The essential
The Russian group Wagner claims control of the town of Soledar, 10 km from Bakhmout.
The Kremlin judges that the deliveries of Western tanks will "prolong the suffering" of the Ukrainians.
The United Kingdom plans to supply kyiv with Challenger 2 heavy armored vehicles.
kyiv has asked Berlin to provide it with Leopard 2 tanks. So far, Germany has announced the shipment of 40 Marder infantry tanks.
The EU and NATO will step up their cooperation against Moscow.
A coordination meeting will be held on January 20 at the American base at Ramstein in Germany.
06:30
Wagner announces the fall of Soledar, despite a pocket of resistance in the city center
“Units of the private military company Wagner have taken control of the entire territory of Soledar.
The center of the city has been surrounded, and urban warfare is ongoing.
The number of captives will be announced tomorrow,” according to Russian news agency TASS, announced via his company's Telegram channel, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The town of Soledar, 10 km from Bakhmout, has been the scene of intense fighting in recent days.
On Telegram, it was also said that a handful of Ukrainian soldiers, surrounded in the city center, had been given an ultimatum to surrender before midnight.
None of this information has yet been independently verified.
06:25
Kharkiv bombarded after the visit of a German minister
Russian bombardments hit Kharkiv last night, hours after the surprise visit to this city in northeastern Ukraine by the head of German diplomacy, Annalena Baerbock.
The city had been relatively spared lately from Russian strikes.
"Stay in the shelters. The occupants are bombing again!" Regional Governor Oleg Synegoubov warned on Telegram messaging.
06:20
Zelensky announces revoked Ukrainian citizenship of Putin aide
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced yesterday evening, in his daily address, to have revoked the Ukrainian citizenship of the rich businessman Viktor Medvedchuk, a close friend of Vladimir Putin, accused by kyiv of high treason in favor of Russia.
"Based on documents prepared by the security services and the State Migration Service, and in accordance with the Constitution of our state, I have decided to revoke the citizenship of four people", including Viktor Medvedchuk and three other politicians, he declared.
Medvedchuk was handed over to Russia in a prisoner swap between Kyiv and Moscow in late September 2022 after being imprisoned for more than five months in Ukraine.
06:10
Ukrainian forces trained in the United States in the Patriot anti-aircraft system
The United States will train Ukrainian forces in the operation and maintenance of the Patriot air defense system starting next week at Fort Sill in Oklahoma.
“This training will prepare between 90 and 100 Ukrainian soldiers to operate, maintain and maintain the defense system through training that is expected to last several months,” said Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder.
06:00
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Welcome to this live on the war in Ukraine and its consequences.