Residents survey the destruction following a Russian airstrike on a nine-storey apartment block in the Kyiv region city of Vyshhorod, Ukraine, 30 November 2025. Photo: EPA / Maxym Marusenko Russia has launched over 60,000 glide bombs, 2,400 missiles and over 100,000 drones at targets in Ukraine this year, according to United24, a Ukrainian presidential initiative which raises funds for the country’s defence against the ongoing Russian invasion.

On December 25, the traditional pre-New Year meeting of the State Council was held in Moscow under the chairmanship of Vladimir Putin. It was attended by governors and representatives of all regions of Russia except one - the Chechen Republic. According to a source from Novaya Gazeta Europe, the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, planned to take part in the meeting of the State Council in person and even flew to Moscow on December 24.

2025 has become a year of great anxiety - not only for Russians Photo: Sergey Ilnitsky / EPA 2025 turned out to be a time of unfulfilled hope for peace. Official sociology in Russia says that two-thirds of citizens are in favor of immediate peace negotiations. A noticeable part of these sentiments is associated not only with the desire to return to normal life, which persisted in the previous years of the war, but with the legalization of the idea of ​​peace negotiations.

A screenshot from a video published by the Russian Defence Ministry, apparently showing the debris of an intercepted Ukrainian drone. The Russian Defence Ministry published a map on Wednesday which it claimed plots the flight paths of Ukrainian drones heading towards Vladimir Putin’s residence at Valdai in Russia’s northwestern Novgorod region before they were destroyed by air defence systems on Sunday. The ministry said that the attempted attack on Putin’s residence involved some 91 drones.

Readers of “New Europe”, looking back at the past year, share with us their pain and hopes Photo: “ Novaya Gazeta Europe ” To remain silent about the main thing, bursting inside with screaming. In the morning, scan the news pages in the hope of seeing the most desired obituary. Don't trust politicians, but still expect peace from them. And feel like people are tired of information because nothing good seems to be happening.

Firefighters tackle a blaze following a Russian drone strike on Odesa, southern Ukraine, 31 December 2025. Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine Russia attacked the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa and the surrounding region with drones overnight, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine said on Wednesday. Six people, including three children, were injured in the attacks, according to Odesa Governor Oleh Kiper, five of whom were hospitalised, with one person in a serious condition.

The palace on Cape Aya alleged to be used by Vladimir Putin. Photo: FBK An investigation carried out by Russia’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) has revealed that a palace in Russian-annexed Crimea once belonging to former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych is now being used as personal property by Vladimir Putin.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has published a map which, according to the department, shows a flight pattern of Ukrainian drones towards Vladimir Putin’s residence in Valdai and their destruction by air defense systems. The Ministry of Defense said that 91 drones allegedly tried to attack Putin’s residence in the Novgorod region. 41 drones were shot down in the Novgorod region itself, 49 in the Bryansk region, and another one in the Smolensk region.

Saudi Arabia has entered into open conflict with the Emirates in Yemen. What does this mean for the world? Damaged military equipment in the port of Mukalla after a Saudi-led coalition airstrike, Yemen, December 30, 2025. Photo: AFP / Scanpix / LETA In a dramatic escalation of the long-simmering Yemeni conflict, Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes against the port of Mukalla in Yemen's Hadhramaut province.

In 2025, Russia launched more than 60 thousand guided bombs, about 2,400 missiles of various types and more than 100 thousand drones into Ukraine, the Ukrainian project United24 calculated . According to analysts, thousands of air targets were recorded over Ukraine every day. The air raid alert sounded at least 19,033 times, most of all in the Kharkov (2020 times), Zaporozhye (1807 times), Sumy (1793 times), Dnepropetrovsk (1658 times) and Donetsk (1419 times) regions.

Cultural results of 2025 - in the review of Nikolai Ovchinnikov Illustration: “New newspaper Europe” Pop culture in 2025 is a culture of confusion, escapism, and a reliance on tradition. It would seem, what does Trump have to do with it? The American president is more a symptom than a cause.

TikTok rebels talk about how they were inspired by singer Naoko, as well as fear, depression and what they wish for themselves and all of us for the new year Illustration: Lyalya Bulanova / “Novaya Gazeta Europe” One of the most notable events of the past year was the story of the cover band Stoptime, which performed songs of the “banned” Monetochka and Noize MC on the streets of St. Petersburg.