UK to Send More Missiles, Money to Ukrainian Army

Ukrainian soldiers training with NLAW military materiel during a drill in western Ukraine (EPA)
Ukrainian soldiers training with NLAW military materiel during a drill in western Ukraine (EPA)
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UK to Send More Missiles, Money to Ukrainian Army

Ukrainian soldiers training with NLAW military materiel during a drill in western Ukraine (EPA)
Ukrainian soldiers training with NLAW military materiel during a drill in western Ukraine (EPA)

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said late Wednesday Britain would send 6,000 missiles and £25 million ($33 million, 30 million euros) in financial aid to Ukraine's army to help it fight Russian forces.

The announcement of the funding and additional military hardware, consisting of anti-tank and high explosive weapons, comes on the eve of NATO and G7 summits set to discuss the Russian invasion, AFP said.

The British leader will urge Western allies to "step up a gear" in their responses to Moscow's actions, including by providing "enhanced defensive support to Ukraine and doubling down on economic sanctions", according to his office.

He will detail London's intention to work with partners to bolster Ukraine's defense capabilities, including longer-range targeting and intelligence, Downing Street added.

"We cannot and will not stand by while Russia grinds Ukraine's towns and cities into dust," Johnson said in a statement unveiling the new support package for Kyiv.

"The United Kingdom will work with our allies to step up military and economic support to Ukraine, strengthening their defenses as they turn the tide in this fight."

Johnson added the international community faced a choice of keeping "the flame of freedom alive in Ukraine" or risking it "being snuffed out across Europe and the world".

London has already provided Kyiv with over 4,000 anti-tank weapons, including Next-Generation Light Anti-Tank Weapons Systems (NLAWs) and so-called Javelin missiles.

The UK government is also supplying Starstreak high-velocity anti-aircraft missiles to help counter aerial bombings, as well as body armor, helmets and combat boots.

The hardware has been credited as playing a key part in helping Ukraine stall Russia's invasion.

Britain has previously committed £400 million in humanitarian and economic aid for the crisis in Ukraine.

The new £25 million funding will help pay the salaries of Ukrainian soldiers, pilots and police and ensure the country's armed forces are well equipped with high-quality equipment, Downing Street said.

In addition to the new military kit and funding, Britain will also provide an additional £4.1 million for the BBC World Service as part of a cross-government effort to tackle disinformation in Russia and Ukraine, it added.

Funding and administrative support will also go towards the International Criminal Court's investigation into war crimes, Johnson's office noted.



Trump Hints at Land Strike as Venezuela Pressure Mounts

A US Air Force C-130J Super Hercules aircraft approaches for landing at Rafael Hernandez Airport, amid tensions between US President Donald Trump's administration and the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, December 28, 2025. (Reuters)
A US Air Force C-130J Super Hercules aircraft approaches for landing at Rafael Hernandez Airport, amid tensions between US President Donald Trump's administration and the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, December 28, 2025. (Reuters)
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Trump Hints at Land Strike as Venezuela Pressure Mounts

A US Air Force C-130J Super Hercules aircraft approaches for landing at Rafael Hernandez Airport, amid tensions between US President Donald Trump's administration and the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, December 28, 2025. (Reuters)
A US Air Force C-130J Super Hercules aircraft approaches for landing at Rafael Hernandez Airport, amid tensions between US President Donald Trump's administration and the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, December 28, 2025. (Reuters)

A throwaway remark last week by President Donald Trump has raised questions about whether US forces may have carried their first land strike against drug cartels in Venezuela.

Trump said the US knocked out a "big facility" for producing trafficking boats, as he was discussing his pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in an interview broadcast Friday.

"They have a big plant or a big facility where they send, you know, where the ships come from," Trump said in an interview with billionaire supporter John Catsimatidis on the WABC radio station in New York.

"Two nights ago we knocked that out. So we hit them very hard."

Trump did not say where the facility was located or give any other details. US forces have carried out numerous strikes in both the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since September, killing more than 100 people.

The Pentagon referred questions about Trump's remarks to the White House. The White House did not respond to requests for comment from AFP.

There has been no official comment from the Venezuelan government.

Trump has been saying for weeks that the United States will "soon" start carrying out land strikes targeting drug cartels in Latin America, but there have been no confirmed attacks to date.

The Trump administration has been ramping up pressure on Maduro, accusing the Venezuelan leader of running a drug cartel himself and imposing an oil tanker blockade.

Maduro has accused Washington of attempting regime change.


UN Chief Says ‘Get Serious’ in Grim New Year Message

 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (AFP)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (AFP)
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UN Chief Says ‘Get Serious’ in Grim New Year Message

 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (AFP)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (AFP)

The United Nations urged global leaders Monday to focus on people and the planet in a New Year's message depicting the world in chaos.

"As we enter the new year, the world stands at a crossroads. Chaos and uncertainty surround us. Division. Violence. Climate breakdown. And systemic violations of international law," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a video message.

In 2026, as war rages in Ukraine and elsewhere, world leaders must work to ease human suffering and fight climate change, he added.

"I call on leaders everywhere: Get serious. Choose people and planet over pain," said Guterres, criticizing the global imbalance between military spending and financing for the poorest countries.

Military spending is up nearly 10 percent this year to $2.7 trillion, which is 13 times total world spending on development aid and equivalent to the entire gross domestic product of Africa, he said.

Wars are raging at levels unseen since World War II, he added.

"In this New Year, let's resolve to get our priorities straight. A safer world begins by investing more in fighting poverty and less in fighting wars. Peace must prevail," said Guterres, who will be serving his last year as secretary general.


Türkiye and Armenia Agree to Simplify Visa Procedures to Normalize Ties

Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, File)
Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, File)
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Türkiye and Armenia Agree to Simplify Visa Procedures to Normalize Ties

Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, File)
Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, File)

Türkiye and Armenia have agreed to simplify visa procedures as part of efforts to normalize ties, Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry announced Monday, making it easier for their citizens to travel between the two countries.

Relations between Türkiye and Armenia have long been strained by historic grievances and Türkiye’s alliance with Azerbaijan. The two neighboring countries have no formal diplomatic ties and their joint border has remained closed since the 1990s.

The two countries, however, agreed to work toward normalization in 2021, appointing special envoys to explore steps toward reconciliation and reopening the frontier. Those talks have progressed in parallel with efforts to ease tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Türkiye supported Azerbaijan during its 2020 conflict with Armenia for control of the Karabakh region, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh, a territorial dispute that had lasted nearly four decades.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on social platform X that Ankara and Yerevan agreed that holders of diplomatic, special and service passports from both countries would be able to obtain electronic visas free of charge as of Jan. 1.

“On this occasion, Türkiye and Armenia reaffirm once again their commitment to continue the normalization process between the two countries with the goal of achieving full normalization without any preconditions,” the ministry said.

Türkiye and Armenia also have a more than century-old dispute over the deaths of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Türkiye. Historians widely view the event as genocide.

Türkiye denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest. It has lobbied to prevent countries from officially recognizing the massacres as genocide.