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The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]

Russia’s war against Ukraine

Firefighters extinguish a fire after a Russian strike on a residential building in Kryvyi Rih on Jan. 29, 2026. The attack killed one person and injured three others. (Ukraine’s State Emergency Service / Telegram)

Trump claims Putin agreed not to strike Kyiv, other Ukrainian cities ‘for a week.’ “I personally asked President Putin not to fire on Kyiv and the cities and towns for a week,” Trump said. “And he agreed to do that.”

Ukraine repatriates bodies of 1,000 fallen soldiers. Russia confirmed that it had handed over 1,000 bodies to Ukraine under the Istanbul agreement in exchange for 38 bodies of fallen Russian soldiers, Kremlin-controlled news agency TASS reported on Jan. 29.

‘Without power, without heat’ — EU allocates over $170 million for Ukraine amid Russian attacks on energy. The funds will support protection assistance, shelter, food, cash aid, psychosocial services, and access to water and healthcare for Ukrainians affected by the attacks.

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Ukraine’s central bank cuts interest rate in first change in 10 months. The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) voted on Jan. 29 to cut its benchmark interest rate to 15%, the first change since March last year, as inflation cools and a new aid package from Europe eased pressure on the country’s finances.

Defense Ministry working with SpaceX to solve Russian use of Starlink on drones. Ukraine says it is working with SpaceX to stop Russian drones from using Starlink, after reports that satellite-connected UAVs are extending their range to strike deeper into Ukrainian territory.

Ukraine distributes boilers from Italy to support heating for up to 90,000 homes. Ukraine has distributed industrial boiler equipment delivered by Italy among communities in 10 regions as part of a broader support program aimed at strengthening the country’s heating infrastructure, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba said on Jan. 29.

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‘They don’t consider their work heroic’ — 4 energy workers die amid Kyiv repairs following Russian attacks

As Kyiv’s repair crews scramble to keep the lights and heat on after repeated Russian strikes, the work has become punishing — and, in recent weeks, deadly.

Photo: Oleksandr Magula / AFP via Getty Images

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Ukraine war latest: ‘The enemy is likely preparing an offensive’ — Ukrainian forces report more aerial strikes in Pokrovsk sector

Russian troops have stepped up aerial bomb attacks in the Pokrovsk sector of Donetsk Oblast, which could signal preparations for an offensive, Yuliia Stepaniuk, head of communications for the 117th Separate Mechanized Brigade, told Suspilne on Jan. 29.

Photo: Marharyta Fal/Frontliner/Getty Images

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International response

Germany’s Merz says Ukraine joining EU in 2027 ‘not possible.’ The comments come after President Volodymyr Zelensky set 2027 as the target date for Ukraine’s entry into the bloc.

Estonia warns Russian veterans could flood Europe after Ukraine war, urges EU entry ban. “We have close to 1 million combatants in Russia. They’re mainly criminals; they are very dangerous people,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said. “We have information that most of them will come to Europe after the war.”

EU plans to impose 20th sanctions package against Russia on Feb. 24, Kallas says. The European Union aims to impose a 20th sanctions package against Russia on Feb. 24, the day marking the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters on Jan. 29.

China denies helping Russia produce Oreshnik missiles. The news comes after the Telegraph reported that China has sent Russia tools used to build Oreshnik warheads.

‘Repression cannot go unanswered’ — EU sanctions Iran over protest crackdown, Russia support. European foreign ministers also agreed to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s chief diplomat.

Lukoil agrees to sell most of its foreign assets to US investment group. The Carlyle deal does not include Lukoil’s assets in Kazakhstan and is still subject to approval by the U.S. Treasury Department, the Russian energy giant said.

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The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]

Russia’s war against Ukraine

A fire-stricken book lies on the ruins at the Holy Dormition Monastery after s Russian drone attack in Odesa, Ukraine, on Jan. 28, 2026. (Nina Liashonok/Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Russia says it’s ready for Zelensky-Putin meeting — but only if Ukraine’s president travels to Moscow. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Moscow is prepared to ensure President Volodymyr Zelensky’s security.

SBU releases greatest hits video of 2025 drone strikes on Russian aircraft. The accompanying video features first-person-view (FPV) drone footage showing $1 billion worth of Russian aircraft being targeted.

Casualties, damage to infrastructure reported as Russia launches missiles, drones at various regions of Ukraine. Russian forces launched missile and drone attacks on several Ukrainian regions, including Kyiv and surrounding areas, overnight on Jan. 28, local authorities reported.

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Russian losses in Ukraine ‘more than any major power’ in any war since World War II, report says. The CSIS report, published Jan. 27, estimates that Russian forces have sustained nearly 1.2 million casualties — including troops killed, wounded or missing — since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in Feb. 2022. As many as 325,000 Russian soldiers have been killed, the report found.

Ukraine targets oil depot in Russia’s Voronezh Oblast, strikes several military facilities in occupied territories, General Staff says. Ukrainian forces struck the Khokholskaya oil depot, causing a fire at the facility that ignited stored petroleum products.

Pro-Ukrainian partisans sabotage substation in Russia’s Udmurt Republic, group claims. The Atesh partisan group sabotaged an electrical substation in Russia’s Udmurt Republic, disrupting power supply to the nearby “BUMMASH” military‑industrial plant, the group claimed in a Telegram post on Jan. 28.

No matter what comes next, Ukraine Daily is there for you every morning.

Russia’s war against Ukraine didn’t end with the new year, and neither did the need for reliable reporting. As a reader-funded newsroom, we rely on members to sustain our journalism. Your support helps keep the world informed about what’s really happening in Ukraine. Become a member today.

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Exclusive: Trump envoy negotiating Ukraine’s fate displays ‘shocking’ lack of knowledge about war, politics

A senior U.S. envoy involved in efforts to end Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine has displayed a lack of basic understanding of Ukraine’s political system and the war itself, the Kyiv Independent has learned.

Photo: Fabrice Coffrini / AFP via Getty Images

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As temperatures outside plunge, a Ukrainian pet shelter struggles to keep animals warm amid Russian attacks

Just over 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Kyiv, the Gostomel animal shelter in Hostomel, Kyiv Oblast is trying to keep more than 700 cats and dogs alive and warm.

Photo: Anna Donets / The Kyiv Independent

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‘Impossible to ban grief’ — how Russia tries and fails to hide its casualties in Ukraine

Russia has tightened control over information about its battlefield losses in Ukraine, cutting off data and closing one public loophole after another. The effort has not stopped the evidence of the dead from surfacing.

Photo: Christopher Furlong / Getty Images

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Human costs of war

At least 15 killed, 37 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over past day. Russia launched one missile and 146 drones of various types at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine’s Air Force reported. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 103 drones, but one missile and 36 drones struck 2 locations across the country.

Why Colombian volunteers are joining war in Ukraine

International response

Spain escorts shadow fleet vessel sanctioned for carrying Russian oil, Reuters reports. The Chariot Tide, formerly known as Marabella Sun, was flying a Mozambique flag when its engine broke down on Jan. 22 in international waters within Spain’s search-and-rescue zone.

Kyiv hoping to convince IMF to delay key condition for $8.1 billion loan. Kyiv is pushing to delay a new tax on self-employed entrepreneurs until after the war has ended, as well as raise the threshold at which entrepreneurs would start paying the levy, a person in the Ukrainian government familiar with the talks told the Kyiv Independent.

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Today’s Ukraine Daily was brought to you by Oleg Sukhov, Kateryna Hodunova, Chris York, Tim Zadorozhnyy, Yevgeniya Doluda, Abbey Fenbert, and Volodymyr Ivanyshyn.

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The Kyiv Independent [unofficial]

Russia’s war against Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelensky films an address near the entrance to the front line city of Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast on Dec.12, 2025, amid reports of successful Ukrainian counterattack in the region. (President Volodymyr Zelensky/Telegram)

‘Reality speaks for itself’ — From war-torn Kupiansk, Zelensky praises troops after reports of successful Ukrainian counterattack. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised troops in the Kupiansk direction and said battlefield gains strengthen Ukraine’s diplomatic position, as the National Guard’s 2nd Khartiia Corps reported a counterattack north of the city.

Witkoff to meet Zelensky, European leaders over the weekend to discuss US peace plan, WSJ reports. The reported meeting involving Zelensky follows news that Kyiv and its European partners handed Washington their revisions to the U.S.-proposed peace framework, with territorial concessions dominating tensions between the parties.

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Ukraine confirms drone strike on major Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl. Russia’s Slavneft-YANOS oil refinery in Yaroslavl, one of the country’s five largest, is reportedly on fire after being struck in an overnight drone attack on Dec. 12, officials and local Telegram channels said.

Explosions reported at Russian oil refinery amid drone attack. Explosions were reported in Russia’s Saratov Oblast overnight on Dec. 13 as officials warned of a possible drone attack, with unverified local reports indicating the Saratov oil refinery had been targeted.

Ukraine strikes Russian oil facilities in Caspian Sea again, SBU source says. Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) carried out a second drone strike this week on Russia’s Vladimir Filanovsky oil production platform in the Caspian Sea, also hitting the nearby Korchagin platform, an SBU source said Dec. 12.

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Ukraine war latest: ‘No military purpose’ — Russia strikes cargo ship in Odesa Oblast

Russian forces launched a missile strike on the civilian port of Chornomorsk in Ukraine’s Odesa Oblast, damaging a cargo ship, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Dec. 12.

Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine / DSNS

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Peace plan drama — Ukraine and Europe hand US revisions as Trump grows ‘sick of meetings’

Ukraine and its European partners have handed Washington their revisions to the U.S.-proposed peace framework aimed at ending Russia’s war, the Kyiv Independent has learned.

Photo: Roberto Schmidt / Henry Nicholls – WPA Pool / Getty Images / Collage by the Kyiv Independent

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Explainer: Why Russia’s nuclear industry has escaped major sanctions

Since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has repeatedly threatened the use of atomic weapons, yet its much-prized nuclear industry has faced little in the way of meaningful sanctions.

Photo: Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images

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EU indefinitely freezes Russian assets, moving closer to financial lifeline for Ukraine

The European Union has agreed to indefinitely freeze Russian central bank reserves, moving the bloc a step closer to securing a financial lifeline to Kyiv as the war heads into its fourth year.

Photo: Thierry Monasse/Getty Images

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Opinions and insights

Ukraine world’s deadliest conflict in 2025 despite US-brokered peace talks, analysis finds

Russia’s war in Ukraine was the world’s deadliest conflict in 2025, according to a new report that tracks conflicts globally, despite U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the nearly four-year invasion.

Photo: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images

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15 Ukrainians are suing US tech factories over chips in Russia’s deadly weapons

Despite years of sanctions and export controls, U.S.-made electronic components — which have unique markings and cannot be copied — continue to appear in Russian cruise missiles and drones. Investigations have repeatedly found these chips inside weapons used in some of the war’s most devastating attacks.

Photo: Anya Korzun

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Russia’s air defenses have a Flamingo-sized weak spot, report suggests

Ukraine’s domestically produced cruise missiles could help deal a devastating blow to Russia’s air defense production, enabling increasingly effective long-range drone strikes against other targets inside Russia, a new report published on Dec. 12 says.

Photo: militarnyi.com

International response

Europe must prepare for war with Russia, NATO chief warns. “We must be prepared for the scale of war our grandparents and great-grandparents endured,” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned.

Moscow files lawsuit against Euroclear as Russian assets debate continues. The Russian Central Bank said in a press release that it had sued Euroclear, the Belgian financial institution holding the vast majority of Europe’s frozen assets, in a Moscow court on Dec. 12.

In other news

SBU says it detained 3 suspected Russian agents over deadly Kyiv bombing that killed National Guard serviceman. Ukraine’s Security Service said Friday that it detained three men suspected of planting two homemade bombs that killed a National Guard serviceman and wounded four other people in Kyiv a day earlier.

‘I will come after each of you’ — Ukraine’s prosecutor general threatens critics after resignation rumors. “You don’t need to hide; I will come after each of you personally,” said Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, responding to a wave of anonymous posts alleging he had submitted a letter of resignation.

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