Monday, February 3
Russia’s war against Ukraine
Rescuers conduct search and rescue operation at a residential building damaged by Russian shelling on Feb. 2, 2025 in Poltava, Ukraine. (Bohdan Kazyrid / Suspilne Ukraine / JSC “UA:PBC” / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
‘Putin will never try again after this’ — NATO chief has ‘secret’ ideas for Ukraine peace talks. NATO Chief Mark Rutte also insisted Ukraine was not losing the war against Russia.
15,000 Russian troops ‘neutralized’ in Pokrovsk direction in January alone, Syrskyi says. In a post that included a video of combat footage, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said the area “remains one of the hottest” on the front.
Zelensky warns of Russia’s growing alliance with Iran, North Korea. In an interview with the Associated Press on Feb. 2, Zelensky added that while these countries had previously cooperated on weapons and technology, they are now openly engaged in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Trump says talks with Ukraine, Russia ‘going pretty well,’ media reports. “We have meetings and talks scheduled with various parties, including Ukraine and Russia. And I think those discussions are actually going pretty well,” Trump told reporters late on Feb. 2.
Zaluzhnyi proposed Kursk-style incursion into Russia’s Belgorod Oblast in 2022, Ukrainian general says. The plan was similar to Ukraine’s cross-border incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in August 2024.
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Russia blames Ukraine for deadly strike on Kursk boarding school, Air Force evidence suggests otherwise. At least four people were killed and 84 rescued after the attack on the evening of Feb. 1, which Ukraine’s General Staff says was carried out by Russia using a targeted guided aerial bomb strike.
Meduza, German PR firm apologize for campaign featuring Ukrainian war victims. Yaroslav Bazylevych told the Kyiv Independent on Feb. 1 that the images were used without his permission.
Ukrainian FM calls Putin’s remarks on Zelensky’s legitimacy ’absurd.’ “Putin’s remarks about the legitimacy of Ukraine’s President are absurd. During his quarter-century stay in the Kremlin, Ukraine saw three presidents change in fair elections; President Trump returned for a second term after an impressive victory. This is democracy and legitimacy,” Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on Feb. 2.
Zelensky comments on Defense Procurement Agency dispute, says Umerov is entitled to make any decisions to prevent military supply delays. President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the conflict between the Defense Ministry and the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) on Feb. 2 in an interview with the Associated Press (AP), commenting that the Defense Minister has the right to do everything to ensure that there is no slowdown in supplies.
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Russia’s oil tanker crash causes ‘worst ecological catastrophe,’ with Black Sea in need of a decade to recover
On the night of Dec. 15, 2024, two Russian oil tankers, Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239, sank in the Kerch Strait, a narrow maritime connection between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.
Photo: Stringer/AFP via Getty Images
Ukraine war latest: Poland scrambles jets, puts air defense on high alert during Russian missile attack on Ukraine
Polish and other allied aircraft were quickly mobilized on Feb. 1 in response to a large-scale missile attack by Russia on western Ukraine, Poland’s Armed Forces reported on X.
Image: Ukraine’s State Emergency Service / Telegram
Human cost of war
Death toll in Russian missile strike on Poltava rises to 14, including 2 children. The attack destroyed all five floors of one of the building’s sections, caused a fire, and damaged neighboring buildings. Search and rescue operations are ongoing at the site.
Russian vice-governor and military commander killed in Kursk Oblast, Astra reports. Sergei Yefremov, Vice-Governor of Russia’s Primorsky Krai and commander of the Tiger military unit, was killed in Kursk Oblast, Russian Telegram news channel Astra reported on Feb. 2.
18-year-old injured in Russian drone attack on Sumy dies. Denys Zhurba’s father was among those wounded in the attack.
5 people, including 2 children, injured in Kherson after Russia targets minibus with drone, governor says. Drone attacks targeting civilians in the southern city of Kherson have become so frequent that locals have described the violent campaign as a “human safari.”
General Staff: Russia has lost 840,360 troops in Ukraine since Feb 24, 2022. This number includes 1,320 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Russia’s assault on Chasiv Yar and US aid freeze
International response
EU leaders to discuss defense strategy against Russia, Trump’s tariffs. A key focus of the meeting is geopolitics and EU relations with the United States, with U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs expected to dominate the agenda.
In other news
Russia used US banks to send billions to Turkey, dodging sanctions, WSJ reports. A U.S. Justice Department investigation found that Russia funneled billions of dollars through American banks to Turkey in 2022, using the Akkuyu nuclear power plant project as cover to evade sanctions, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
Multiple Georgian opposition leaders arrested as pro-EU demonstrators block highway in Tbilisi. Georgian police arrested two opposition leaders, including the former mayor of Tbilisi, during a street protest against the ruling Georgian Dream party, Echo of the Caucasus reported on Feb. 2.
Russia fines woman in occupied Crimea for ‘promoting child-free lifestyle.’ Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law banning “childfree propaganda” in November last year.
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