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Stay on top of Russia-Ukraine war 01-21-2025 developments on the ground with KyivPost fact-based news, exclusive video footage, photos and updated war maps.
No increased rates for domestic bonds, minimal volatility in Eurobond prices and Ukraine’s central bank strengthens hryvnia. Weekly Insight for Jan. 20
The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine rejected more than half of the demand for military bills, as it refused to accept an increase in interest rates.
The demand at the primary bond auction last week improved from a week before—to UAH3.3bn for 1.5-year and UAH3.9bn for 2.5-year instruments. More than half of this demand came in with interest rates higher than those prevailing in the past several months.
The Russian president said the “root causes” of the Ukraine war need to be addressed for peace talks to begin, hinting that the Kremlin’s maximalist goal for Ukraine’s capitulation is unchanged.
The Kremlin claimed it’s open to talks with Washington on the war in Ukraine only if the “root causes” are addressed, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday during a Security Council meeting.
Speaking to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov via video at the meeting, Putin said he is “open to dialogue” with US President Donald Trump’s new administration but only if Russian interests are respected, and that the “root causes” of the war are addressed by Trump.
Ukrainian paratroopers describe the tenacity of North Korean troops, their refusal to surrender, and their readiness to die rather than be captured.
Servicemembers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) 95th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade have detailed the capture of a North Korean soldier in the Kursk region, who attempted to commit suicide to avoid captivity as the Airborne Assault Forces wrote on Telegram.
The post said: “It’s no secret that servicemen from North Korea do not surrender—they are willing to commit suicide to avoid being captured by Ukrainian soldiers.”
At the beginning of the year, Gazprom stopped deliveries to Transnistria due to a financial dispute with Chisinau.
Since Russia stopped delivering gas to Moldova, Valera Alexandru Sava only heats the ground floor of his two-story house and often wears a coat and hat inside.
But like other villagers in Cocieri, he does not want more expensive energy from Europe and is eager for Moscow to turn the taps back on.
President Donald Trump has reaffirmed his commitment to ending Russia’s war against Ukraine, without laying out a plan. But now, he is looking to Putin to make a move.
Latest from the British Defence Intelligence.
Xi said he hoped to work with Putin to take ties with Moscow to “new heights” this year, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping praised their deepening cooperation in a video call on Tuesday, hours after Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president.
The Republican has promised to take a hard line on Washington’s adversaries, threatening heavy tariffs on Beijing and warning Moscow of “big trouble” if it does not settle the Ukraine conflict.
The world in focus, as seen by Canadian leading global affairs analyst Michael Bociurkiw in a quick review of the biggest news in international media today.
President Trump has reentered the White House for the first time since becoming the 47th president. He quickly signed a number of executive actions before appearing at several Inaugural ball celebrations. In a speech heavy on vitriol, Trump took the route of a State of the Union address and announced several policy initiatives - including sending troops to secure the southern border and renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. He said “the golden age of America begins right now.” His speech was 2,885 words, compared to 1,433 in 2017, according to the American Presidency Project. With his threats to reoccupy the Panama Canal and expand America territory, FT columnist Edward Luce wrote the speech invoked regime change vibes rather than the usual peaceful transfer of power.
Shortly after being inaugurated on Monday, Donald Trump signed an executive order initiating a U.S. withdrawl from the World Health Organization. “World Health ripped us off,” Trump said in the Oval Office as he signed. Monday’s action starts a one-year countdown clock until the final exit, as WHO members are required to give one year’s notice and fulfill existing funding obligations before leaving the group, The Independent reported. Trump has always had it out for the WHO, stemming from the time it mishandled the Covid-19 pandemic and the way it went easy on China, where the virus is believed to have originated. The executive order cited the US’s “onerous “ share of membership fees. The U.S. has historically been the largest financial contributor to the WHO, giving $1.284 billion in the 2022 - 2023 period, in a mixture of assessed and voluntary contributions. The U.S. dues to the WHO for 2025 are roughly $130 million, while China will pay $87.6 million, The Independent reported. Trump previously threatened to pull out of WHO under his first presidency unless the UN body made significant reforms. The U.S. withdrawal would be devastating to the WHO and would like bring to an end the ambitious of its Ethiopian-born director general, Tedros Adhanon Ghebteyesus, to become UN secretary general. In response, WHO said it regretted the decision and claimed that over the last seven years it’s implemented “the largest set of reforms in its history.”
The White House will spend the time to evaluate ongoing programs and determine how or if they contribute to US interests.
In one of his first actions as President, Donald Trump signed a decree suspending US foreign aid programs for 90 days. Published on the official website of the White House, the order mandates a review of all aid programs to ensure they align with the new administration’s foreign policy goals.
“It is the policy of the United States that no further United States foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States,” the decree reads.
Official statements said Col. Dmytro Ryumshyn could face a 10-year prison term if convicted of wartime command negligence, including ignoring the desertion of more than 1,000 of his soldiers.
The former commander of a controversial combat brigade raised in and equipped by France, was arrested by Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) on Monday on possible charges of incompetence and negligence that led hundreds of his soldiers to desert, a statement from that agency said.
DBR agents along with operators from Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) arrested the officer, identified in mainstream news reports as Colonel Dmytro Ryumshyn, after he arrived to begin work in an administrative job in the west of the country, Ukrainian news reports said.
Trump has been vocal in his commitment to end the Russian war against Ukraine. So what happens now? Bohdan Nahaylo, Chief Editor of Kyiv Post, joined Poland’s TVP World to explore this question.
Elon Musk joined a rally at the Capital One Arena, thanking the crowd for Trump’s return to the White House and making a chest tap and open-hand gesture to engage the audience.
Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk said Tuesday his critics needed “better dirty tricks” after a row erupted over a gesture he made at an inauguration event for US President Donald Trump that some likened to a Nazi salute.
The X, SpaceX and Tesla chief appeared on stage at the Capital One Arena in Washington, where supporters of the newly inaugurated president had gathered for a rally.
Ukrainian authorities said the firms bypassed sanctions by routing the components through the Middle East, which ended up on weapons Russia fired against Ukraine.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has arrested a man accused of sending electronic components to Russia that were subsequently found on Russian weapons.
The Ukrainian companies involved are located in the country’s Kharkiv, Chernivtsi and Odesa regions and formed part of “a large international corporation” based in Russia, according to a Monday press release from the SBU.
Ukraine’s security services arrested the Armed Forces’ chief psychiatrist on suspicion of illegally obtaining property, cars, and hidden assets worth more than $1 million during the war.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has detained the chief psychiatrist of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) on suspicion of illegally enriching himself by $1 million during Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The suspect serves as the deputy head of the Central Military Medical Commission (MMC) and is responsible for decisions regarding the fitness of military personnel for service. His detention was carried out with the approval of Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and the Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi.
The targeted factory in Russia’s Smolensk Oblast produces Su-25 attack planes as well as Kh-55 and Kh-59 cruise missiles, which have been widely used in strikes on Ukraine.
Ukraine’s forces have again struck an oil depot that services the military in western Russia’s Voronezh Oblast and an aviation factory in Smolensk Oblast further north, Ukraine said today.
The General Staff said that drones had struck the Liskinskaya oil depot for a second time in the space of a week, and that drone units and special forces had coordinated the attack on “infrastructure of the Smolensk Aviation Plant” where “combat aircraft are being modernised and manufactured.”
Despite being one of the last western banks to remain in Russia, Austria’s leading bank still had to answer a lawsuit brought by companies said to be owned by a Russian tycoon.
The Kaliningrad Regional Arbitration Court granted the lawsuit filed by MKAO “Rasperia Trading Limited” against Raiffeisenbank, Strabag SE, Raiffeisen-Holding Niederösterreich-Wien, and several other foreign defendants, awarding €2 billion ($2.1 billion) in damages on Monday.
Both Raiffeisen Bank and Strabag are subsidiaries of Austrian companies in Russia that are still operating despite the massive withdrawal of western companies from the Russian market in response to sanctions and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Beijing remains a close political and economic partner of Moscow and has never condemned the war, leading some NATO members to brand China an “enabler” of the conflict.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday held a video call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Beijing’s state media reported.
Xi and Putin “held a video meeting at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on the afternoon of January 21”, state broadcaster CCTV said.
A Telegram video posted by Ukraine’s 28th mechanized brigade shows an unarmed Russian infantryman being taken out as he tries to deliver ammunition to the front line on foot.
A tactic developed to bring ammunition, mines and other military equipment to the front lines during the battles of Bakhmut between August 2022 and May 2023 is still being used by Russian forces despite the growing threat from drones.
The method established by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner private military company (PMC) was very simple: runners, known as “camels,” would be dispatched on foot to carry critical military materiel to Russian forces most likely in contact with the enemy.
There will no doubt be a Trump-sized elephant in the rooms at the World Economic Forum even if some leaders avoid saying his name -- although the man will speak himself by video link on Thursday.
With Donald Trump back as US president with his confrontational style, Chinese, European and Ukrainian leaders are expected to defend global cooperation on Tuesday at the annual gathering of the world’s elites in Davos.
There will no doubt be a Trump-sized elephant in the rooms at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in the Swiss Alpine resort even if some leaders avoid saying his name -- although the man will speak himself by video link on Thursday.
Moscow still insists on Ukraine’s de-facto capitulation and ‘peace’ on its terms.
Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated on Monday, Jan. 20, that the Kremlin is willing to negotiate with the United States about the war in Ukraine but indicated that he maintains his demands for Ukraine’s full capitulation.
Putin convened a meeting of the Russian Security Council on January 20, at which he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated Russia’s willingness to engage in peace negotiations with the new US presidential administration under President Donald Trump. Putin caveated that any peace settlement should “eliminate the root causes” of the war in Ukraine.
Malian officials claim the equipment is for their armed forces, while Russian experts suggest the primary recipient is the African Corps, Wagner PMC’s successor.
Photos and videos emerged on social media on Jan. 18, showing a massive convoy of Russian military equipment, including tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery systems, moving near Mali’s capital, Bamako, according to Russian media reports.
Set in the small village of Andriivka, near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the documentary dives deep into the brutal realities of modern warfare.
The Sundance Independent Film Festival begins on Jan. 23 in the US, featuring “2000 Meters to Andriivka,” a new documentary by Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov. Best known for his Oscar-winning film “20 Days in Mariupol,” Chernov returns with another compelling exploration of war.
Ahead of the premiere, Chernov shared sneak peeks from the film as part a “Meet the Artist 2025” official festival video. In it, Chernov described the film as “a story of Ukrainian soldiers fighting for every inch of their land.”
Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.
Key Takeaways from the ISW:
In the White House, Trump reiterates his pledge to end the war in Ukraine, hints at negotiations with Putin, and questions NATO spending while claiming Russia has suffered nearly a million casualties.
Although newly christened American President Donald Trump did not mention Ukraine in his inaugural address as president, he did name-drop the country later on at a rally and again in the Oval Office when repeating his campaign promise to end “needless wars” like Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that “should never have started.”
He went on to bring up Ukraine, Russia, and their leaders multiple times in the televised addresses.
Trump immediately reversed Biden-era policies and enacted sweeping executive orders on climate, immigration and free speech. He said he’d meet with Putin. Senate confirms Rubio as Secretary of State.
US President Donald Trump has begun signing a flurry of executive orders just hours after his inauguration on Monday. He made the first announcements at a rally of his supporters in Washington after his inaugural parade across the frozen district.
After making a congratulatory speech to his supporters where he spent some time criticizing former President Joe Biden and former Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, Trump sat at a desk in the middle of the crowd and turned to the tower of black folders stacked prominently by his side.
Leaders from around the world reacted to Donald Trump’s return Monday to the White House, offering congratulations and urging good relations, but “the canal is and will remain Panama’s”.
Here are some of the first reactions from around the world after Trump took the oath of office for a second term:
‘Just peace’: Ukraine
Expansionist rhetoric, an end to climate-change regulation, codified gender definitions and promises to overhaul the legal system mark the inaugural address of America’s 47th president.
The United States resumed its proud tradition of a peaceful and civil transfer of presidential power on Monday, inaugurating its 47th president, Donald Trump, who skipped the last inauguration after he lost the 2020 elections and his followers violently assaulted Capitol Hill in a deadly protest he fomented.
Outgoing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris smiled politely in the front row as Trump delivered an address that described a country in crisis brought about by flaws in their administration, and promised far-reaching policy reversals, including measures to codify gender descriptions to “male” and “female” only, and to regain control of the Panama Canal by force if necessary. He spoke of a foreign policy that “expands our territory” but in this address did not repeat the claims made in previous press conferences that he intends to annex Greenland.
