Ukrainian president will meet US president at his Mar-a-Lago home later today for their first in person meeting since October

The Ukrainian military said on Sunday that it hit the Syzran oil refinery in Russia’s Samara region in an overnight drone attack.

The strike caused a fire and damages were still being assessed, Kyiv’s General Staff said.

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© Photograph: Andrew Leyden/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Andrew Leyden/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

© Photograph: Andrew Leyden/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Emmanuel Macron leads tributes to celebrated sex symbol who later embraced animal rights activism and an increasingly controversial political stance

• Brigitte Bardot: a life in pictures

• Peter Bradshaw on Brigitte Bardot – a zeitgeist-force and France’s most sensational export

Tributes have been paid to Brigitte Bardot, the French actor and singer who became an international sex symbol before turning her back on the film industry and embracing the cause of animal rights activism, who has died aged 91.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, wrote on social media that Bardot had “embodied a life of freedom” and “universal brilliance”. France was mourning “a legend of the century”, he said.

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© Photograph: NANA PRODUCTIONS/REX/Rex Features

© Photograph: NANA PRODUCTIONS/REX/Rex Features

© Photograph: NANA PRODUCTIONS/REX/Rex Features

Italy's most active volcano erupted on Saturday, prompting scientists to issue a red Volcano Observatory notice for aviation, signalling a potential risk for aircraft. Despite the alert, authorities said flights continued operating normally at Catania-Fontanarossa airport, adding that no disruption was expected unless ashfall increased

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© Photograph: Getty Images

© Photograph: Getty Images

© Photograph: Getty Images

Volunteers and neighbours are restoring the century-old homes as an act of defiance against Russia’s assault

Lesia Danylenko proudly showed off her new front door. Volunteers had nicknamed its elegant transom window the “croissant”, a nod to its curved shape. “I think it’s more of a peacock,” she said, admiring its branch-like details. The restoration project at one of Kyiv’s early 20th-century art nouveau houses was supported by residents, who celebrated with two pavement parties.

It was also an act of resistance against Russia, she explained: “We are trying to live like normal people despite the war. It’s about arranging our life in the best possible way. We’re not afraid of staying in Ukraine. I could have left the country and moved away to Italy or Germany. Instead, I’m here. The new entrance shows our commitment to our homeland.”

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© Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The Guardian

© Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The Guardian

© Photograph: Alessio Mamo/The Guardian

Take this hopeful thought into 2026: the tyrants we endure always falter, and their ‘seismic’ upheavals are usually false dawns

For those who lived through the cold war, the fall of the Berlin Wall on 9 November 1989, was an unforgettable moment. The sinister watch towers with their searchlights and armed guards, the minefields in no-man’s land, the notorious Checkpoint Charlie border post, and the Wall itself – all were swept aside in an extraordinary, popular lunge for freedom.

Less than a month later, on 3 December 1989, at a summit in Malta, US president George HW Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev declared that after more than 40 years, the cold war was over. All agreed it was a historic turning point.

Simon Tisdall is a Guardian foreign affairs commentator

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© Illustration: Nate Kitch/The Guardian

© Illustration: Nate Kitch/The Guardian

© Illustration: Nate Kitch/The Guardian

PM Albin Kurti’s Self-Determination party may struggle to win majority after rival parties refused alliance

Voters in Kosovo are casting ballots in an early parliamentary election in the hope of breaking a political deadlock that has gripped the small Balkan nation for much of this year.

The snap vote was scheduled after the prime minister Albin Kurti’s governing Vetëvendosje, or Self-Determination, party failed to form a government despite winning the most votes in a 9 February election.

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© Photograph: Valdrin Xhemaj/Reuters

© Photograph: Valdrin Xhemaj/Reuters

© Photograph: Valdrin Xhemaj/Reuters

Les électeurs kosovars sont appelés aux urnes dimanche 28 décembre pour des élections législatives anticipées. Le petit pays des Balkans espère dégager une majorité claire pour se sortir de la crise politique dans laquelle il est englué depuis dix mois.

Les électeurs kosovars sont appelés aux urnes dimanche 28 décembre pour des élections législatives anticipées. Le petit pays des Balkans espère dégager une majorité claire pour se sortir de la crise politique dans laquelle il est englué depuis dix mois.

Ukrainian leader meets US president in Florida today to seek a resolution to conflict

© AFP via Getty Images

Une nouvelle biographie sur Pavel Durov, le mystérieux milliardaire franco-russe, fondateur de la messagerie Telegram, a paru le 15 décembre dernier. Dans Le Populiste, l'auteur et journaliste russe Nikolai Komonov décrit un populiste digital, un leader aux tendances libertariennes de droite, influencé par le darwinisme social et les théories du complot.

Une nouvelle biographie sur Pavel Durov, le mystérieux milliardaire franco-russe, fondateur de la messagerie Telegram, a paru le 15 décembre dernier. Dans Le Populiste, l'auteur et journaliste russe Nikolai Komonov décrit un populiste digital, un leader aux tendances libertariennes de droite, influencé par le darwinisme social et les théories du complot.

As young men face new rules forcing them to indicate their readiness to serve, the Bundeswehr drums up support at a trade show

Sitting in the cramped interior of a Panzerhaubitze 2000 armoured vehicle, Tom, 20, hangs on every word coming from Achim, an officer with the German military, as he breathlessly talks students through the workings of “the most modern tank in the world”.

“What damage would you expect its ammunition to inflict?” Tom asks.

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© Photograph: Lara Ingenbleek/The Guardian

© Photograph: Lara Ingenbleek/The Guardian

© Photograph: Lara Ingenbleek/The Guardian

The invasive lionfish have spread. Some are trying to eat the problem

© AP

Balkan country will become 21st country to adopt EU currency, with policymakers hoping move will boost economy

Bulgaria is preparing to adopt the euro in January amid fresh domestic political turbulence and fears that Russia-aligned disinformation is deepening distrust of the new currency.

The Balkan country of 6.5 million people will become the 21st country to join the eurozone on 1 January, as policymakers in Brussels and Sofia hope it will boost the economy of the EU’s poorest nation and cement its pro-western trajectory.

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© Photograph: Dimitar Kyosemarliev/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dimitar Kyosemarliev/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dimitar Kyosemarliev/AFP/Getty Images

Alors que la Russie a une nouvelle fois lancé une attaque de grande ampleur contre l'Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky se rend en Floride ce 28 décembre, où il évoquera avec Donald Trump l'accord cadre américain contenant 20 propositions en vue d'une paix. En amont de ses retrouvailles avec Donald Trump, le président ukrainien s'est entretenu la veille avec ses alliés européens depuis le Canada, où il a fait escale avant son arrivée aux États-Unis pour y rencontrer le Premier ministre Mike Carney.

Alors que la Russie a une nouvelle fois lancé une attaque de grande ampleur contre l'Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky se rend en Floride ce 28 décembre, où il évoquera avec Donald Trump l'accord cadre américain contenant 20 propositions en vue d'une paix. En amont de ses retrouvailles avec Donald Trump, le président ukrainien s'est entretenu la veille avec ses alliés européens depuis le Canada, où il a fait escale avant son arrivée aux États-Unis pour y rencontrer le Premier ministre Mike Carney.

The 70-metre-long cloth about the Norman invasion has not been seen in England since it was created in 11th century

The Bayeux tapestry will be insured for an estimated £800m when it returns to the UK in 2026 for the first time in more than 900 years.

The Treasury will insure the 70-metre embroidered cloth, which depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and Battle of Hastings, for damage or loss during its transfer from France and while it is on display at the British Museum from September.

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© Photograph: Lou Benoist/AP

© Photograph: Lou Benoist/AP

© Photograph: Lou Benoist/AP

Une enquête ouverte peu après  l’attentat du 7 octobre 2023 par le parquet national  antimafia et antiterroriste en collaboration avec de district de la police antiterroriste de Gênes, a conduit (samedi 27 décembre) à l’arrestation de 9 personnes soupçonnées d’avoir collecté des fonds destinés au financement du Hamas à travers des associations de soutien au peuple palestinien. L’opération a été vivement saluée par le gouvernement Meloni.

Une enquête ouverte peu après  l’attentat du 7 octobre 2023 par le parquet national  antimafia et antiterroriste en collaboration avec de district de la police antiterroriste de Gênes, a conduit (samedi 27 décembre) à l’arrestation de 9 personnes soupçonnées d’avoir collecté des fonds destinés au financement du Hamas à travers des associations de soutien au peuple palestinien. L’opération a été vivement saluée par le gouvernement Meloni.

En Méditerranée, l'hiver ne décourage pas les migrants en quête d'asile dans l'Union européenne. Plus de 840 personnes ont été secourues par les garde-côtes grecs cette semaine en provenance de Turquie ou de Libye. Un nombre élevé en plein hiver qui continue de mettre la pression sur les responsables politiques européens.