KYIV -- Embattled Ukraine, which has defended itself for nearly two years against the Russian invasion, is defying Moscow again as it celebrates Christmas for the first time on December 25 instead of the January date more closely linked to Russia, even as fighting has showed no signs of letup with the arrival of the holiday season.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in July signed a law moving the official Christmas Day holiday to December 25 from January 7, the day observed by the Russian Orthodox Church.
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The law stated that its goal was to "abandon the Russian heritage," including that of "imposing the celebration of Christmas" on January 7.
It cited Ukrainians' "relentless, successful struggle for their identity [and] the desire of all Ukrainians to live their lives with their own traditions, holidays."
Traditionally, Ukrainian Christians, most of whom are Orthodox, have celebrated Christmas on January 7, the day most other Orthodox-dominated countries -- including Russia and several other Slavic countries -- mark the holiday.
The switch brings Ukraine's Orthodox worshippers in line with the country's Catholics, who earlier this year approved a similar change in calendars.
In his nightly video address posted as Ukraine prepared to celebrate the holiday, Zelenskiy said: “Today, all Ukrainians are together.”
“We all celebrate Christmas together. On one date, as one big family, as one nation, as one, one country…. Today, it will unite millions of voices -- more than ever before.”
In the southeastern cities of Dnipro and Zaporizhzhya, dozens of relatives of Ukrainian soldiers being held by Russian forces as prisoners of war gathered for Christmas Eve rallies to decorate trees with the names of their loved ones.
"My son, the defender of Mariupol, has been in captivity for a second year, the second Christmas. Our Christmas tree is an appeal to society. It is a reminder that we are waiting for our children," Iryna, the mother of a POW, sad in Dnipro.
In Zaporizhzhya, organizer Olha Plechun said the general public perceives captivity as just detention, while conditions of Ukrainian military members in Russian custody represent a "slow death."
Relatives of Ukrainian prisoners of war protested for their release on December 24 in several cities.
"Our guys are being tortured. We need exchanges. Our enemy is not noble: They do not observe any conventions,” she said.
Ukrainian authorities said that as of November 17, at least 3,574 military personnel and 763 civilians are in Russian captivity.
Also on December 24, the Ukrainian and Russian militaries continued to exchange unconfirmed claims of shooting down the other side’s warplanes.
The Ukrainian Air Force said anti-aircraft units had downed a Russian Su-34 fighter bomber near Mariupol, the Russia-occupied southern port city.
Russia’s military earlier said its forces had shot down four Ukrainian military aircraft over the past 24 hours.
That came just two days after Zelenskiy on December 22 congratulated the Ukrainian military for shooting down three Russian military planes over southern Ukraine.
On the battlefield, at least four people were killed and nine others wounded in Russian shelling in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson over the past 24 hours, regional authorities said on December 24.
Russian troops fired 71 shells at Kherson, hitting the city center, residential areas, medical and educational institutions, and "critical infrastructure facilities," Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the regional military administration wrote on Telegram.
Prokudin said a couple in their 80s and a child were among the victims.
Ukrainian forces recaptured Kherson following several months of Russian occupation in November last year, but Russian forces continue to shell the area.
Separately, Kyiv said Ukraine's air defense shot down 14 out of 15 Russian drones launched overnight.
SEE ALSO: Grief And Gratitude: Displaced Ukrainians At Dnipro Shelter Prepare To Ring In New Year"Ukraine's air force and defense forces destroyed 14 Shaheds in Mykolayiv, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhzhya, Dnipro, and Khmelnytskiy regions," the Ukrainian Air Force said on the Telegram messaging app.
There were no reports of damage or casualties as the results of the drone attacks.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is awaiting a long-desired boost to its military arsenal in the coming days as it battles to counter Russian air supremacy over its skies.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told Zelenskiy in a phone call on December 22 Ukraine will likely receive it first shipment of advanced F-16 fight jets before the end of the year.
"Today, I informed President Zelenskiy of our government's decision to prepare an initial 18 F-16 fighter aircraft for delivery to Ukraine," Rutte said late on December 22 in a post on social media platform X.
In a video message late on December 23, Zelenskiy thanked Germany, Finland, and the Netherlands for providing military aid to help Kyiv fight off the Russian invasion.
Germany has supplied Gepard anti-aircraft tank, 155-caliber artillery shells, and other necessary weapons, Zelenskiy said.
The Netherlands and Finland sent further aid packages each totaling $110 million, the Ukrainian president said, without providing more details.