Eight European countries have warned of the growing threat from Russia at a defence meeting. Meanwhile, Moscow has reacted to talks in Berlin that left Western leaders optimistic on the prospect for peace. Follow the latest on the Ukraine war.
Tuesday 16 December 2025 15:48, UK
Our military analyst Michael Clarke returns tomorrow at 1pm for another instalment of his Ukraine war Q&A.
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More from that Helsinki meeting of NATO’s eastern flank leaders, and Poland’s prime minister has been speaking about drone defences.
Donald Tusk has told the meeting that developing defences against drones has become a priority EU countries will heavily invest in.
“We are working at the moment… on this anti-drone wall, and we are talking about billions in expenditure here,” he said.
Plans for a drone wall along Europe’s eastern borders gathered pace after the incursion of around 20 Russian drones into Poland in September as well as other incidents in Romania, Denmark and Germany.
The European Commission said the project would include a network of sensors, jamming systems and weapons to defeat drones.
In Helsinki, eight northern and eastern European countries have been meeting to discuss their defence.
In a joint statement, Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania and Lithuania say Russia is the most significant, direct and long-term threat to security, peace and stability.
Finland’s prime minister told the meeting Europe was facing “some of the most serious and existential questions of our time”.
Petteri Orpo echoed Donald Trump’s comments yesterday, saying “we are closer to peace than ever before” but warned “we don’t see any signs that Russia really wants peace”.
“Russia remains a threat today, tomorrow and for the foreseeable future, for the whole of Europe,” he said.
“This is the reason we are strengthening our cooperation.
“We share a strong political will to reinforce our common security and Europe’s defence, starting from the eastern flank.”
We’ve heard from Volodymyr Zelenskyy after his talks with the Dick Schoof, the Dutch prime minister.
As we’ve been telling you, Ukraine’s president has been in The Hague today as European leaders signed a treaty establishing an international Ukraine war damages body (see 13.47 post).
He thanked Schoof for his “responsible approach”, and pointed to the €700m defence package announced earlier this month.
Zelenskyy also praised the country’s support for the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List initiative, which allows Ukraine to purchase American weapons.
“These are necessary items – first and foremost air defence missiles and other weapons that are not available in Europe and that we can only purchase at this time,” he said.
“We are also working toward joint defence production, in particular the production of modern drones in Ukraine and the Netherlands.
“Ukraine is defending its independence and the lives of our people, and therefore every step of support right now carries particular significance.”
While diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine have been gaining momentum after recent talks in Berlin, the conflict is still raging on the battlefield.
Here’s the latest situation along the frontlines in Ukraine’s east.
The maps below show the most recent territorial gains and losses made by Moscow and Kyiv.
Scroll through the maps, with particular focus on the hotly-contested Donetsk region, where fierce battles are ongoing near Pokrovsk.
Here’s the moment that European leaders signed the treaty establishing an international Ukraine war damages body at The Hague today.
The International Claims Commission for Ukraine will allow Ukrainians to seek compensation for “damage, loss or injury” caused by Russia since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022.
The commission is facilitated by The Council of Europe, the continent’s pre-eminent human rights organisation.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy says proposals being negotiated with US officials for a peace deal could be finalised within days, after which American envoys will present them to the Kremlin.
He told reporters that a draft peace plan discussed with the US during talks in Berlin earlier in the day is “very workable”.
He cautioned, however, that some key issues – notably what happens to Ukrainian territory occupied by invading Russian forces – remain unresolved.
Ukraine’s president also admitted that his country faces difficulties in meeting its financial needs, and an EU decision to use frozen Russian assets to support Kyiv is crucial.
Zelenskyy said that using the Russian frozen assets would help Kyiv to balance out a decrease in support from some of its partners.
“I do not see an opportunity to stand strong without this support,” he told reporters.
The UK’s decision to boost Ukraine with £600m in new air defence capabilities has come in a very timely manner, military analyst Professor Michael Clarke says.
Calling the package a “step in the right direction”, Clarke tells presenter Leah Boleto that the message “underneath” the package is telling.
“That’s the important part of this,” he says.
“[The UK] is making a very clear announcement now in the middle of this very delicate negotiating process that we’re doing all we can to help the Ukrainians through the winter on the assumption that this the fighting won’t stop any time soon.
“That’s the message underneath this. If the Ukrainians have to carry on, we will help them carry on. And what they need at the moment to get through the winter is air defence.”
Russia “cannot escape paying the bill” for its war in Ukraine, the European Union’s foreign policy chief has said.
Kaja Kallas has been speaking in The Hague at the establishment of an International Claims Commission for Ukraine.
The commission, which will validate war damages in Ukraine to be paid by Russia, sends a message to future aggressors, Kallas said, that “if you start a war, you will be held to account”.
The UK is investing £600m to provide Ukraine with new defensive capabilities to help shoot down Russian drones through winter.
Defence Secretary John Healey says Kyiv will receive “air defence systems, missiles and automated turrets to shoot down drones”.
Healey will co-chair the 32nd meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group today, an alliance of countries supporting Ukraine through the donation of military aid.
“Ukrainians continue to fight with huge courage – military and civilians alike,” Healey says.
“The UK’s £600m air defence investment this year is critical help to Ukrainians as they defend their towns, cities and energy infrastructure from Russia’s barbaric attacks.
“Alongside this 50-strong group of partners, we are working to deliver the vital support for Ukraine’s defence to put them in the strongest possible position to secure peace.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has finished addressing The Council of Europe in The Hague, where a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine is being established.
“We hope the tribunal for Russian aggression will truly begin its work, not just for us, but for everyone who wants peace in Europe,” Zelenskyy says.
He also told assembled European leaders that the war in Ukraine “and Russia’s responsibility for it must become a clear example so that others learn not to choose aggression”.
“All pressure on Russia must remain in place as long as occupation of our land continue. Russia must feel that it is a criminal and face consequences for that.”
Watch Zelenskyy’s full address below.
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