Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for a faster build-up of major defensive lines amid Kyiv’s stalled counteroffensive and concerns that Russia could attempt to take more territory.

A new poll in Ukraine showed that two-fifths of respondents back joining Nato even if it means territories outside Kyiv’s control remain outside the alliance. 

Russia wants foreigners entering the country to sign a “loyalty agreement” pledging not to challenge the Kremlin on issues like President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine and a ban on promoting LGBTQI+ relationships, according to the Tass news service.

Majority in Ukraine against joining Nato without occupied territories — poll 

A new poll in Ukraine showed that two-fifths of respondents back joining Nato even if it means territories outside Kyiv’s control remain outside the alliance. 

A total of 40% of those asked said they fully or rather supported the idea of Ukraine joining the bloc with only those territories currently under government control, according to the telephone survey of 1,000 people conducted by the Rating pollster on 22-23 November. Support for Nato accession slipped to 77% from 83% in July and is now at the same level as it was in March 2022, shortly after Russia started its invasion. 

Still, 53% of respondents said they would rather not support or didn’t support at all the idea of Ukraine joining Nato without the occupied regions.

The Nato-Ukraine council met in Brussels on Wednesday for the first time at the level of foreign ministers to further deepen relations and to help Ukraine rebuild its security and defence. Zelensky visited the alliance’s headquarters last month for the first time since the invasion, as the focus of Western partners shifted to the conflict in the Middle East.

Russia ramps up drone output as war stokes industrial growth

Russia is increasing the domestic production of battle drones, one of its most important combat weapons, alongside a surge in other military-related manufacturing as the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine enters a second winter with no end in sight. 

Although there are no public data on the specific number of drones being produced, official statistics have shown an about 80% annual increase in the production of remote-controlled equipment, including those used for guiding combat unmanned aerial vehicles, in recent months. Federal Statistics Service data published late on Wednesday show that in October, the output in this category, listed under “most important product types” in the report, grew by 33% compared with the previous year.

Overall, industrial production in Russia grew 5.3% in October from the same period last year.

The surge in production follows recent reports that Russia has opened new factories to manufacture drones in several regions. Moscow has also increased the supply of drones to its military forces, and recently fired off its biggest barrage of them against Ukraine in the war so far, with Kyiv saying 75 struck the country on the day it commemorated the 90th anniversary of the yearlong Soviet-era famine known as the Holodomor. One newly created manufacturer estimated its output at 500 drones per month.

Rostec, the state-owned defence conglomerate under a raft of European and US sanctions, said that it had expanded its UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) production capabilities this year, allowing it to boost the output of different loitering munitions models multiple times. 

Russia’s capacity to domestically produce drones is growing despite sanctions meant to curtail the country’s ability to manufacture advanced weapons. That’s key for President Vladimir Putin who is betting his country can outlast the West’s willingness to supply weapons to Ukraine amid signs that the support of some of Kyiv’s allies may be starting to waver.

Putin’s daughter pursues digital plan in push to embrace Africa

Russia is stepping up its pursuit of closer ties with Africa by offering digital expertise in a strategy backed by Putin’s younger daughter.

Officials from around three dozen African countries have been invited to Moscow next month to meet Russian IT specialists and investors pitching digital services aimed at improving governance. 

The project is supported by the Innopraktika Center, which is affiliated with the National Intellectual Development Foundation, where Putin’s younger daughter Katerina Tikhonova is the general director.

Putin is expanding his outreach to Africa as the Kremlin seeks closer ties with countries of the Global South to counter the impact of US and European sanctions over Russia’s war in Ukraine. By promoting its digital expertise in areas ranging from cybersecurity to public services and electronic voting, Russia may gain an advantage in the competition with China, the US and the European Union for influence on the continent.  

Russia “lost a lot of time” in Africa and must catch up in developing relations, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Tuesday at a discussion on relations with the continent at the annual Primakov Readings forum in Moscow. “We need to act faster, more energetically and more effectively.”

Russian Wagner group mercenaries deployed in a number of African states in recent years have helped the Kremlin restore some of its Soviet-era influence in the resource-rich region that was lost after the Cold War. 

Russia also began shipments this week to deliver 200,000 tonnes of free grain to six African countries by the end of the year.

EU’s Jourova praises Ukraine’s anti-graft effort

European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova sees an effective anti-graft system emerging in Ukraine as the wartorn nation looks toward opening membership talks with the bloc.

“Ukraine is doing everything to strengthen the fight against corruption,” Jourova said during a press briefing in Kyiv after her meetings with the country’s prime minister, justice minister and chiefs of anti-graft institutions.

Corruption cases are becoming more visible as Ukraine gets better at uncovering them, Jourova said. She described herself as “impressed” with Kyiv’s efforts and said she would bring this message to Brussels and member states as they discuss opening talks with Ukraine on prospective EU membership. 

The EU backed opening membership talks for Ukraine earlier this month, which will need to be approved by the bloc’s leaders at a summit in December. To open the way for negotiations, Kyiv will need to enact legislation on minorities, corruption and lobbying, to bring laws in line with European standards as part of its “anti-oligarch action plan”.

Russia wants foreign visitors to sign ‘loyalty’ pledge to regime

Russia wants foreigners entering the country to sign a “loyalty agreement” pledging not to challenge the Kremlin on issues like Putin’s war in Ukraine and a ban on promoting LGBTQI+ relationships, according to the Tass news service.

Under a draft law prepared by the Interior Ministry, foreign entrants would sign a declaration agreeing to comply with prohibitions “established to protect the national interests of Russia”, the state-run news service reported Wednesday, citing the document. It was unclear if the measure would apply only to short-stay visitors or also to foreigners granted long-term visas to live and work in Russia.

The draft law would oblige them not to “discredit” Russia’s policies and political leaders, or deny “significant moral and other values, including ideas about marriage as a union of a man and a woman” by engaging in “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations”, Tass said. Attempts to “distort” the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War 2 would also be covered by the pledge.

Since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has conducted the most sweeping crackdown on dissent at home in decades, jailing Putin’s most prominent critics and forcing others to flee abroad to escape imprisonment. With Putin likely to announce his candidacy shortly for a fifth presidential term in March elections, officials now appear to be focused on suppressing any potential protest or criticism of his rule. 

Zelensky calls for new fortifications amid fears war may expand

Zelensky called for a faster buildup of major defensive lines amid Kyiv’s stalled counteroffensive and concerns that Russia could attempt to take more territory.

Zelensky urged greater speed and efficiency in building defences in a video statement on Telegram after meeting key military and security officials on Tuesday evening. He encouraged local communities to pitch in and pledged to make money available for the effort. 

“Our country will definitely have enough mines and concrete,” he said. He didn’t provide details on where the fortifications would be built or how extensive they might be. 

Ukraine’s counteroffensive stalled over the past months as Kyiv’s troops became bogged down trying to penetrate thick lines of defence built by Russia that include minefields and trench systems stretching for kilometres. Putin has been keeping up the military pressure by sending more soldiers to the frontlines despite heavy casualties. 

The fighting may again expand beyond the east and south of Ukraine if Russia continues to boost its weapons production and improve military technologies with the help of its allies, Serhii Nayev, commander of the United Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, told ABC News in an interview last weekend. DM