The essentials
• North Korean soldiers captured by Ukraine. kyiv said on Saturday it had imprisoned two Pyongyang fighters in the Russian region of Kursk and said it was ready for an exchange. South Korean intelligence says it is participating in their interrogation.
• New assessment on the North Korean side. Some 300 North Korean soldiers were killed in Russia to support its war against Ukraine, a South Korean lawmaker said Monday, citing South Korean intelligence. Around 2,700 others were injured. North Korea encourages its soldiers deployed in Russia to commit suicide to avoid capture, Lee Seong-kweun added.
• Towards a Trump-Putin meeting in Switzerland? The American president-elect wants a meeting with the Russian president to “end” the war in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin said he was “open to contact”. Bern says all parties are informed of its availability to host peace meetings, but Switzerland will not take the initiative.
• New sanctions against Russian oil and gas. The United States and the United Kingdom announced new sanctions on Friday against the two main companies in the Russian energy sector, Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz. Washington will also sanction 200 oil tankers and LNG tankers operating from Russia.
• Volodymyr Zelensky calls for more help from his allies. The Ukrainian president again pleaded Thursday for sending Western troops to “force Russia into peace.” During a meeting with his partners in Germany, he obtained new American aid of around $500 million.
• Advancement of Russian troops. Moscow claimed Monday, January 6, the capture of the small mining town of Kurakhové, after a battle lasting almost three months. On Thursday, Russian forces managed to establish a bridgehead by crossing the Oskil, a river which until now separated the positions of the two camps, according to a local official.
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