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 wintersets in.
Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Dec 02, 2022, 2:18 PM EST
No peace talks till Russian soldiers leave, Ukraine says
Ukraine said it would not consider peace talks before the last Russian soldier leaves Ukrainian territory. This comes after President Joe Biden indicating he would be willing to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin if he has legitimate interest in peace negotiations.
Ukraine also said that there must not be any peace negotiations without Ukraine, reiterating that Biden has been clear that there won't be any talks happening without the participation of U.S. allies and Ukraine.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Dec 02, 2022, 2:17 PM EST
IAEA expresses optimism over creation of protection zone around Zaporizhzhia
The International Atomic Energy Agency expressed optimism over possibly creating a safe zone around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant before the end of the year.
"I know that President Putin is following the process, and I do not rule out another meeting with him soon, as well as with Ukrainian President Zelensky," IAEA Director General Rafael Rossi said in an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica.
"There is a concrete proposal on securing Zaporizhzhia and important progress has been made. ...The two sides now agree on some basic principles. The first is that of protection: it means accepting that you don't shoot 'on' the plant and 'from' the plant. The second is the recognition that the IAEA is the only possible way forward: that was the heart of my meeting with President Putin in St. Petersburg on October 11," Rossi added.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Dec 02, 2022, 12:27 PM EST
Bloody packages with animal eyes sent to Ukrainian embassies
Packages believed to be blood-soaked and containing the eyes of animals, were sent to Ukrainian embassies worldwide, including in Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Croatia and Italy, the Ukrainian ministry of foreign affairs said Friday.
The entrance to the ambassador's residence in the Vatican was also vandalized, according to the Ukrainian ministry of foreign affairs.
A police officer stands outside the Ukrainian embassy in Madrid after a bloody package arrived at the embassy, in the wake of several letter bombs arriving at targets connected to Spanish support of Ukraine, in Madrid, Spain, Dec. 2, 2022.
Violeta Santos Moura/Reuters
The Ukrainian embassy in the U.S. received a letter with a photocopy of a critical article about Ukraine. Like most other envelopes, the letter arrived along with others from the territory of an unnamed European country.
"We have reason to believe that a well-planned campaign of terror and intimidation of Ukrainian embassies and consulates is taking place. Not being able to stop Ukraine on the diplomatic front, they are trying to intimidate us. However, I can immediately say that these attempts are useless. We will continue to work effectively for the victory of Ukraine," the Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba said in a statement.
The Ukrainian embassy in Spain received a letter-bomb on Wednesday which was opened and ignited, resulting in one slight injury.
A similar envelope was sent to the U.S. embassy in Madrid, but it was detected before going off, according to Spanish officials.
All Ukrainian embassies and consulates have been placed under heightened security. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on foreign governments to guarantee maximum protection of Ukraine's diplomatic institutions.
-ABC News' Will Gretsky
Dec 01, 2022, 3:28 PM EST
Biden 'prepared to speak with Putin' if he wants to end war
Speaking at a joint press conference with France's Emmanuel Macron, President Joe Biden said he would be open to speaking with Vladimir Putin if the Russian leader has legitimate interest in peace negotiations. Biden, however, said he has "no immediate plans to contact Mr. Putin."
Biden also noted that Putin has "miscalculated every single thing" when it comes to this war.
"So the question is what is his -- how does he get himself out of the circumstance he's in? I'm prepared if he's willing to talk to find out what he's willing to do, but I'll only do it in consultation with my NATO. I'm not going to do it on my own," Biden said.
Meanwhile, President Macron, who has continued speaking with Putin, said it's up to Ukraine to come to the negotiating table.
"So it's only legitimate that President Zelenskyy sets some conditions to talk. We need to work on what could lead to a peace agreement. But it's for him to tell us when the time comes and what the choices of the Ukrainians are," Macron said.
