NATO defence ministers to meet on Ukraine weapons, Greenland security
IOC’s ban on skeleton racer Heraskevych ‘plays into hands’ of Russia, says Zelensky
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday slammed a decision by the International Olympic Committee to disqualify Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych for wearing a helmet depicting killed Ukrainian athletes.
“The Olympic movement should help stop wars, not play into the hands of aggressors,” Zelensky said in a post on social media, adding: “We are proud of Vladyslav and of what he did. Having courage is worth more than any medal.”
Ukrainian arms producers receive first wartime export licences
Ukrainian arms producers have received the first wartime licences to export their goods abroad, the secretary of Kyiv’s national security and defence council said on Thursday.
In a statement, Rustem Umerov did not specify how many enterprises had received a license but said Ukraine’s annual production capacity in the sector exceeds $55 billion.
Ukraine’s air force warns of launch of Russian intermediate-range ballistic missile
‘Don’t send money to Ukraine’ if you want to boost economy, Hungary’s Orban tells EU
Europe should stop sending money to Ukraine if it is serious about revving up its economy, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Thursday as he headed into talks with EU leaders.
“Don’t send your money to somebody else if you need it for your competitiveness, so don’t send the money to Ukraine,” Orban told reporters.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the EU, the nationalist premier has consistently expressed scepticism about the European Union’s support for Ukraine.
At the end of 2025, official figures show the EU and its member states had contributed around 177 billion euros ($210 billion) in military, economic and political assistance to Ukraine since the February 2022 invasion.
UN calls on Russia to stop attacks on Ukraine energy infrastructure
The United Nations on Thursday called on Russia to stop its attacks on Ukraine’s energy sites, which have plunged entire cities into darkness in the coldest winter of the four-year war.
“Last night, the Russian Federation again carried out a large-scale attack targeting energy infrastructure across Ukraine. Hundreds of thousands of civilians woke up without electricity and heating,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.
“The targeting of civilian infrastructure is prohibited under international humanitarian law. I call upon the Russian Federation to immediately cease these attacks.”
Kremlin confirms that Russia has blocked WhatsApp
The Kremlin said on Thursday that Russia has blocked Meta’s WhatsApp messaging service and suggested that people use MAX, a new state-backed platform, instead.
Ukrainian drone strike causes fire at refinery in Russia’s Arctic Komi region
The head of Russia’s northern Komi Republic, Rostislav Goldshtein, said on Thursday that a Ukrainian drone attack had caused a fire at an oil refinery.
No one was injured, he said on Telegram.
Ukraine skeleton racer Heraskevych disqualified from Olympics over memorial helmet
Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified from the Winter Olympics on Thursday after refusing to back down over his banned helmet, which depicts victims of his country’s war with Russia.
In a statement, the International Olympic Committee said Heraskevych is “not allowed to participate at Milano-Cortina 2026 after refusing to adhere to the IOC athlete expression guidelines”.
Nearly 300,000 people without power, water supply in Ukraine’s Odessa after Russian attack
Nearly 300,000 people were left without electricity and water supply in Ukraine’s southern city of Odessa after a Russian attack, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on Thursday.
He added that close to 200 buildings in the city were left without heating, while 10,000 consumers were also left without heating in the southeastern city of Dnipro.
Kyiv mayor says another 2,600 buildings in city without heat after Russian attack
Another nearly 2,600 apartment buildings were left without heating in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv following a Russian attack overnight, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Klitschko said the buildings were located both on the left and right bank of the Dnipro River, in four city districts.
More than 1,100 apartment buildings remained without heating as a result of the previous attacks, he added.
Russia launched 24 ballistic missiles, 219 drones at Ukraine, air force says
Russia launched 24 ballistic missile, one cruise missile and 219 drones in overnight attacks against Ukraine, Ukraine’s air force said on Thursday.
Air defence units shot down or neutralised 16 missiles and 197 drones, the air force said in a post on Telegram.
It added that the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Odessa were the main targets of the strike.
Russia sends ‘hundreds’ of missiles, drones at Ukraine
Russia pounded Ukraine with drones and ballistic missiles overnight on Thursday, targeting energy systems and injuring at least seven people in the capital Kyiv, and the cities of Dnipro and Odesa, officials said.
“Hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles targeted energy systems, depriving people of power, heating, and water,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in a post on X.
Two people were hurt in a “massive” attack on Kyiv, which also hit various buildings, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Russian attack damages substation in Ukraine’s southern Odessa region
A Russian attack has damaged a substation in Ukraine’s southern region of Odessa, power company DTEK said on Thursday.
“The damage is extensive. Repairs will take a long time to restore the equipment to working order,” DTEK said on the Telegram messaging app.
It added that it was already the 31st large substation in the region that has been damaged by Russia.
‘Ukraine will do everything to be technically ready for EU accession by 2027’, says Zelensky
WhatsApp says Russia ‘attempted to fully block’ app
WhatsApp said Wednesday that Russia “attempted to fully block” the messaging app in the country to push users to a competing state-controlled service, potentially affecting 100 million people.
Moscow has been trying to nudge Russians to use a more tightly controlled domestic online service.
It has threatened a host of internet platforms with forced slowdowns or outright bans if they do not comply with Russian laws, including those requiring data on Russian users to be stored inside the country.
Russia says village evacuated after military facility hit by debris
Russia said Thursday that it repelled a missile attack in Volgograd region but that debris ignited a fire at a military facility and prompted the evacuation of a nearby village.
“Air defense units of the Russian Ministry of Defence repelled a missile attack on Volgograd region,” regional Governor Andrey Bocharov posted on Telegram.
“Falling debris caused a fire on the grounds of a Ministry of Defence facility near the village of Kotluban,” he added, without elaborating on the site.
While there were no were no casualties, he said evacuation orders were being carried out in the nearby village of Kotluban “to ensure civilian safety from the threat of detonation during firefighting”.