Deadly shelling hits market in Donetsk city; Russia hits Zaporizhzhia region 95 times in a day; ‘special operation’ blew up Russian chemical plant
At least 25 people were killed and 20 injured when shelling hit a suburban shopping area in the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, according to local officials, who said shells were fired by the Ukrainian military. Ukraine’s Tavria military units fighting in the area denied they attacked the market, and Russia’s claims could not be independently verified.
A fire that broke out at a chemical transport terminal near St Petersburg in Russia, after two explosions on Sunday was due to an attack by Ukrainian drones, the BBC reported. An official source in Kyiv told the BBC that the “special operation” of the SBU security service masterminded the attack at Ust-Luga port with drones that were “on target”.
Russia’s capture of the village of Krokhmalne in the Kharkiv region is a “temporary phenomenon”, the Ukrainian ground forces command spokesperson, Volodymyr Fityo, said. Russia’s defence ministry said on Sunday, in its morning summary, that Russian forces had taken control of the village.
Russia has lost approximately 376,030 troops in Ukraine since the beginning of the war, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces claimed on Sunday. The number, which has not been independently verified, includes 760 casualties over the past day.
North Korea is Russia’s largest arms supplier at present, Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov told the Financial Times in an interview published on Sunday. In the interview, Budanov also said Moscow was losing as many or more troops than it can recruit and that the Wagner group still exists, despite reports saying it had been dismantled.
Europe needs to “step up” and provide more funding for Ukraine, the UK’s defence secretary, Grant Shapps, has said. Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, Shapps said: “Europe needs to step up and do their part to make sure that Ukraine can continue to defend herself.”
Russian forces struck Zaporizhzhia region 95 times across 16 localities in the last day, reported the Kyiv Independent, citing regional governor Yurii Malashko. He said a 71-year-old man was injured in Huliaipole due to artillery shelling, where there were also two reports of destroyed residential buildings.
Slovakia’s new culture minister, Martina Šimkovičová, has reversed a ban on cooperating with Belarus and Russia, reports the Kyiv Independent, citing an article by the Slovakian publication Pravda. Pravda reported that leaked documents showed the reversal would be effective from 22 January.
Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk believes that tennis has forgotten the war in Ukraine and she hopes that the success of Ukrainian women at the Australian Open will generate further attention for the issue.
