The essentials
• Russian satellite technologies soon in North Korea? US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Russia was seeking to expand space cooperation with Pyongyang in exchange for sending soldiers to help Moscow fight Ukraine.
Ukraine has launched a “counterattack” in Russia’s Kursk region. The Russian army said on Sunday that kyiv had launched an offensive in Russia. The head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andriï Iermak, published a message on Telegram: “Kursk region, good news. Russia gets what it deserves.”
• Volodymyr Zelensky wants to believe in Donald Trump. The arrival of Donald Trump at the White House raises hopes in kyiv for strong decisions, but also fears of a drop in financial and military support. During a television interview, the Ukrainian president declared “Trump can be decisive (…) in this war. He can help us stop Putin.
• Russian forces have advanced nearly 4,000 km2 into Ukraine in 2024. This is seven times more than last year, according to AFP analysis of data from the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Troops are concentrating on southern Donbass to break Ukrainian resistance.
