Shoigu addresses troops on New Year’s Eve, vows victory 'inevitable'

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Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu thanked Russian servicemen for their bravery and heroism during the war in Ukraine, wished them peace, and reaffirmed the inevitability of victory, in his New Year’s address aired by the Zvezda TV channel.

He referred to this year's serious life-changing trials and emphasized that Russian servicemen's courage and heroism in combating neo-Nazism and terrorism "will forever remain in our motherland's military history."

The top military official thanked troops for their service and wished them health and peace, reiterating that Russia's victory is inevitable.

Shoigu also thanked medics, military-industrial complex workers, construction workers, and volunteers for their contributions to Russia's defensive capability and peaceful life on liberated territories.

"We will always remember our comrades who sacrificed their lives while fulfilling combat tasks to save civilians from genocide and violence only for the right to speak Russian," he added.

A few days ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that NATO is currently using almost all of its potential against Russia and Moscow must develop its knowledge and understanding of the West's weaponry systems, experience, and tactics to bolster the fighting potential of the Russian armed forces.

"All the information about NATO forces, the means which are actively used in the course of the special military operation [in Ukraine], to oppose us are well known," he said.

However, as NATO pumps arms into Ukraine, a State Department cable obtained by Politico last week said the Biden administration is running into major obstacles tracking the aid sent from Washington to Kiev, which has amounted to tens of billions of dollars since the start of the Ukraine war, resorting to blockchain technology and Ukrainian personnel to help them track the aid flowing into their country.

The cable, sent out from the US Embassy in Kiev back in September, details what the United States is going through in terms of oversight as it tries and watch where its money is going to as they abide by the restrictions and limits on the number of officials they can have in the field, as well as the security measures prohibiting them from moving flexibly.