Weekly Russia-Ukraine war summary: Russian troops sent into battle on crutches, AFU retreat from Velyka Novosilka, clashes in Kursk

In this week’s summary:

• Russian counterattacks in the Kursk Region on the western flank of the Ukrainian foothold, reportedly involving North Korean troops.
• Russian forces have split the road to Mezhova west of Pokrovsk and are attempting to reach the strategically important Pavlohrad highway.
• Despite capturing Kurakhove, Russian troops have failed to achieve the “operational breakthrough” claimed by the Russian Defense Ministry.
• Ukrainian forces are withdrawing from Velyka Novosilka in the Donetsk Region; Russian flags have been raised in the center of the village.
• “Camels” — Russian soldiers tasked with delivering supplies under fire before offensive operations — have been spotted in the town of Toretsk.
• The week saw one of the largest Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian territory, with a total of close to 170 UAVs intercepted.
• Footage has surfaced from combat zones showing injured Russian troops on crutches being sent on “combat missions.”
• The U.S. freeze on foreign aid, ordered by Donald Trump on Friday, will not impact military supplies to Ukraine provided through the PDA and USAI programs.

Situation at the front:

In the Kursk Region, the week saw back-and-forth attacks and counterattacks. The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) pushed Russian troops away from Sudzha near Makhnovka and repelled several mechanized assaults (1, 2, 3, 4) — including a large-scale attack by North Korean infantry on the western flank of the Ukrainian foothold in the area. Reports indicate that North Korean troops operating in Kursk have shown skill in shooting down drones with small arms fire. Meanwhile, Russian forces planted their flag in the village of Nikolaevo-Daryino on the border with Ukraine’s Sumy Region.

Additional reinforcements for North Korean units in the Kursk Region are reportedly anticipated, according to both The New York Times and Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov. The latter clarified that these reinforcements will be made up of artillery and missile units rather than additional infantry.

In the Pokrovsk direction, Russian troops continued their attempts to flank the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad agglomeration. On the western flank, despite Ukrainian counterattacks, they managed to gain control of a section of the Pokrovsk-Mezhova highway and began advancing toward a key logistical route along the highway to Pavlohrad. On the eastern flank, a road bridge at the Myrnohrad-Kostiantynivka junction was blown up.

In the Kurakhove operational area, Russian forces are mounting pressure on Andriivka as they attempt to encircle Ukrainian troops defending a “pocket” west and southwest of the captured town of Kurakhove. According to self-styled Russian “war correspondent” Yuri Kotenok, the “neck” of this potential “pocket,” running between Konstyantynivka in the south and Andriivka in the north, has significantly tightened. Simultaneously, attacks inside the “pocket” are being carried out toward Dachne (west of Kurakhove) and Yantarne (southwest of the city). Positional battles near Kurakhove indicate that the city's capture by Russian troops has not resulted in the “operational breakthrough” announced by Russia's Defense Ministry on Jan. 6, 2025.

In the Vremivka salient, Russian troops have been mounting assaults on Velyka Novosilka since the beginning of the week. These have resulted in the Russian flag being raised in the center of the village. Maps compiled by Ukrainian open source intelligence (OSINT) project DeepState have marked the rest of the town as a “gray zone,” and the channel’s analysts have expressed their hope that the AFU will manage to avoid “senseless losses of Ukrainian military personnel.” It appears that the Ukrainian garrison is either in the process of retreating or has fully evacuated Velyka Novosilka.

In the Toretsk direction, Russian troops have reportedly captured large parts of the village of Krymske, north of Toretsk, according to a claim by “war correspondent” Yuri Kotenok. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s 12th National Guard Brigade “Azov” shared footage that showed it clearing Russian forces from the village Shcherbynivka, located near Toretsk. On this front, Russian forces have been spotted using “camels” — soldiers assigned the suicidal task of running under enemy fire in order to deliver supplies such as ammunition and radios to frontline troops.

Mutual strikes and sabotage

The Ukrainian Air Force reported (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) intercepting 379 Iranian-designed Shahed drones and other unidentified UAVs out of 621 launched at Ukraine over the past week. Another 219 drones were reported as “radar-lost.”

The AFU also noted the launch of nine Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles, with no reports of interceptions.

Throughout the week, the following Russian strikes on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine were reported:

• Jan. 18: Morning strikes on Kyiv killed three people while damaging several water pipelines and the entrance to the Lukyanivska metro station. Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed the attack targeted Ukrainian defense industry facilities in response to ATACMS strikes on Russia’s Belgorod Region.
• Jan. 18: Strikes on Zaporizhzhia (1, 2) injured ten people and partially destroyed the St. Andrew’s Cathedral.
• Jan. 21: Strikes on Kupiansk in Ukarine’s Kharkiv Region injured two civilians and three police officers.
• Jan. 22: Glide bombs and artillery strikes on Kostiantynivka killed one person and injured seven. Analysts at the Ukrainian Oko Hora ✙ project linked the temporary drop in Russia's use of FAB bombs equipped with UMPK guidance kits to maintenance carried out by Russia on its Su-34 fighter-bombers in December 2024.
• Jan. 23: An airstrike on Zaporizhzhia destroyed an “energy facility,” killed one person, and injured 51 others. Residential and public buildings were damaged, leaving over 20,000 people without electricity and more than 17,000 without heating.
• Jan. 24: A Shahed drone attack in the Kyiv Region killed three people, injured an unidentified number of others, and damaged several buildings.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense reported (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8) the destruction of 316 fixed-wing drones over Russian territory and occupied Crimea. Among these, 170 drones were intercepted between 7:00 p.m. Moscow time on Jan. 23 and the early hours of January 24, making it one of the largest drone assaults of the entire war. Ukrainian strikes reportedly targeted the following locations:

• Jan. 18: Oil depots in Kaluga and Tula regions.
• Jan. 18: Radar facilities in the Russian-occupied part of Ukraine’s Kherson Region.
• Jan. 20: The Kazan Aviation Plant.
• Jan. 20: A second strike on an oil depot in Lisky, Voronezh Region, previously attacked on Jan. 16.
• Jan. 21: The Saratovorgsintez chemical plant and Smolensk Aviation Plant.
• Jan. 24: Multiple strikes on industrial facilities in Ryazan — including the Ryazan Oil Refinery, the “Ryazan” oil pumping station, and the Novo-Ryazan Thermal Power Plant. In Bryansk, the Kremniy El microelectronics plant temporarily suspended operations following an attack. Other targets included an oil depot in Engels (Saratov Region), and an aircraft repair plant in Borisoglebsk (Voronezh Region).
  

Losses

The BBC Russian Service, in collaboration with the independent publication Mediazona and a team of volunteers, updated its ongoing count of Russian losses in the war based on open-source reports. The names of over 90,000 deceased Russian soldiers have been identified. Of those confirmed killed, 23% signed contracts after the full-scale invasion began. Total Russian fatalities are estimated at between 159,500 and 223,500.

A new video circulating on social media shows the execution of six Ukrainian prisoners of war in the Donetsk Region. The Ukrainian authorities have opened a pretrial investigation into the alleged war crime, while Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets appealed to the United Nations and the Red Cross.

A video has surfaced showing two wounded soldiers being beaten by members of the Russian military police at the permanent base of the 55th Motor Rifle Brigade in Kyzyl, located in the Republic of Tuva in southern SIberia. Following public outrage and discussion of the incident on Russian pro-war Telegram channels, the press service of the Central Military District reported that one military police officer had been detained — and later arrested for two months. Authorities in Tuva announced that they have now taken control of the investigation.

Later, in the same brigade, the commander of an assault company was detained on multiple charges, including misappropriating payments and creating a private prison for his subordinates.

A video published by the Russia No Context Telegram channel shows Russian soldiers on crutches — and carrying weapons — allegedly being sent on a “combat mission.” Russian serviceman Svyatoslav Golikov confirmed the video’s authenticity. Two additional videos featuring injured soldiers from the “Prikamye” Battalion of the 20th Combined Arms Army were later released on the same channel.

Weapons and military vehicles

The freeze on foreign aid programs ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump will not affect military assistance to Ukraine under the USAI (Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative) and PDA (Presidential Drawdown Authority) programs, sources in the Pentagon assured Voice of America’s Ukrainian service. The U.S. is also allocating military aid funds to Ukraine to set up a second production line for M777 howitzer barrels, as the current output rate cannot meet the AFU’s needs.

On the frontlines, previously unknown Russian loitering munitions from the KUB-2E family, manufactured by the Kalashnikov Concern and Izhevsk Unmanned Systems, have been identified. Ukrainian forces successfully shot down two of these drones.

Russian stormtroopers have also been equipped with so-called “jihad GAZelles” modified by the Chechnya-based company Chechenavto for use transporting infantry and mounting heavy machine guns.

An investigation by The Insider has discovered that at least nine European companies based in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland, continue to supply industrial equipment to companies in Russia’s defense sector despite international sanctions.

Ukrainian military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov reported that North Korea has already supplied Russia with 148 KN-23 ballistic missiles and plans to send 150 more this year. Russian Iskander-M ballistic missiles, in turn, have been equipped with penetrating warheads designed to strike fortified and underground targets.

Russian frontline engineering “artisans” showcased the following adaptations over the past week:

• A T-80BVM tank equipped with a “Tucha” smoke grenade launcher repurposed to target enemy trenches.
• Vintage Soviet BTR-50PU armored personnel carriers modified with “grill” (“mangal”) armor.
• A museum-grade Soviet GAZ-69 truck prepared for deployment to the frontlines.
• T-72B3 tanks equipped with lighter versions of “tsar-mangal” (“king grill” aka “turtle armor”) cages.