Here are the key developments on the 1,071st day of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Here is the situation on Thursday, January 30:
Fighting
- A woman and her two-year-old child were reportedly killed in a drone attack on a home in Russia’s Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, the region’s Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. The attack reportedly left two people injured.
- The Russian Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems destroyed 104 Ukrainian drones overnight. One man was reportedly injured with a “non-penetrating chest wound”. Buildings and cars were also damaged in the drone attacks.
- Vasily Anokhin, the mayor of Smolensk in western Russia, said the Smolensk Nuclear Power Plant, the largest power generating facility in the northwest area of Russia, was among Kyiv’s targets of the overnight attack. Anokhin said the unmanned aerial combat vehicle was destroyed.
- Kyiv’s military claimed to have shot down 29 of the 57 drones launched by Russia in an overnight attack, while 14 were unable to reach designated targets. Ukraine said Russia also launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile.
- Ukraine’s military also said it struck an oil refinery in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, resulting in a large fire. Regional Governor Gleb Nikitin confirmed the fire and said debris from a destroyed drone ignited the blaze.
- Russia’s Andreapol oil pumping station was also hit by a Ukrainian drone strike, causing an oil leak and fire, Reuters news agency reported citing a source in the Ukrainian Security Service. A missile storage facility was also hit in the Tver region, causing a string of explosions.
- Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko said debris from a destroyed Russian drone dropped near a metro station in the Darnytskyi district of Ukraine’s capital. According to data from the Ukrainian Air Force, Kyiv was under air raid alert for half an hour.
- Russian media reported that Moscow’s troops took control of the Novoielyzavetivka village in east Ukraine’s Donetsk region.
- Oleh Kiper, governor of Ukraine’s Odesa region, said a Russian overnight attack targeting the area’s port infrastructure left buildings damaged. Kiper reported no casualties.
Kursk incursion
- The AFP news agency reported that Russian officials met relatives of civilians trapped in the Ukraine-occupied Kursk region. This comes amid criticism of the government’s efforts and coordinated social media campaigns by the families appealing for the return of their loved ones.
Russian oil and gas
- The European Commission decided against banning Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) in its latest set of sanctions after member states raised concerns suggesting securing alternatives before imposing the ban. However, Russian aluminium, video games and joysticks were on the list of banned items.
- Moldovan gas supplier Moldovagaz said it reached an agreement with a supplier in Transnistria to resume gas deliveries to the country’s separatist enclave. According to the company, an initial delivery of 3 million cubic metres of gas has been agreed for on credit.
Politics and diplomacy
- Australian national Oscar Jenkins, reported to have been killed after being captured by Russian forces in Ukraine, is “alive and in custody”, the country’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong said. However, she said they “still hold serious concerns for Mr Jenkins as a prisoner of war”.
- Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged United States President Donald Trump to be on Kyiv’s side, which is the “side of justice”. He said Ukraine needs broader security guarantees, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin was not afraid of Europe.
- The Associated Press news agency reported that Western officials warned Ukraine of a potential loss of trust in the country over Kyiv’s escalating internal feud between the defence minister and the procurement chief.
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