Russia’s Ryazan oil refinery, southeast of Moscow


EA-Times Radio VideoCast: Trump Rattles Putin Over Ukraine

Thursday’s Coverage: Trump Threatens Putin


Map: Institute for the Study of War


UPDATE 1721 GMT:

Trying to regain lost ground with Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin has told State TV:

I cannot but agree with him that if he had been president – if his victory hadn’t been stolen in 2020 – then maybe there would not have been the crisis in Ukraine that emerged in 2022.

Putin’s carrot balanced the stick from Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that there are “no practical actions indicating that Kyiv and the West are really ready” for negotiations to end Russia’s invasion.

On the contrary, western military supplies to the Ukrainian armed forces are continuing, ultimatums to Russia are being worked out, there is a [Ukrainian] legal ban on negotiations, and the issue of the legitimacy of the Ukrainian authorities is not being resolved.

Putin also gave himself the pretext to avoid talks: “How can negotiations be resumed if they are officially banned?”

Ukraine Presidential Chief of Staff Andrii Yermak warned that Putin “is trying to promote the idea of ​​negotiations with the US” so he can “negotiate the fate of Europe without Europe” and “talk about Ukraine without Ukraine”.

Yermak said, “This is not going to happen. Putin needs to come back to reality, or he will be brought back. This is not how it works in the modern world.”


UPDATE 1228 GMT:

At least six people have been killed and at least nine injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses downed 25 of 58 drones launched by #Russia overnight. Another 27 were lost to electronic counter-measures.

But the drones killed three civilians, including a married couple, and injured one in the Kyiv region.

Two people were killed and five injured by attacks on the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

In the Kharkiv region in the northeast, a 54-year-old woman was killed by a drone attack on the village of Petropavlivka.


UPDATE 1155 GMT:

The Kremlin is taking a more receptive line on discussions between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump over an end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Friday, “Putin is ready, we are waiting for signals, everyone is ready….If there is something, we will inform you.”

Peskov said Putin is also ready to discuss nuclear disarmament: “In the interests of the whole world, in the interests of the peoples of our countries, of course, we are interested in starting this negotiation process as soon as possible.”


UPDATE 0819 GMT:

Barbados and Panama have de-flagged 114 ships, hindering Russia’s “shadow fleet” moving oil in evasion of international sanctions.

The London-based Barbados Shipping Registry says it will require 46 vessels to remove Barbadian flags by the end of January because they are subject to UK sanctions.

Barbados, which has not sanctioned Russian vessels, says it will not remove its flag from tankers blacklisted by the US unless they are also subject to UK measures.

Panama’s Maritime Authority announced that it has begun de-registering 68 vessels under US sanctions.

Late last year, Panama adopted a rule to comply with US, European Union, British and UN sanctions.


UPDATE 0755 GMT:

Ukrainian officials are investigating reports of the latest Russian execution of prisoners of war.

Footage on social media shows Russian forces executing at least six unarmed Ukrainian soldiers in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials say they have confirmed Russian executions of more than 120 POWs.


UPDATE 0751 GMT:

The death toll has risen to three from Russia’s overnight attack on the Kyiv region (see 0703 GMT).


UPDATE 0741 GMT:

The President’s Office says Ukraine is in the final stages of drafting recruitment reforms to attract men 18 to 25 years old into the military.

Men under 25 are exempt from mobilization, and President Volodymyr Zelensky is resisting pressure from partners such as the US to lower the age of eligibility.

Col. Pavlo Palisa, the battlefield commander in the President’s office, described an “honest contract” with financial incentives, guarantees for training, and measures to ensure dialogue between soldiers and their commanders.

As of now, my view is that we need to start an open dialogue with society. Because the defense of the state is not only the responsibility of the armed forces. It is the duty of every Ukrainian citizen, and it is their obligation.


UPDATE 0712 GMT:

Donald Trump’s executive order suspending US foreign aid programs for 90 days does not apply to military assistance for Ukraine, the Pentagon has confirmed.

“Security assistance to Ukraine is not subject to the restrictions of the recent foreign assistance order, as it only applies to development programs, not military support,” the Defense Department told the Ukrainian Service of the Voice of America.

Contracts under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and weapons deliveries from US warehouses under the Presidential Depletion Authority are unaffected.


UPDATE 0703 GMT:

Two people have been killed and one injured in a Russian drone attack overnight on the Kyiv region.

A 36-year-old man was killed in the Kyiv suburb of Brovary by falling drone debris on a 10-story building. A 26-year-old man was injured in the ensuing fire.

Another person was killed when drone debris fell onto a home.


UPDATE 0647 GMT:

Donald Trump has told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that he wants to meet Vladimir Putin soon and “stop this ridiculous war”.

Shifting his line this week from support of the Kremlin’s “peace talks” propaganda to threats of sanctions on Moscow if no deal is reached, Trump said:

I really would like to be able to meet with President Putin soon to get that war ended….And that’s not from the standpoint of economy or anything else. It’s from the standpoint of millions of lives are being wasted….It’s a carnage. And we really have to stop that war.

EA-Times Radio VideoCast: The World Faces Trump 2.0

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the statement as continuing nothing new and said Moscow was following closely “all nuances” in rhetoric while remaining open to dialogue.

In contrast, Ukraine Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said:

We do really welcome such strong messages from President Trump and we believe that he will be the winner. And we believe that we have an additional chance to get new dynamic in diplomatic efforts to end this war.

Trump also used Putin’s 35-month invasion in attempted bullying of Gulf countries and OPEC to lower global oil prices. He declared, without any evidence, that the cut would ensure “the Russia-Ukraine war would end immediately”.

Trump linked lower oil prices with lower interest rates — a central concern of his, as he believes that would fulfill his objective of a higher US stock market.

In an interview with Fox TV, Trump balanced his recent pressure on Putin with a swipe at Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky: “[He] shouldn’t have allowed this to happen either. He’s no angel. First of all, he’s fighting a much bigger entity.”


ORIGINAL ENTRY: Ukraine has struck another major oil refinery inside Russia, setting it on fire.

Russian Telegram channels confirmed the blaze at the Ryazan refinery, southeast of Moscow, after a drone attack targeting several regions. Video showed a large fire at the facility.

The channels also acknowledged that a thermal power plant was hit.

Ryazan Governor Pavel Markov proclaimed that air defense units destroyed UAVs while claiming only one private house was struck. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed air defense systems intercepted 121 drones across 13 regions, as well as occupied Crimea in southern Ukraine.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin, said air defenses intercepted attacks at four locations around Russia’s capital, with more drones on the way.

Ukraine has stepped up successful strikes on Russia in recent months, including on refineries supplying fuel for Vladimir Putin’s 35-month invasion.