” the Ukrainian Air Force said.
The inland Sea of Azov is located between mainland Ukraine to the north, Crimea to the west and Russia's Kuban region to the east.
Ukraine's air defense forces shot down multiple Iranian-made drones as Kyiv came under a barrage of Russian attacks that damaged buildings, the capital's military administration said earlier.
Attacks from Russian missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, over the past two months have destroyed key infrastructure across Ukraine.
3:09 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Kyiv air defenses shoot down another drone
From CNN’s Victoria Butenko
Ukraine's air defense forces shot down one more Iranian-made "Shahed" drone over the Kyiv region in the early hours of Wednesday, the city's military administration said on Telegram — taking the total to 11.
Earlier, Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported that 10 Russian drones had been taken out.
Two administrative buildings in the city's Shevchenkivskiy district and a home in the village of Vyshneve were damaged in the attacks, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian President’s office.
3:09 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Air defenses shot down most Russian drones in attacks on Kyiv, Ukrainian official says
Rescuers and police officers examine parts of the drone at the site of a building destroyed by a Russian drone attack in Kyiv on Wednesday. (Gleb Garanich/Reuters)
The majority of Russia's drone attacks on the Kyiv region early Wednesday were taken down by Ukraine's air defenses, according to a Ukrainian military official.
Oleksiy Kuleba, head of the Kyiv regional administration, said on Telegram that the day began with a Russian attack on the capital with Iranian-made Shahed drones.
According to preliminary information, two administrative buildings in the city's central Shevchenkivskiy district were damaged, the Kyiv city military administration said.
Kuleba said air raid warnings remained in effect and advised people to take shelter as the threat is ongoing.
Some context: Ukraine has come under a barrage of Russian missile and drone attacks over the past two months that have destroyed key infrastructure across the country.
According to US officials, the Biden administration is finalizing plans to send the Patriot missile defense system to Ukraine in a deal that could be announced as soon as this week. Kyiv has repeatedly asked for the advanced long-range air defense system, which is highly effective at intercepting ballistic and cruise missiles.
3:09 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
10 drones shot down over Kyiv region, mayor says
From CNN's Teele Rebane
Ukrainian air defense forces shot down 10 Iranian-made "Shahed" drones over the Kyiv region, the city's mayor Vitali Klitschko posted on Telegram Wednesday.
He did not provide further details.
It comes after the Kyiv city military administration said "air defense is working in [the] Kyiv region," following explosions heard in the capital early on Wednesday.
3:09 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Kyiv officials say air defenses "working" after explosions heard in capital
From CNN's Josh Pennington
The Kyiv city military administration said "air defense is working in [the] Kyiv region," after explosions were heard in Ukraine's capital early on Wednesday.
"Keep calm and take cover!" the administration said on Telegram.
Earlier Wednesday, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that explosions had been heard in the city.
"Explosions in the Shevchenkiv district of the capital. Response teams are heading to the scene. More updates to come," Klitschko said.
The explosions were heard by CNN reporters in the city.
This post has been updated with the latest information.
12:04 a.m. ET, December 14, 2022
Russian commander says "NATO bloc" in Ukraine can't be beaten without nuclear weapons
From CNN’s Philip Wang
Alexander Khodakovsky attends an interview in Donetsk on February 4. (Kazbek Basayev/Reuters)
Russia can't “defeat the NATO bloc” in Ukraine without using nuclear weapons, a Russian commander in the east of the country said on state television Tuesday.
Commander Alexander Khodakovsky of the Russian militia in the Donetsk region said on Russia-1 that Moscow's resources are limited.
He also claimed that Russia is now fighting the entire Western world, which is why the next escalation of the Ukraine war can “only be one: nuclear.”
“We don't have the resources to defeat the NATO bloc with conventional means. But we have nuclear weapons for that,” Khodakovsky said.
The Kremlin has not publicly responded to Khodakovsky's comments.
Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of the “increasing” threat of nuclear war but said he viewed the Russian nuclear arsenal as a deterrent rather than a provocation.
