Europe

PARIS (AP) — Dozens of countries and international organizations threw their weight and hundreds of millions of euros (dollars) behind a fresh and urgent push Tuesday to keep Ukraine powered, fed, warm and moving this winter, responding defiantly to sustained Russian aerial bombardments that have plunged millions into the cold and dark by targeting critical infrastructure.

An international donor conference in Paris quickly racked up pledges of financial and in-kind support to help Ukraine’s beleaguered civilian population survive winter’s freezing temperatures and long nights.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be holding his annual year-end marathon news conference this month amid the war in Ukraine, a break in the long-held tradition that observers have attributed to the Kremlin’s uneasiness about a string of battlefield setbacks.

MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/: Russian forces struck over 230 Ukrainian army sites in the past day during the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Monday.

"Operational-tactical aircraft, missile troops and artillery destroyed 83 Ukrainian artillery units at firing positions, and also manpower and military hardware in 156 areas," the spokesman said.

BELGRADE, December 12./TASS/: Serbia urges the EU member countries that do not recognize the independence of Kosovo to prevent Pristina from submitting an application for European Union membership on December 15, Serbia’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic said on Monday.

"We are working on this, to urge all EU member nations that have not recognized Kosovo to contest this issue from the point of view of status, that is [from the point of view] that there are no necessary conditions to discuss this," Dacic told the Tanjug news agency.

MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin's annual news conference will not take place until the New Year, but it is expected that the head of state will find an opportunity to talk to the media, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.

"As for th eannual news conference, yes, there won't be one before the New Year, but we expect that the president will still find an opportunity to talk to [reporters], as he does regularly, including during his foreign visits," Peskov said.

BRUSSELS, December 12. /TASS/: EU members failed to agree on the ninth package of sanctions against Russia in time during a meeting in Brussels among top diplomats. Disagreements do remain, therefore, the ministerial deliberations on the sanctions will be very difficult, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrel said on Monday upon his arrival at the EU Council Meeting at the level of foreign ministers.

MOSCOW, December 12./TASS/: Representatives from the Vatican have not yet apologized for Pope Francis’ remarks about the cruelty of Buryat and Chechen soldiers, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on her Telegram channel, commenting on statements from the Vatican’s Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, who said the city-state could be a suitable place to host negotiators for dialogue on Ukraine.

PARIS/NEW DELHI, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Air India is close to placing landmark orders for as many as 500 jetliners worth tens of billions of dollars from both Airbus and Boeing as it carves out an ambitious renaissance under the Tata Group conglomerate, industry sources said on Sunday.

The orders include as many as 400 narrow-body jets and 100 or more wide-bodies, including dozens of Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s and 777s, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity as finishing touches are placed on the mammoth deal in coming days.

KYIV, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Russian forces pounded targets in eastern and southern Ukraine with missiles, drones and artillery, Ukraine's General Staff said on Monday, as millions remained without power in subzero cold after further Russian strikes on key infrastructure.

The Group of Seven (G7) economic powers said they would keep working together to bolster Ukraine's military capabilities, with an immediate focus on air defence systems, according to a leaders' statement released by Britain.

BRUSSELS, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The European Parliament moved on Monday to strip one of its members of her role as vice president after she and others faced criminal charges over allegations Qatar lavished them with cash and gifts to influence decision-making.

Greece on Monday froze the assets of a key suspect in the case, Eva Kaili, one of 14 vice presidents of the parliament and among four people arrested and charged in Belgium at the weekend, a source with knowledge of the matter said.