President Vladimir Putin said he'd sought an "open dialogue" with the West.
Almost a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, the two countries are engaged in a struggle for control of areas throughout the east and south.
Putin's forces pulled out of key positions in November, retreating from Kherson as Ukrainian troops led a counteroffensive targeting the southern port city. Russian drones have continued bombarding civilian targets throughout Ukraine, knocking out critical power infrastructure as winter sets in.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin met with more than a dozen mothers of Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine, telling those who had lost sons that he and the entire leadership shared their suffering.
Putin said he has no regrets about launching what he calls Russia's "special military operation" against Ukraine.
-ABC News' Tanya Stukalova
Russian authorities have developed a sophisticated system to suppress any reporting of protests by journalists and independent monitors, according to a new report released by Amnesty International.
These restrictions have increased since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. The report documented dozens of cases of unlawful obstruction of journalists and monitors during public protests, including arbitrary arrests, use of force, detentions and heavy fines.
“We can see that the Russian authorities are hellbent not only on preventing and severely penalizing any protest, however peaceful, but also on minimizing any public awareness of it,” said Natalia Prilutskaya, Amnesty International’s Russia researcher.
-ABC News' Guy Davies
The European Parliament on Thursday approved a loan of 18 billion euros (about $18.7 billion) to help Ukraine "survive" Russia's ongoing invasion and "restore its critical infrastructure."
The move came one day after the European Parliament adopted a resolution recognizing Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism and as a state that "uses means of terrorism."
The loan would cover roughly half of the estimated 3 to 4 billion euros of monthly funding that Ukraine needs in 2023.
"The loan is conditional for Ukraine," the European Parliament said in a press release on Thursday. "It requires reforms to strengthen the country's institutions and prepare it both for reconstruction and its path towards EU membership."
Next, the loan must be unanimously approved by the European Council on Dec. 6, before the European Commission can tap the markets and disburse the support early next year.
Since the start of the war, the European Union and its member states have provided 19.7 billion euros to support Ukraine, a large part of which has come in the form of macro-financial assistance approved by the European Parliament in September and July.
The U.S. announced a new $400 million military aid package for Ukraine to "help defend itself," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement Tuesday.
"With Russia’s unrelenting and brutal missile and [Unmanned Aerial Systems] attacks on Ukrainian critical energy infrastructure, additional air defense capabilities remain an urgent priority. The additional munitions for [National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems] and heavy machine guns will help Ukraine counter these urgent threats," the Department of Defense said in a statement.
The U.S. has provided Ukraine with more than $19 billion in aid since the beginning of the war in February.
-ABC News' Matt Seyler and Luis Martinez
