[Korrespondent] 22:00 Behind the decision to drastically increase military aid to Ukraine is concern in some Western capitals that time may be on Russia's side , reports The Wall Street Journal. As the newspaper writes, this concern indicates that the window of opportunity for Ukraine is not endless, and it needs powerful Western weapons in the near future to increase the momentum it achieved during the counter-offensive last year.
20:48 Zelensky said that against the backdrop of constant Russian terrorist attacks on Ukrainian cities and villages, against the backdrop of constant Russian assaults, "it is even shocking that you have to convince international sports bureaucrats to refuse any support for a terrorist state." According to the President, the attempt of the International Olympic Committee to return Russian athletes to competitions and the Olympic Games is “an attempt to tell the whole world that terror can be something acceptable. As if you can turn a blind eye to what Russia is doing with Kherson and Kharkov, with Bakhmut and Avdiivka.
The head of state also said that he had sent a letter to Macron regarding the possible participation of Russian athletes in the Summer Olympics in Paris: “Preparing for the Paris Olympics, we must be sure that Russia will not be able to use it or any other international sporting event to promote aggression or his state chauvinism.
20:40 Zelensky said in an evening video message that the situation at the front is very tough: "Bakhmutskoe, Vuhledarskoye and other directions in the Donetsk region are constant Russian assaults, constant attempts to break through our defenses. The enemy does not count people and, despite his numerous losses, maintains a high intensity of attacks. In some of its wars, Russia lost on the whole less than it puts there, including near Bakhmut."
According to the President, it is now very important for Ukraine to maintain the dynamics of defense support from partners, because the speed of delivery has been and will be one of the key factors in this war: "Russia hopes to prolong the war, to exhaust our forces. Therefore, we must make time our weapon. We must speed up events, speed up deliveries and the opening of new necessary armed options for Ukraine."
Zelensky recalled that this week there were significant defensive results in relations with the United States, Germany, Poland, Canada, Belgium, Norway, Italy and other countries. "We must make the next week no less strong for our defense," the president added.
19:08 The enemy continues to conduct offensive operations in the Limansky, Bakhmutsky, Avdeevsky and Novopavlovsky directions. In other directions, it is defending on previously occupied lines, the General Staff said in an evening summary.
According to the General Staff, the invaders removed all medical equipment from the local hospitals in Kakhovka and Nova Kakhovka to Novotroitskoye, Kherson region. The occupation authorities are closing medical institutions in these cities, contrary to earlier promises. The staff was faced with a fact - transfer or dismissal.
18:29 Zelensky said that he had held a regular meeting of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief: "We heard reports on the operational situation at the front, in particular, in the Donetsk direction and in the south. We considered important information from intelligence about the possible actions of the enemy in the near future. We are preparing for all possible events. We discussed the issues of ensuring the key needs of the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the main types of weapons, military equipment and ammunition for operations scheduled for 2023."
18:23 A defense complex in the Iranian city of Isfahan attacked Israel with drones, writes The Wall Street Journal, citing US officials and people familiar with the operation. According to the publication, the United States and Israel are looking for new ways to curb Tehran's nuclear and military ambitions.
The WSJ clarifies that, according to Iran, a munitions factory in the city of Isfahan was attacked, next to a facility belonging to the Iranian Space Research Center, where work is being carried out on a ballistic missile program.
17:44 The Russians have been shelling Kherson all day long - three dead and six wounded are already known, the OVA reported. Residential buildings, administrative buildings, a hospital, power lines, gas pipelines, vehicles were damaged.
17:28 Zelensky said that he congratulated Petr Pavel on his victory in the presidential elections in the Czech Republic and invited him to visit Ukraine.
15:02 The "authorities" of the occupied Zaporozhye region said that Ukrainian troops attacked a road bridge across the Molochnaya River in the Melitopol region from HIMARS, there are dead and wounded.
14:47 Ukrainian crews arrived in the UK to train on Challenger 2 tanks, the British Ministry of Defense reported.
13:19 Dutch microcircuits still end up in the Russian Federation and are used in military equipment, despite the sanctions. The Russians are helped, in particular, by intermediaries from Asia, the NOS and Nieuwsuur investigators found out. Chips of mainly large Dutch manufacturers, such as NXP and Nexperia, get into Russia. NXP chips were recently found in Russian equipment that was destroyed in Ukraine - an armored howitzer, a cruise missile and a combat helicopter.
12:30 British intelligence notes that the inclusion of basic military training in the curriculum of the Russian secondary school, as well as the introduction of the Fundamentals of Military Training program for students of Russian universities, highlights the increasingly militarized atmosphere in Russia, and is also a (probably deliberate) memory of the Soviet Union, where such training was mandatory.
11:26 Scholz said that the issue of providing Ukraine with fighter jets does not even arise yet, and warned against "raising the stakes": "The German Chancellor, who takes his oath seriously, must do everything so that Russia's war against Ukraine does not turn into a war between Russia and NATO. He added that he would not allow "such an escalation."
Scholz also said that he would continue to call Putin, because "it is necessary to talk to each other."
10:27 The Iranian Ministry of Defense stated that as a result of the night attack by drones, only minor damage was inflicted on the roof of the military facility, its work was not disrupted.
10:18 Peskov said that "because of the West's hybrid war against Russia," part of the information about the economic policy of the Russian Federation is not disclosed to a wide range of people.
10:07 The deficit in the energy system of Ukraine remains significant, the production of electricity at operating power plants cannot fully cover consumption, Ukrenergo reported. In addition, for technical reasons, one of the blocks of thermal power plants was taken out for repair, and, accordingly, the volume of electricity produced in the system decreased. All oblenergos have received reduced consumption limits that are in effect during the day.
09:29 In the Donetsk region over the past day, as a result of Russian shelling, four civilians were killed - three in Konstantinovka and one in Bakhmut. Another 17 people were injured in the region, Pavel Kirilenko, head of the OVA, said.
09:06 The General Staff announced the approximate losses of the enemy as of the morning of January 29th.
- personnel - about 126,160 (+650) people liquidated,
- tanks - 3197 (+8),
- armored combat vehicles - 6366 (+22),
- artillery systems - 2195 (+7),
- MLRS - 453 (+0),
- air defense systems - 221 (+0),
- aircraft - 293 (+0),
- helicopters - 284 (+0),
- UAV operational-tactical level - 1947 (+0),
- cruise missiles - 796 (+0),
- ships/boats - 18 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tankers - 5037 (+10),
- special equipment - 199 (+0).
08:34 The enemy continues offensive operations in the Bakhmut, Avdeevsky and Novopavlovsky directions. On Kupyansky, Limansky, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson - he is on the defensive, the General Staff said in the morning summary .
Units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine repelled the attacks of the occupiers in the areas of the settlements of Dibrova and Belogorovka in the Lugansk region; Yampolevka, Verkhnekamenskoye, Razdolovka, Salt, Blagodatnoe, Paraskoveevka, Bakhmut, Ivanovskoye, Klescheevka, Novomikhailovka, Vodyane, Maryinka, Pobeda and Ugledar of the Donetsk region.
According to the General Staff, up to 300 Wagner PMC mercenaries have been delivered to the 15th city multidisciplinary hospital in Yubileyny, Luhansk region. Since most of them are carriers of diseases such as HIV/AIDS, syphilis, tuberculosis and pneumonia, doctors refuse to provide them with medical care.
| Oh dear. Those poor men. |
07:44 In the Iranian province of Isfahan, there was a powerful explosion at an ammunition factory. The media reported that explosions took place in the centers for the production of ammunition of the Iranian Defense Ministry, including the production of Shahed drones. Iranian media also report drone attacks on facilities in the cities of Tabriz, Hamedan and Karaji.
In addition, near the city of Tabriz in the province of East Azerbaijan in Iran, a large-scale fire broke out at an oil refinery, CNN reports.
06:10 The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) predicts that Russia may conduct several stages of offensive operations, the culmination of which will be an attempt to completely capture the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. According to experts, these stages are likely to take from six to 12 months, but it is unlikely that the occupiers will be able to hold their positions.
Analysts also report that regular Russian forces are likely to replace the depleted Wagner forces to continue the offensive in Bakhmut.
04:25 A group of Pentagon representatives is conducting a secret campaign within the department in order to persuade the leadership to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighters, Politico writes, citing sources.
03:31 Newly elected President of the Czech Republic Petr Pavel and President of Slovakia Zuzana Chaputova intend to visit Ukraine, writes pravda.sk.
01:42 Russian intelligence agencies are preparing a major cyber attack on Ukraine's allies, the Center for Communications Security of Canada said and called for "increased vigilance."
01:14 In the occupied Ilovaisk on the evening of January 28, powerful explosions thundered at the railway station during the unloading of Russian mobilized, Russian media report. Propagandists write that seven HIMARS missiles hit in the area of ​​the Ilovaisky depot, where personnel and equipment arrived.