Sirens sounded throughout Ukraine, as the early hours of 2023 began, amid the continuation of the offensive, which is the largest in the Russian military operation on the capital Kiev, while its mayor said that the air defense system is "working" to defend the city from intensive Moscow Strikes.

With the first hours of the New Year, Ukraine reported that it had been subjected to Russian attacks using kamikaze suicide marches, and many areas were targeted with missiles.

Russian President Vladimir Putin began the New Year by saying: "2022 was a year of difficult decisions and fateful events, and Russia is fighting for its independence and moral and historical right on its side".

For the first time, Putin did not record his new year's Day speech with the Kremlin background, but amid a group of military personnel participating in the military operation on Ukraine in a speech described as the longest in terms of timing since the war began, he said:

* The West lied about peace, while preparing for aggression, and today it shamelessly and openly admits it.

* The West is using Ukraine and its people to divide and weaken Russia and we will not allow this.

• All Special Operations soldiers are heroes for us.
• A real sanctions war was declared against Russia, the owners of which expected the complete destruction of the country, but it did not happen.

Commenting on Putin's speech, Russian military analyst Alexander artamatov said that the Russian President's speech indicates closing the door to negotiation or sitting down for dialogue with the West and relying on the principle of fait accompli, which is to secure the borders of the four territories recently annexed by Moscow.

Artamatov added that the Russian advance is already taking place near Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the East, amid continuous shelling of all the eastern front line and targeting the depth of the capital, noting that the hottest point on the front at the moment is Bakhmut, for several reasons:

* Let's cut the Ukrainian defense in the Donbass in half, pushing Zelensky from Donetsk.

* Self-determination of the Ukrainian group in Avdiivka, which is a key point, because they are taking it to threaten Donetsk.

* Establishing control over Avdiivka, thereby expanding the safety zone in Donetsk.

* Improves Russia's position in the East by opening roads to the cities of Donbass.

• The Russian army in the Donetsk direction continues to carry out successful offensive operations in the artemovsk region.

Mykola beliskov, a researcher at the Ukrainian National Institute for Strategic Studies, said that Moscow is trying to resolve the situation militarily in January.