Latest news on the Ukraine-Russia war: Macron says a peace deal could be reached next year after Kyiv purchases 100 French fighter jets

 Latest news on the Ukraine-Russia war: Macron says a peace deal could be reached next year after Kyiv purchases 100 French fighter jets

Zelensky said the agreement to supply the fighter jets will significantly improve Ukraine's air defense system

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Emmanuel Macron has said he believes a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine could be reached as early as next year, as he announced that Kyiv has purchased 100 fighter jets in a historic deal.

Speaking to reporters at a press conference with Volodymyr Zelensky at the Elysee Palace, the French president said he hoped an agreement could be reached before the French presidential election in April 2027.

The Ukrainian president arrived in Paris on Monday morning, where he was welcomed by his French counterpart to seal the agreement on the supply of air defense capabilities, fighter jets, and missiles.

Within hours of his arrival, Mr. Zelensky announced that Kyiv would order twin-engine jets, a move later confirmed by the Elysee Palace.

The Rafale, a twin-engine jet manufactured by Dassault Aviation, is typically used for a variety of missions, including air superiority, nuclear deterrence, and close air support.

Two injured in Russian attack on Kherson ambulance

The military administration of the city of Kherson said two people were injured in a Russian attack in the city.

"An enemy drone attacked an ambulance on the evening of [November 16]," a statement said Wednesday morning.

"The 64-year-old driver suffered blast injuries and shrapnel wounds to both legs. The 32-year-old paramedic suffered a concussion, blast injuries, and a head injury."

According to a report in Ukrainska Pravda, the patients were given medical treatment and will be treated on an outpatient basis.

The incident comes just days after two ambulances were hit by alleged Russian Lepestok (Petal) landmines in the Dniprovsky district of Kherson, damaging the vehicles but causing no injuries.

Russian Air Defense Forces Destroy 36 Ukrainian Drones Overnight

The Defense Ministry said Russian air defense forces destroyed 36 Ukrainian drones in seven Russian regions on Monday night.

Denis Pushilin, a top pro-Russian official in Donetsk, said that Ukrainian drone attacks on energy infrastructure have left approximately 500,000 people without power in several districts.

Pushilin wrote on Telegram that work to restore power is ongoing.

The governor of the Ulyanovsk region, east of Moscow, said that a Ukrainian drone attack on a substation there had been thwarted. Alexey Ruskikh wrote on Telegram that there were no casualties and power supply was unaffected.

Iraqi PM meets Lukoil CEO to discuss solutions following US sanctions

The Prime Minister's Office said on Monday that Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani met with the former CEO of Russia's Lukoil to discuss ways to address disruptions to the oil company's operations in the wake of US sanctions.

Sources told Reuters news agency last week that Lukoil had declared force majeure (a notification indicating that an uncontrolled event has occurred) at its West Qurna-2 field in southern Iraq.

This is the largest consequence yet of the sanctions imposed on Russian oil companies last month as US President Donald Trump seeks to end the war in Ukraine.

Sudani told Vagit Alekperov that Iraq is committed to stable global oil markets, his office said in a statement. He further noted that West Qurna-2 operations continue to produce approximately 480,000 barrels of oil per day.

The region, Lukoil's most valuable foreign asset, produces about 9 percent of Iraq's oil output.

The statement incorrectly identified Alekperov as "head of Lukoil of Russia."

Alekperov, Russia's richest man, resigned as head of Lukoil in 2022 after Britain imposed sanctions on him. It was unclear in what capacity he was speaking on behalf of the company.

Moscow adds former prime minister to list of 'extremists and terrorists'

Russia's financial watchdog has added former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov and prominent economist Sergei Guriev to its list of "extremists and terrorists" in its latest action against prominent exiled critics of the Kremlin.

Rosfinmonitoring, the watchdog, added the two individuals to a list that now includes 19,131 people and 823 organizations, according to its website.

This list, which has expanded rapidly during Russia's war in Ukraine, provides authorities with a public means of exposing individuals and entities they deem engaged in subversive activities against the state.

Rosfinmonitoring, which is responsible for combating money laundering and terrorist financing, can freeze the bank accounts of those on the list.

Kasyanov served as prime minister for the first four years of President Vladimir Putin's rule and was dismissed in February 2004, just weeks before Putin was elected to a second term.