In Luhansk, Ukrainians report that Russian soldiers are driving them from their homes. The governor is also watching troop movements for an impending attack. The British secret services, meanwhile, see growing weaknesses in the leadership of the Kremlin troops.
British intelligence services have interpreted the dismissal of a senior Russian military as a sign of a lack of unity in Moscow’s military leadership. Colonel-General Mikhail Teplinsky, who has played an important role in the Ukraine war, has allegedly been fired, the British Ministry of Defense said in a daily report. According to the British, Teplinsky was responsible for the withdrawal of the Russians west of Ukraine’s Dnipro River in November last year. It is currently unclear whether Teplinski still has his responsibilities as head of the Russian airborne troops. However, it is possible that a debate about the role of these forces contributed to his dismissal. The airborne troops were often used for tasks that did not correspond to their specialization.
According to Ukrainian officials, Russia is currently gathering its military might in the Luhansk region. This serves to prepare for a new offensive, reported “Sky News”. Accordingly, Russian soldiers have evicted residents from their homes near Moscow-held parts of the front line so they cannot provide Ukrainian artillery with information on Russian troop deployments, a Ukrainian official told the local broadcaster. “There is an active movement of Russian troops to the region and they are definitely preparing for something on the Eastern Front in February,” says Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai. The US think tank ISW had previously suspected an offensive in Luhansk was imminent.
According to the Kiev government, the heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine continued unabated. Russian troops are trying with all their might to gain ground near the strategically important city of Lyman, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maljar explained on Telegram. Despite heavy casualties, Russian forces would continue their offensive around Bakhmut and Avdiivka. A Russian statement was not available.
On the Bakhmut front, Ukrainian soldiers reported strange behavior by the Russian Wagner mercenaries. They are like “a superior force that fights like mad – regardless of the horrendous losses”. According to the Ukrainian side, this indicates that the enemy force received drugs before the attack.
The Kremlin supported Russian initiatives to pay bonuses for capturing or destroying heavy weapons from NATO countries in Ukraine. Such special payments could encourage the soldiers even further, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. “As far as these tanks are concerned, we have already said that they will burn, of course, even more so if there are such extended measures,” Peskov continued. Previously, the governor of the Transbaikalia region, Alexander Osipov, had announced a bonus of three million rubles (around 39,200 euros) for every captured German or US tank in Ukraine. Peskow said different sums were given for technology that was set on fire or destroyed, and for technology that was captured.
The Russian leadership criticized statements by French President Emmanuel Macron, who had not ruled out the delivery of fighter jets to Ukraine. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called it “absurd” that the French head of state could think that such a delivery would “not lead to an escalation of the situation”. Such statements would only fuel the “already insatiable appetite” of the Kiev leadership under President Volodymyr Zelensky. Zakharova also warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against supplying arms to Ukraine. These would constitute “legitimate targets for Russian forces”. In addition, everyone must know that deliveries “lead to an escalation of this crisis”.
