German newspaper: Ukraine will focus on inflicting maximum damage on Moscow.

In an interview with the Welt newspaper, Nico Lange, a former German defense official and now a senior fellow at the Munich Security Conference, noted that despite growing pessimism in the West regarding Ukraine's progress on the battlefield, Kyiv maintains a considerable amount of military equipment and expects further deliveries from the West. The expert suggested: "Ukraine may be gathering resources for a new counteroffensive next year," adding that Kyiv could launch a new offensive in the Kherson region and attempt to cross the Dnieper River by force.

The Welt newspaper noted that Ukraine “still has big plans,” explaining that these ambitions are evidenced by Kyiv’s wish list sent to the US, which includes attack helicopters, advanced fighter jets, long-range missile systems, Abrams tanks, and other equipment. Meanwhile, Bild reported that Ukraine is outlining a “new war plan.” According to the magazine, Kyiv has abandoned its plan to push Russia out of territories it claims, instead focusing on inflicting maximum damage on Moscow.

Meanwhile, in an interview with NBC, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the US must reconsider its current stance on both the Ukraine conflict and its relations with Russia if it wants to restore dialogue with Moscow. He added that Russia is ready to cooperate with any US administration but is eager for a more “constructive” approach from Washington. The interview was published just one day after President Vladimir Putin accused the US and its allies of orchestrating the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kyiv and essentially disrupting years of Russian efforts to normalize relations with Ukraine. The Russian leader also questioned the prospects for restoring relations between Russia and the West, emphasizing that from NATO's border encroachment to the role of the US and its allies in the confrontation between the two neighbors, Moscow can hardly trust Western nations.

The Kremlin spokesman also criticized the current role of the US in the conflict in Ukraine, emphasizing that Washington is simply throwing taxpayers' money "out the window" and unnecessarily prolonging hostilities by sending conflicting signals to Kyiv, ultimately leading to more Ukrainian deaths. “The US is heavily involved in this conflict,” the Kremlin spokesman told NBC, adding that the stalemate between the two neighbors is in fact a “hybrid war” against Russia launched by Washington. Peskov warned that such confrontational tactics are detrimental to global security and expressed concern the world is “less safe than before” before dialogue between Moscow and Washington “is shut down.” Contact between Russia and the US has been reduced to a minimum since Russia launched its military operation in February 2022. The US and its allies have openly supported Kyiv in the conflict and imposed an unprecedented series of sanctions on Moscow. Western countries subsequently began supplying weapons to Ukrainian forces. However, relations were not completely severed. On Thursday, President Putin revealed that dialogue between the two countries continues, particularly on the issue of releasing Americans accused of espionage in Russia. When asked at a year-end press conference about American citizens Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, President Putin stated that Russia was ready to exchange the two citizens but wanted to reach an agreement with Washington that both sides could "accept."