Fierce battles are taking place in the east of Ukraine, where the Russians are trying to gain a foothold in the strategic city of Lyman, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said. The Russians are also preparing an offensive in several directions and are “actively” conducting reconnaissance on the battlefield, the General Staff of the Armed Forces reported

SUMMARY OF THE DAY

• At least three people were killed and more than 20 injured as a result of a Russian missile attack on a residential building in Kramatorsk.

• Fierce fighting continues in eastern Ukraine, where Russian troops are trying to gain a foothold near the strategic city of Lyman, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on Wednesday evening. Russian troops are trying to win there in order to use the victory on the anniversary of their invasion on February 24, 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said.

• In the updated intelligence data of the Ministry of Defense of Great Britain, it is said that in recent days, along the Dnipro River, “some of the most intense shelling since the beginning of the war” has been observed. “This included continuous shelling of the city of Kherson,” the agency notes, adding that Donbas and Kherson are the most shelled cities.

• A woman who heads the tax office in Kyiv was accused of multimillion-dollar fraud after a search of one of her four homes. The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) of Ukraine stated that she, along with other representatives of local authorities, abused “official powers and official position.”

• “Russia is preparing an offensive in several directions. Russian troops are “actively” conducting reconnaissance on the battlefield to prepare new offensive actions in several directions, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on February 1. The army did not specify the districts, Kyiv Independent reports.

• Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the Russian military must stop bombing Russian regions from inside Ukraine, which he said has left many people homeless or without electricity.

• Ukraine will receive longer-range missiles from the USA / How Russia reacted. Washington’s announcement that Ukraine will get longer-range missiles is raising hopes in Kyiv, whose troops are losing ground in eastern Ukraine to a Russian offensive that the Kremlin says will continue despite Western military aid to Ukraine.

• On Wednesday, Russia warned Israel about possible arms shipments to Ukraine after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would “look into the matter.” “When it comes to the supply of weapons (to Ukraine), we do not classify countries by geography. All countries that supply weapons must understand that we will consider (these weapons) as legitimate targets for our armed forces,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

• Spain will send 20 M113 armored personnel carriers to Ukraine on February 6, Defense Minister Margarita Robles announced on February 1, reports the Spanish media Europa Press.

• The head of the foreign policy department of the European Union, Josep Borrell, rejected the idea of ​​sending fighter jets to Ukraine, calling it an “extremely controversial” issue, reports El Pais on February 1.

• The EU will train 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers, twice the original goal. The European Union wants to train 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers, doubling its original target, to help Kiev cope with the Russian invasion, an EU official said on Wednesday, as quoted by AFP.

• Zakharova condemns Macron’s “absurd” statements: “It is unbelievable that this is the logic of an adult.” Russian diplomacy on Wednesday called “absurd” the fact that French President Emmanuel Macron can say that the supply of weapons to Ukraine is not an escalation. “Is the President of France really sure that the delivery of heavy weapons and aircraft to the Kyiv regime will not lead to an escalation of the situation?”, the spokeswoman of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, responded. “I can’t believe this is the logic of an adult,” she added.

• Prigozhin contradicts the pro-Russian separatists and denies the encirclement of the city of Bakhmut: “When it is conquered, you will know for sure.” Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, denied on Wednesday that Russian forces had succeeded in establishing an operational ring around the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, hours after representatives of pro-Russian forces in eastern Ukraine said otherwise.

The latest on the war in Ukraine, day 344:

06:04North Korea is capable of countering any military threats from the US using its nuclear weapons, a spokesman for the North Korean Foreign Ministry said..

01:40In his message on Wednesday evening, Volodymyr Zelenskyi announces the dismissal of the heads of customs and searches in criminal proceedings: “We change as much as is necessary so that people do not abuse power.”

01:20Russia warns Israel against any arms deliveries to Ukraine

On Wednesday, Russia warned Israel about possible arms shipments to Ukraine after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would “look into the matter.” “When it comes to the supply of weapons (to Ukraine), we do not classify countries by geography. All countries supplying weapons must understand that we will consider (these weapons) as legitimate targets for our armed forces,” said Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry.

01:03 At least two people died as a result of a Russian missile attack on a residential building in Kramatorsk

23:35 Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the Russian military must stop bombing Russian regions from inside Ukraine, which he said has left many people homeless or without electricity.