Today's D Brief: Kyiv, Moscow dig in for long fight; Russia salvaging old missiles; House GOP natsec forecast; US attack ISIS in Syria; And a bit more.
Defense OneDec 24, 2022
The Facts
EU countries on Monday confirmed they will be sending an €18B ($19B) aid package to Ukraine, and that the funds will be delivered from the European Commission budget next year. Hungary had blocked the package — which requires approval from all 27 EU member states — due to EU concerns about corruption in Hungary. Under the new agreement, the EU will release more funds to Hungary if it makes progress on corruption indicators.
The news came as US officials told Reuters that roughly $13M of power equipment has now been delivered to Ukraine, with another source telling the outlet that two more planeloads would leave from the US this week.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Russia's deliberate targeting of energy infrastructure — unnecessarily increasing the suffering of civilians — amounts to war crimes. This continuing Russian barbarity must be confronted.
Pro-Russia narrative
Attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure are a direct consequence of the failure of the country's leadership to meaningfully engage in peace talks and thinking they can defeat Russia on the battlefield. These attacks will stop once a more sober position is reached.
