On the front, almost two years after the start of the war in Ukraine, tensions continue to grow. A new Ukrainian strike left 13 dead this Sunday, January 21, in a market in Donetsk, a large city located in the east of Ukraine and which came under the control of pro-Russian separatists in 2014.
Information to remember
⇒ Russia claimed the capture of a village in eastern Ukraine
⇒ Ukrainian strike kills 13 in Donetsk
⇒ Ukraine is “under the total control of the United States”, according to the Slovak Prime Minister
Russia claims capture of small town in eastern Ukraine
The Russian army claimed this Sunday the capture of the village of Krakhmalnoye in the Kharkiv region, in eastern Ukraine, illustrating the increased pressure exerted by Moscow’s forces on the front in recent weeks. On Thursday January 18, the Russian army had already announced the conquest of another small town, Veseloye, in the Donetsk region, still in the east of the country.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, this small town “was liberated […] thanks to the active operations successfully carried out by the units of the ‘West’ group of troops. This village, where some 45 inhabitants lived before February 24, 2022, is located 30 kilometers southeast of Kupiansk, a target for months of attacks by Russian forces.
According to a spokesperson for the Ukrainian land forces, Volodymyr Fitio, interviewed on Ukrainian television this Sunday, this capture “has no strategic importance” on the front. “These are five houses. They were destroyed by the Russians,” he downplayed, assuring that the Ukrainian troops had been “moved to prepared reserve positions”, where they “are now holding the defense, preventing the enemy from continuing to advance.
New Ukrainian strike in Donetsk kills 18
This Sunday, at least 18 people were killed and around ten others injured in a Ukrainian strike on a market in Donetsk, announced the head of the Russian occupation of the region, Denis Pushilin. “The market was attacked on Sunday, when it is busiest,” he lambasted.
Donetsk, a large city in eastern Ukraine, came under the control of pro-Russian separatists led by Moscow in 2014. Located around 20 kilometers from the front line, it has since been regularly bombarded by the Ukrainian army.
North Korea is ‘ready’ to welcome Putin
North Korea’s top diplomat affirmed that her country was “ready to receive” Russian President Vladimir Putin, the official KCNA agency reported this Sunday. This is the latest sign of the rapprochement displayed between Pyongyang and Moscow. The head of the Kremlin is “the Korean people’s closest friend with the greatest sincerity”, said North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui during a visit to Moscow.
According to the press release relayed by the KCNA agency, Russia conveyed to North Korea its “deep thanks […] for providing full support and solidarity to the position of the Russian government and people on the special military operation in Ukraine” – the name given by Russia to its war waged since February 2022 in the European country.
Senior Russian officials, including defense and foreign ministers, visited North Korea in 2023, raising fears of a potential arms deal.
Ukraine is “under total control of the United States”, says Slovak Prime Minister
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said this Saturday that “Ukraine is not an independent and sovereign country” but “under the total control and influence of the United States”. Robert Fico, who is due to meet his Ukrainian counterpart Denys Chmygal on Wednesday January 24 in a town located on the border between the two countries, also reiterated that his country would not provide him with weapons.
“I will tell him that I am against Ukraine’s membership in NATO and that I will veto it. It would trigger the third world war, nothing more, nothing less,” he told the channel public television RTVS. The head of the Slovak government also accused Ukraine of being one of the most corrupt countries in the world: “God only knows where the aid sent to you disappears.”
A member of NATO, Slovakia is one of the most pro-Russian countries within the European Union. According to a 2023 report from the Bratislava-based think tank Globsec, less than half of Slovaks (40%) believe that Russia is responsible for the war in Ukraine.