Here is the situation on Tuesday, January 21:

Fighting

• Ukraine’s Air Force claimed it shot down 93 of 141 drones Russia launched in attacks overnight. The Air Force also said that 47 of the drones were “lost” while two returned to Russia.
• Russia said it destroyed 31 Ukrainian drones which had primarily targeted industrial sites in Russia’s Tatarstan region, located about 1,000km (about 600 miles) from the Ukrainian border. No victims or damage have been reported.
• The governor of Russia’s Bryansk region, Alexander Bogomaz, said 14 Ukrainian drones were neutralised in the region, which borders Ukraine. He claimed Kyiv also fired four United States-made HIMARS missiles at targets in Bryansk.
• Authorities in Moscow launched an investigation after video footage emerged that showed a military policeman beating Russian soldiers bound for Ukraine with a baton and using stun guns on them. The perpetrators of the violence have been identified and an investigation is under way, authorities said.
• Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its troops have captured two villages, Shevchenko and Novoiehorivka, in eastern Ukraine. Shevchenko lies a few kilometres from Pokrovsk, a key supply hub for Kyiv’s troops.

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• Russia has levelled terrorism charges against United Kingdom national James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, who was captured while fighting with Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region. Accused of acting as a “mercenary”, Anderson faces up to 35 years in a Russian prison.
• Kyiv reportedly attacked a Russian-occupied town in Ukraine’s south Kherson, killing two people and injuring more than a dozen others, according to reports. The region’s Russian-installed governor, Vladimir Saldo, accused Ukraine of firing “cluster munitions ” near a school and said children were among those wounded.
• Ukraine’s State Investigation Bureau detained two generals and a colonel for alleged “inaction” and failing to defend against a Russian offensive that allowed parts of eastern Kharkiv to be captured in 2024.
• A wounded North Korean soldier captured by Ukraine told interrogators on camera that Pyongyang’s forces fighting for Moscow are suffering major losses. Although Moscow has not acknowledged the deployment of North Korean soldiers to fight in the Kursk region on behalf of Russia, the soldier gave a detailed account of the troops ‘ arrival, training and work routines.

Politics & Diplomacy

• Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration as US president.
• Zelenskyy said Trump’s return to the White House was an “opportunity” for “just peace” in Ukraine.
• Putin said he was “open to dialogue” with Ukraine under Donald Trump’s administration. He also said any settlement should ensure “lasting peace based on respect for the legitimate interest of all people”.
• French President Emmanuel Macron warned that Russia’s war on Ukraine would not end “tomorrow or the day after” in response to Trump’s pledge to end the war quickly.

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Russian Gas & Oil

• Transnistria’s leader Vadim Krasnoselsky said the separatist enclave was ready to buy gas from Moldova. He said they sent a letter to Moldovagaz on Saturday but had yet to receive a response.
• The Finnish Border Guard said Russia’s oil shipments via the Baltic Sea have dropped by roughly 10 percent in the past four months due to European Union sanctions on Russian oil and gas exports.

Humanitarian Support

• The Ukrainian government announced plans to ramp up efforts to encourage refugees in Germany to return home, including setting up “unity hubs” in Berlin and other locations later to assist with jobs, housing and educational opportunities. Ukrainian Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov said a significant number of Ukrainians were “seriously considering” returning home.