Key developments on Jan. 27:
- North Korean troops seem to temporarily withdraw from one section of front in Kursk Oblast, military says
- Russia claims to capture Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine admits partial retreat but says battles ongoing
- Russia intensifies attacks near Pokrovsk, seeks to encircle Ukrainian forces
- Zelensky appoints Ground Forces Commander as head of Khortytsia Group
- Military intelligence denies its head gave Ukraine until summer to launch talks or endanger country’s existence
- EU foreign ministers agree to extend Russia sanctions after Hungary’s delays
North Korean soldiers appear to have temporarily withdrawn from one of the axes of the front in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, a Special Operations Forces (SOF) spokesperson told the Kyiv Independent on Jan. 27 as Pyongyang’s troops reportedly suffered significant losses.
The statement came after Sky News reported, citing a commander of a detachment of the 73rd Naval Special Operations Center with a callsign “Puls,” that North Korean troops have temporarily withdrawn from the contact line in the embattled Russian region.
Colonel Oleksandr Kindratenko, a spokesperson of the Special Operations Forces, clarified to the Kyiv Independent that the North Korean troops appear to have had to temporarily withdraw only from one of the axes of Kursk Oblast where the 73rd SOF Center is deployed.
North Korean troops were deployed to Kursk Oblast last fall to support Russian forces in countering a Ukrainian incursion launched in early August 2024. Ukrainian forces have continued fighting in the region, hoping to leverage their positions for potential negotiations.
North Korean forces are taking respite from hostilities, presumably to treat the wounded, wait for reinforcements, and work on mistakes made during the fighting in this sector, according to Sky News.
“Puls” assumed that this break will not last long and the North Korean military “will be back soon.” The soldier also noted North Korean troops’ high motivation and that they continued the offensive despite heavy losses.
North Korean soldiers were unaware of the threats from drones and artillery and attacked on foot in large groups, “like in World War II,” becoming an easy target, “Puls” added.
There is poor coordination and a language barrier between North Korean and Russian troops barrier that has already led to North Korean soldiers targeting Russian positions, according to the Ukrainian military.
South Korean intelligence announced at the end of January that Pyongyang was planning to send more troops to Russia to participate in the war.
Ukraine’s military intelligence chief, Kyrylo Budanov, also said previously that Pyongyang is preparing reinforcements, mainly gun and rocket artillery units. The New York Times reported that according to an undisclosed U.S. official, fresh North Korean troops could arrive within two months.
Russia introduces history textbook that redefines war against Ukraine as justified defense
The three-volume textbook, targeted at schoolchildren, claims Russia was “forced” to invade Ukraine in 2022, citing long-standing grievances such as NATO’s eastward expansion and the 2014 ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Russian president, which the textbook characterizes as a Western-backed coup.
Russia claims to capture Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine admits partial retreat but says battles ongoing
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed on Jan. 26 that its forces had captured Velyka Novosilka, a strategically significant settlement in the western part of Donetsk Oblast.
Ukraine’s 110th Mechanized Brigade, which is deployed in the area, acknowledged a withdrawal from parts of the village to avoid encirclement but claimed that fighting is ongoing elsewhere in Velyka Novosilka.
“Fights in Velyka Novosilka are ongoing. Russian forces shelled our positions 30 times,” the Khortytsia group of forces said on Jan. 27.
“The Defense Forces continue inflicting casualties on Russia in manpower and equipment during tense battles.”
The group’s spokesperson, Viktor Trehubov, clarified later during the day that Ukrainian forces withdrew from the southern part of the village but continue to hold positions in the outskirts.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.
The village with a pre-war population of 5,000 lies only around 15 kilometers from the administrative border with Zaporizhzhia Oblast and 20 kilometers from Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, a region so far untouched by Russian occupation.
If confirmed, this would represent the most significant gain of Russian forces in Donetsk Oblast since overrunning Kurakhove earlier in January.
The 110th Brigade said that both Russia and Ukraine had parity in equipment but Moscow had significant advantage in manpower.
According to the Ukrainian military, Russian forces will struggle to advance their offensive onward. The Mokri Yaly River creates an obstacle for Russia’s advance and Russian troops are in a vulnerable “fire pocket,” said the brigade.
Fighting is at a very heavy level in Donetsk Oblast and Russian troops continue to advance, albeit slowly, this year. Throughout the fall of 2024, Russian forces made operational gains in southern Donetsk Oblast, including areas near Toretsk and Chasiv Yar, while advancing near Kupiansk and on Russian soil in Kursk Oblast.
Potential encirclement in Velyka Novosilka prompts questions about last-ditch withdrawal strategy
Thrusting forward with their vast manpower advantage, Russian troops are gradually penetrating Ukrainian defenses on the western edge of Donetsk Oblast and are close to capturing Velyka Novosilka. Located about 15 kilometers east of the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, the vital road-junction vil…
Russia intensifies attacks near Pokrovsk, seeks to encircle Ukrainian forces
Russian forces have intensified their assaults near Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, deploying small groups in an attempt to encircle Ukrainian troops, Victor Trehubov, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Khortytsia group of forces, said on Jan. 27 on national television.
“For the first time, they started to fight smart; for the first time, they started to fight not just with direct human waves, but with attempts to cover, with attempts to bypass a large city and force Ukrainian forces to leave it,” Trehubov said.
The area near Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub for Ukrainian forces, has been at the center of heavy fighting for months.
“The situation is as follows: there is a large number of small-scale clashes near Pokrovsk because Russians are trying to enter and surround Pokrovsk from the west in small groups. There are many, many clashes there,” Trehubov said.
Pokrovsk remains the focal point of Russia’s eastern offensive, now in its fifth month. Ukraine’s General Staff reported that Russian troops are continuing to push on multiple axes, including Lyman, Siversk, Kramatorsk, Toretsk, and Kurakhove.
Trehubov said the Russian command is avoiding urban battles to reduce heavy personnel losses. Despite these efforts, Moscow has so far failed to outflank Pokrovsk and sever its logistics routes.
As Russians inch closer to Pokrovsk, civilians in the area are left with a choice — stay under fire or leave life behind
BILOZERSKE, Donetsk Oblast — Less than 30 kilometers north of embattled Pokrovsk, a market was in full swing in the town of Bilozerske. Meters away, however, a crowd has gathered in front of a building, nervously awaiting the doors to open. Tensions were visibly mounting as the doors remained close…
Zelensky appoints Ground Forces Commander as head of Khortytsia Group
President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi, Commander of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, as the head of the Khortytsia operational-strategic Group on Jan. 26.
“Today, I ordered a strengthening of the command structure of our forces in the Donetsk Oblast,” Zelensky said in his evening address.
He noted that Drapatyi’s leadership will focus on the most intense combat areas while also ensuring proper training for brigades.
Drapatyi will continue in his role as Commander of the Ground Forces, the largest component of the Armed Forces.
Zelensky appointed Drapatyi as commander in November 2024. Drapatyi served as a commander of Ukraine’s 58th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade from 2016 to 2019. He also played one of the key roles in the liberation of Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast in 2014.
Additionally, Brigadier General Andrii Hnatov has been appointed Deputy Chief of the General Staff to improve coordination between operational headquarters and the front lines.
Previously, Hnatov served as Commander of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Zelensky appointed him to that role in June 2024.
Zelensky said that these and other changes were discussed with Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi to address key military tasks at all levels.
“The specific needs of the front must determine the standards for equipping and training brigades,” Zelensky said.
Donetsk Oblast to forcibly evacuate children from over 20 settlements
Due to the increased threat to civilian lives, authorities will begin mandatory forced evacuations of children in several settlements in the Komar and Kryvorizhzhia communities, Governor Vadim Filashkin said.
Military intelligence denies its head gave Ukraine until summer to launch talks or endanger country’s existence
Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) denied on Jan. 27 media reports that its head, Kyrylo Budanov, predicted serious consequences for the existence of Ukraine unless negotiations begin by the summer during a confidential parliamentary meeting.
Although HUR’s statement did not specify the alleged quote, an assessment attributed to Budanov began circulating in the Ukrainian media earlier on Jan. 27.
“If there are no serious negotiations by the summer, then very dangerous processes for the very existence of Ukraine may begin,” an undisclosed source told Ukrainska Pravda, referring to an alleged statement by Budanov during a closed-door parliamentary meeting.
“The Ukrainian military intelligence would like to draw the attention… to the fact that the alleged quote of (Budanov)… from a closed, classified session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine… is not true,” HUR’s statement read.
Ukrainska Pravda did not specify what processes the military spy chief was said to have in mind. In office since 2020, Budanov has at time made radical predictions about the full-scale war that have not always come true.
Opposition lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko also disputed Ukrainska Pravda’s article, saying the spy chief did not warn of threats to Ukraine’s very existence.
“(Budanov) said that if nothing changes, the front line may begin to collapse and there will be problems,” Honcharenko said on his Telegram channel.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.
The news comes amid growing expectation of peace talks as U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to bring Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table.
Short on manpower, Kyiv will soon begin the fourth year of the full-scale war on its back foot, with Russia holding or pushing the front line on key directions such as the southwestern edge of Donetsk Oblast or Russia’s Kursk Oblast.
Trump’s special peace envoy, Keith Kellogg, said the U.S. aims to end the war in the first 100 days of Trump’s presidency.
Trump needs to ‘understand where the threat is,’ UK lawmaker says
U.S. President Donald Trump needs to “understand where the threat is” and not “force Ukraine into a bad deal,” U.K. lawmaker Iain Duncan Smith told the Kyiv Independent. In an interview in Kyiv alongside another U.K. lawmaker Layla Moran on Jan. 22, Duncan Smith urged Trump not
EU foreign ministers agree to extend Russia sanctions after Hungary’s delays
European Union foreign ministers approved the extension of sanctions against Russia for another six months on Jan. 27, the EU’s chief diplomat, Kaja Kallas, announced on X.
“Europe delivers: EU foreign ministers just agreed to extend again the sanctions on Russia. This will continue to deprive Moscow of revenues to finance its war. Russia needs to pay for the damage they are causing,” Kallas wrote on X.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has threatened to veto the extension until Ukraine resumes the transit of Russian gas through its territory. The announcement by Kallas comes after Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that Brussels had provided the “requested guarantees” on energy security.
“The European Commission is committed to protecting natural gas and oil pipelines leading to European Union member states,” the Hungarian chief diplomat said, adding that the European Commission will also ask Kyiv to maintain the oil transit through its territory.
Ukraine terminated Russian natural gas transit through its territory on Jan. 1. Kyiv has repeatedly warned that it would not extend the agreement when it expires at the end of 2024 because it did not want to finance Russia’s war.
The end of transit led to a spat between Kyiv on one side and Hungary and Slovakia on the other, with the two latter countries complaining the decision endangers their energy security.
Ukraine continues to transit Russian oil, though a bill on banning the transit has been registered in the parliament.
The EU has imposed 15 sanctions packages against Russia, which include restrictions on individuals and legal entities. The limitations also targeted Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” of oil tankers and froze Russian assets, among other moves.
In January, the European Commission launched consultations on the 16th package of sanctions against Russia. The restrictions are expected to apply to imports of aluminum, agricultural products, the “shadow fleet,” liquefied natural gas (LNG), and Russian banks, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
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