Conflict and Peace

Fourteen people have been killed, including Ukraine's interior affairs minister, after a helicopter crashed beside a nursery in an eastern suburb of the capital Kyiv. One child is among the dead. The interior minister, Denys Monastyrsky, was with eight others in the helicopter. His first deputy minister and the state secretary also died, officials said, when the helicopter came down in the suburb of Brovary. The 42-year-old interior minister was a prominent member of President Volodymy Zelensky's cabinet and played a key role in updating the public on casualties caused by Russian missile strikes since Ukraine was invaded in February 2022. National police chief Ihor Klymenko wrote on Facebook that the helicopter belonged to Ukraine's state emergency service. Monastyrsky is the highest profile Ukrainian casualty since Russia's war began, although there is no indication that the crash was anything more than an accident. The deputy head of Ukraine's presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said the minister had been en route to a war "hot spot" when his helicopter went down.

Some 50 women have been abducted by suspected jihadists in northern Burkina Faso, local officials say. Residents in Arbinda said two groups of women were taken as they were out gathering leaves and wild fruits because of a severe food shortage. A small number managed to escape and raise the alarm. The abductions happened on Thursday and Friday, but news has just emerged, as much of the area has been blockaded by Islamist militants. Arbinda in the Sahel region has been hit hard by the jihadist insurgency. Roads in and out have been blocked by the jihadists, there is severe hunger as food supplies are limited, and the humanitarian situation is desperate. Last month, protesters in Arbinda broke into warehouses to get food and supplies. Burkina Faso as a whole has been hit by a decade-long insurgency that has displaced nearly two million people. The military seized power last January, promising an end to attacks, but the violence still rages.

"If one side of the conflict, regardless of the motives and explanations, takes action to starve the civilian population of the other side, trust will not reach the zero level; it may go beyond zero. Thus, all external actors, who have been involved in the complicated task of creating some trust between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, should clearly express their position – the blockade of the Lachin corridor should be stopped immediately. At the same time, negotiations should continue to address any concerns of Azerbaijan without breaching the November 10, 2020, trilateral declaration, writes Benyamin Poghosyan in this op-ed for commonspace.eu.

Orthodox Christians all over the world on Saturday (7 January) celebrate Christmas in accordance with the Julian Calander. On the eve, Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill delivered a Christmas service in the Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow, and the scene was repeated in Christian Orthodox Churches across Eastern Europe and the Middle East and world wide. This Christmas however sees the Orthodox world in conflict with itself as the Ukraine-Russia War rages on. In the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, Ukrainians ventured out into a light dusting of snow to buy gifts, cakes and groceries for Christmas Eve family celebrations.  In a video message, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Ukrainians as “united as never before” and lamented that the conflict has forced many to abandon Christmas folk traditions that prohibit sewing and hunting. “It is forbidden to sew and knit, but we weave camouflage nets and sew bulletproof vests, overcoming evil. Our ancestors did not go hunting in these days, but we fight so that we do not become prey and to defeat the beast,” he said. Putin attended services at the Annunciation Cathedral, one of several churches on the grounds of the Kremlin.

The stalemate in the process of normalising relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan has created new risks. Writing for commonspace.eu in this op-ed, Vasif Huseynov says that "there is widespread concern in the region that the sides might end up in a violent military escalation this year if they fail to sign a peace treaty and agree on a roadmap for the resolution of the remaining disputes concerning the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and the re-opening of regional transportation links. Under these circumstances, there is a great need for the constructive intervention and active mediation of the EU, without which Baku and Yerevan are unlikely to be able to overcome the difficulties created by the Russian side", he argues.