Here are the key developments on the 1,068th day of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
Here’s the situation for Monday, January 27:
The fight
- Kyiv regional military administrator Vadim Flashkin said Russian artillery fire in eastern Ukraine killed at least one woman in the city of Pokrosk and wounded four people in the neighboring town of Kostiantynivka. According to Ukrainian military analyst Andriy Ryzchenko, Pokrosk is an economic target for Russia.
- The Ukrainian military said Moscow units launched 38 artillery strikes against Ukrainian defense lines at various locations.
- Ukraine said its armed forces, along with the country’s defense intelligence, carried out a second attack on Russia’s Ryazan oil refining company just two days after its initial overnight attack. Kiev said the oil refinery is one of the four largest companies in the Russian Federation.
- According to the report of the Ministry of Defense of Moscow, Russian media said that its troops have captured the settlements of Zelen and Velika Novoselka in eastern Ukraine.
- For the third time in less than a year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky replaced the commander of the Khrutetsya operational strategic group responsible for defending Pokrovsk, which is now at risk of falling into Russian hands. He named Major General Mykhailo Drapati as the new commander of the ground forces.
Politics and Diplomacy
- Zelenskiy said at a news conference with Moldovan President Maya Sandu that Kiev was ready to provide coal to Transnistria at a reduced price or for free if the separatist enclave would supply Ukraine with electricity in return. He also offered to send a team of experts to help increase the electricity output of the enclave’s power plant.
- The Institute for the Study of War reported that members of the Kremlin-linked Telegram channel Rybar – including its founder Mikhail Zunchuk – visited Iraq last week to promote Russian influence there. The team is said to have met with several Iraqi officials, including Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani.
- Polish President Andrzej Duda told Al Jazeera that NATO member states should increase their defense spending by at least 3 percent of their GDP to create a security zone against “the rebirth of Russian imperialism.” .
- Exit polls showed Belarusian President Lukashenko, whose administration is a close ally of Russia, on track to extend his time in power with 87.6 percent of the vote in the country’s presidential election. Lukashenko also said he had “no regrets” about allowing Russia to use Belarusian territory to invade Ukraine in 2022.
