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Morning Headlines
Reuters: Russia said it had requested an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Friday to discuss military strikes on Yemen by the United States and Britain.
WSJ: The U.S., China and Russia are racing to secure critical metals needed to power the energy transition away from fossil fuels. Their latest battleground: oil-rich Saudi Arabia (archive).
ISW: Russia’s ability to conduct operational level rotations will likely allow Russian forces to maintain the overall tempo of their localized offensive operations in eastern Ukraine in the near term, but it is unclear if Russian forces will be able to conduct effective rotations in the long term or in the event of intensified Russian offensive efforts or a significant Ukrainian counteroffensive operation.
Reuters: The U.S. State Department on Thursday imposed sanctions on three Russian entities and one individual involved in the transfer and testing of North Korea's ballistic missiles for Russia's use against Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
More News
Reuters: A politician bidding to run against Putin in Russia's upcoming presidential 'election' described the decision to go to war in Ukraine as a "big mistake" in comments to the wives of soldiers on Thursday.
The Kyiv Independent: The European Commission is ready to grant Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban certain concessions in order to advance a four-year funding agreement for Ukraine worth 50 billion euros, the Financial Times reported on Jan. 11, citing senior officials.
CNN: The Pentagon did not properly track $1 billion worth of military equipment sent to Ukraine, according to a watchdog report released on Thursday.
Reuters: Ukraine's economy grew by 5% in 2023 and will expand by 4.6% this year as a result of higher domestic consumption and expected growth in its defence industry, the country's Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Thursday.
Reuters: Ukraine's hotly debated draft law on tightening mobilization rules has been withdrawn from parliament and a new version is ready for the government to review, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said.
The Kyiv Independent: Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics announced on Jan. 11 a new military aid package for Ukraine, including howitzers, drones, munitions, and more. He said this during a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky.
Meduza: Russian Pension Fund employees asked not to publish information about welfare payments to war participants. Journalists use this data to uncover scale of Russian troop losses.
Reuters: The United States is "disappointed" by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Ukraine policy, and looks forward to Budapest fulfilling its promise not to be the last to ratify Sweden's NATO accession, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Thursday.
Reuters: U.S. enforcement of the G7's price cap on Russian oil since October is hitting the price Russia can get for its oil in global markets and reducing revenues for its war on Ukraine, a U.S. Treasury official told reporters on Thursday.
The Kyiv Independent: The situation on Ukraine's eastern front remains difficult as Russian forces continue offensive operations in the Kupiansk, Lyman, and Bakhmut directions, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Jan. 11.
Reuters: The World Bank's private investment arm has mobilised nearly $1 billion to rebuild Ukraine's private sector and is shifting its broader investment focus towards equity, its managing director told Reuters.
The Moscow Times: Nearly 10,000 companies with foreign involvement have exited Russia in the two years since it invaded Ukraine, the Vedomosti business daily reported Thursday, citing corporate data.
The Kyiv Independent: Estonian President Alar Karis pledged to allocate 1.2 billion euros for Kyiv until the year 2027, a major commitment from a country of 1.3 million people, after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Estonia as part of his Baltic trip.
The Finnish authorities have decided to keep the border with Russia closed for another month, until February 11, 2024, according to the Finnish Interior Ministry’s website.
POLITICO: Russia has largely succeeded in finding ways to get around sanctions on the technology it needs to fight its war against Ukraine, and that means the West needs to make the trade curbs more effective if it is to restrict Putin’s aggression.
FT: Russia obtained $7.3bn in critical battlefield components (1/3 of the total) from western companies last year — in large part because of outsourced production to countries with weak export controls (archive).
Yahoo News: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Thursday that any "pauses" in Ukraine's defence against the Russian invasion would only help Moscow to re-arm and allow it to "run us over".
Reuters Special Report: The ICC’s chief prosecutor has said Russia transferred 'at least hundreds' of children from orphanages and care homes in occupied regions of Ukraine. Ukrainian authorities say Russia removed around 4,000 children who are orphaned or not in parental care.
Reuters: Two Siberian airlines have asked the Russian government to extend the service life of Soviet-era Antonov aircraft, many of which are over 50 years old, as Russian planemakers scramble to plug the gap left by the exodus of foreign manufacturers.
The Moscow Times: Two Russian missiles struck a hotel in Ukraine's second city Kharkiv, injuring 13 people including foreign journalists, local authorities said Thursday.
worth mentioning
Russia's finance ministry switches to FX sales as energy revenues drop
Why China won't help Putin succeed
Latvia to transfer Moscow House cultural center in Riga to state ownership
Russia's oil and gas budget revenue down 24% in 2023
Boiling water floods streets of Russia’s Novosibirsk, leaves residents without heat
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