The Russian invasion •

The outside world's response
Zelenskyy meets NATO and the EU in an extraordinary meeting on peacekeeping forces

A number of European leaders and NATO chief Mark Rutte are to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an emergency meeting on Wednesday, reports Politico. The plan is to discuss peace plans and the possible deployment of peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.

The meeting is taking place after pressure from US President-elect Donald Trump, five people with knowledge of the matter told the newspaper. Among other things, Trump has called on European countries to monitor a future peace agreement by sending troops to Ukraine.

According to information, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Polish President Andrzej Duda, as well as the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the new President of the European Council António Costa will participate in the meeting, among others.

Ukraine demands an apology from Fifa - forgot Crimea

Ukraine is criticizing Fifa for an "unacceptable mistake" during the draw for the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and is now demanding an apology, the Kyiv Independent reports. The reason is that Fifa did not include the Crimean Peninsula on its map of Ukraine.

"FIFA has not only acted in violation of international law, but also supported Russian propaganda, war crimes and the attack on Ukraine," writes Heorhij Tykhyj, spokesman for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on X.

Fifa has removed the map, but Ukraine demands a public apology in a letter to General Secretary Mathias Grafström.

The battles

Details: Russia captures two villages in Donetsk

Russia says it has taken over two Ukrainian villages in Donetsk, Reuters reports. However, the news agency emphasizes that they could not verify the claims.

The Russian Ministry of Defense also claims to have destroyed four "Patriot" robotic defense systems.

Ukraine has not yet commented on the data.

The soldier: "Everyone understands that Pokrovsk will fall"

Ukraine is finding it difficult to stop the Russian offensive directed against the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, the Kyiv Independent reports.

"Everyone has already accepted that Russian troops will enter Pokrovsk," writes a Ukrainian soldier on Telegram, according to the newspaper.

Ukraine's commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky says the fighting is "extremely fierce."

- The Russian attackers throw forward everything they have to try to break through the defenses of our troops.