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The official Washington Post channel, sharing live news coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine. You can find our full coverage at https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/ukraine-russia/.

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Ukraine readies along all fronts for Russia’s next big attack

ZAPORIZHZHIA REGION, Ukraine — Valentyn Lymarenko and his infantry unit have already been seasoned by a year of combat, but they are grunting through exercises in this snowy trench to prepare for the next phase of fighting: a much-anticipated Russian offensive.

“We know they are coming,” Lymarenko said amid the pop of practice rifle fire. “We don’t know where.”

As Moscow struggles to turn the tide of a war that so far has largely failed, Ukrainians are bracing for a Kremlin do-over. But just where Russia will seek to land its blow remains a mystery, forcing Kyiv to ready its troops along a varied and forbidding front stretching from Belarus to the Black Sea.

From boggy northern wetlands to raging street fighting in the east to the treeless southern steppe, each range of terrain presents its own set of challenges and openings for Russian invaders and the Ukrainians intent on expelling them.

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SpaceX says it is restricting Ukraine’s use of Starlink internet for drones

Elon Musk’s SpaceX company has accused the Ukrainian military of using its Starlink internet service to power drones in its ongoing conflict with Russia — and says it has taken steps to restrict its ability to do so.

Speaking at a Federal Aviation Administration conference in Washington on Wednesday, Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX’s chief operating officer, said the company is pleased to help Ukraine in its “fight for freedom” but that the Starlink satellite internet service was “never intended to be weaponized.”

“Ukrainians have leveraged it in ways that were unintentional and not part of any agreement,” Shotwell said, Reuters reported. “We know the military is using them for [communications], and that’s okay … but our intent was never to have them use it for offensive purposes.”

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Here is the latest from Ukraine:

- The European Parliament’s president urged E.U. nations to provide Ukraine warplanes and long-range weapons, among other military equipment it needs. “We know the sacrifice your people have endured for Europe, and we must honor it not only with words, but with actions,” Roberta Metsola said to Zelensky.

- Zelensky praised the E.U. for weaning itself off Russian fossil fuels in his European Parliament speech.

- Zelensky also thanked the E.U. for awarding candidate status to Ukraine, saying it “motivated us to be strong and stay the course.” Metsola told Zelensky in her introductory remarks that “Ukraine is Europe, and your nation’s future is in the European Union.”

- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said “nothing is off the table” after Zelensky asked for fighter jets in his speech to the British Parliament this week.

- Estonia’s prime minister proposed a vaccine-like program to purchase military equipment for Ukraine.

More live updates here.
Exclusive: Ukraine’s rocket campaign reliant on U.S. precision targeting, officials say

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian officials say they require coordinates provided or confirmed by the United States and its allies for the vast majority of strikes using its advanced U.S.-provided rocket systems, a previously undisclosed practice that reveals a deeper and more operationally active role for the Pentagon in the war.

The disclosure, confirmed by three senior Ukrainian officials and a senior U.S. official, comes after months of Kyiv’s forces pounding Russian targets — including headquarters, ammunition depots and barracks — on Ukrainian soil with the U.S.-provided High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, and other similar precision-guided weapons such as the M270 multiple-launch rocket system.

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Here's the latest from Ukraine.

- During a meeting with European leaders Thursday, President Zelensky framed Russia's invasion as an attack on the continent at large. European Parliament president Roberta Metsola urged nations to offer more assistance.

- Air raid alerts rang out across eastern and central Ukraine early Friday. The Kharkiv region came under attack, with about 10 explosions recorded, its governor said.

- Residents of eastern and southern Ukraine were warned of potential drone attacks early Friday. Dnipropetrovsk military administrator Serhiy Lysak told people to stay away from critical infrastructure facilities.

- Russia has begun a major offensive in Luhansk centered on Kremmina, the eastern region’s governor, Serhiy Haidai said.

More live updates here.
Russia ousts director of elite museum as Kremlin demands patriotic art

Russia has ousted the longtime director of the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow, one of the world’s most famous art museums, just days after Russia’s Culture Ministry demanded that she prove the museum’s prestigious collection was “in line with spiritual and moral values.”

The Tretyakov’s director since 2015, Zelfira Tregulova, has been replaced by the daughter of a senior official in the FSB, Russia’s Federal Security Service.

The new director, Yelena Pronicheva, has little experience in fine art, and her appointment appeared to be the latest move to force Russian artists and cultural institutions to conform with the Kremlin’s increasingly conservative vision for the country.

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Romania says Russian missile flew over Moldova just outside NATO airspace

A Russian missile fired at Ukraine crossed over Moldova on Friday morning and came within 22 miles of the border of Romania, a NATO member, prompting the Romanians to scramble two fighter jets that were on an exercise under NATO command, the Romanian Defense Ministry said.

The incident was part of the latest Russian barrage of strikes and Ukraine’s top general, Valery Zaluzhny, had initially charged that two Kalibr missiles had violated Romanian airspace — a potentially inflammatory move that could have put pressure on NATO to respond.

The Romanian Defense Ministry, however, said that it had detected “an aerial target launched from the Black Sea from a ship of the Russian Federation, near the Crimean Peninsula, most likely a cruise missile,” which flew over Ukrainian territory, then crossed into Moldova “and reentered the Ukrainian airspace without intersecting, at any time, the airspace of Romania.”

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Biden to travel to Poland ahead of first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

President Biden will travel to Poland from Feb. 20-22, the White House announced Friday, ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The president is expected to deliver remarks ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

Jean-Pierre said Biden will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda to “discuss our bilateral cooperation, as well as our collective efforts to support Ukraine and bolster NATO’s deterrence.” He will also meet with leaders of the Bucharest Nine, a group of nations including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Estonia, that was created after the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014. With those leaders, Biden will “reaffirm the United States’ unwavering support for the security of the alliance,” Jean-Pierre said.

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Here is the latest from Ukraine:

- A Russian projectile came within “approximately 35 kilometers” of Romania’s border, the NATO country’s Defense Ministry said in a statement Friday, adding that it was “mostly likely a cruise missile” launched from a ship near the Crimean Peninsula.

- In Moscow, the Kremlin confirmed Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would deliver a high-profile address to the country’s Federal Assembly on Feb. 21.

- French President Emmanuel Macron said he has not ruled out sending fighter jets to Ukraine, a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a rare trip to Brussels.

- Ukraine uses specific coordinates provided or confirmed by U.S. military personnel for the majority of its rocket strikes, The Post reported.

- The Pentagon is urging Congress to resume funding top-secret programs in Ukraine, current and former U.S. officials have told The Post.

More live updates here.
Here's the latest from Ukraine:

— Russian missiles rained down in Ukraine on Friday, striking civilian infrastructure and stripping much of the country of power and heat. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said the “mass missile strike” across the country involved more than 100 rockets, as well as seven Shahed-type drones. Ukrainian forces destroyed 61 missiles, it added.

— President Biden will visit Poland on Feb. 20 ahead of the first anniversary of the invasion, the White House announced Friday, where he will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda to discuss collective support for Ukraine.

— The government of Moldova, which shares a border with Ukraine and has opposed the Kremlin’s invasion amid power-grid cuts and other pressure from Russia, resigned Friday.

More live updates here.
Ukrainian president makes passionate plea to ban Russian athletes from Olympics

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a passionate plea to a group of 35 international sports and government ministers on Friday, urging them to push the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

“The Russian state has chosen the path of terror and that is why it has no place in the civilized world,” Zelensky said on the call that included U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Lee Satterfield.

The call was set to deal with a simmering debate over what to do with athletes from Russia and Belarus with the Paris Games 17 months away and key Olympic qualifying events set to start this spring. Currently, the IOC is urging all sports federations to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from competitions, yet has been searching for a way to allow them into the 2024 Olympics, possibly as independent athletes, something Zelensky opposes.

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Here is the latest from Ukraine:

- President Biden plans to visit NATO ally Poland on Feb. 20, shortly before the first anniversary of the conflict. He will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda to discuss “our collective efforts to support Ukraine and bolster NATO’s deterrence,” the White House said in a statement on Friday, as well as reaffirm “how we will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes.”

- Ukraine said Russia launched more than 100 missiles on Friday. “The threat of strikes by the Russian federation on civilian targets across Ukraine remains high,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in an update Saturday, adding that Russia also used Shahed-type drones. Local officials reported that civilian infrastructure was hit, stripping much of the country of power and heat.

- Zelensky visited the Turkish Embassy in Kyiv on Saturday to mourn the more than 25,000 people killed by an earthquake that shook Turkey and Syria this week.

More live updates here.
Here's the latest from Ukraine:

— Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is ramping up efforts to stamp out corruption in Ukraine’s public institutions, following his recent visit with European Union leaders — a key requirement of Kyiv’s aspiration to join the bloc.

— The head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner said it could take Moscow up to two years to seize the regions of eastern Ukraine it illegally claimed annexation of in September, and three years if it wants to occupy areas east of the Dnieper River.

— Russia is reinforcing its troops around Lyman and Bakhmut, the center of some of the bloodiest battles in recent months, according to Ukraine’s armed forces.

More live updates here.
Pentagon looks to restart top-secret programs in Ukraine

The Pentagon is urging Congress to resume funding a pair of top-secret programs in Ukraine suspended ahead of Russia’s invasion last year, according to current and former U.S. officials. If approved, the move would allow American Special Operations troops to employ Ukrainian operatives to observe Russian military movements and counter disinformation.

A determination is unlikely before the fall. Defense officials are preparing a proposal for lawmakers’ consideration in the coming months, when work begins on next year’s Pentagon policy and funding bill. If successful, these programs could resume as soon as 2024, though it remains unclear if the Biden administration would allow U.S. commandos back into Ukraine to oversee them or if the military would seek to do that from a neighboring country.

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Here is the latest from Ukraine:

- Kyiv appears to be optimistic that its Western allies will grant its requests for fighter jets. “Let’s wait and see. That’s what we heard about tanks,” Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s ambassador to Britain, told the BBC on Sunday, referring to apprehension from military backers before an agreement on tanks was made.

- U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is scheduled to lead a meeting Tuesday of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, attended by senior military officials from more than 50 nations backing Ukraine with weapons and other supplies.

- Zelensky named Ukraine’s security and defense agencies as the next targets of his promised zero-tolerance approach to corruption after high-profile dismissals in recent weeks related to his probe.

More live updates here.
Here is the latest from Ukraine:

- U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is hosting a meeting Tuesday of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group — senior military officials from more than 50 nations who have been providing Ukraine with weapons and other aid — alongside a two-day gathering of NATO defense ministers in Brussels.

- Zelensky announced sanctions for 200 people working for the Russian nuclear industry, without providing details on what sanctions would be. “Russia’s radiation blackmail of the world must be punished,” he said in his nightly address.

- Several metropolitan areas, including the Kyiv, Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions are expected to have unrestricted access to electricity on Monday, utility Ukrenergo announced on Telegram, in a rare respite after months of rationing in freezing temperatures.

- Russia is planning to showcase some 200 types of weapons at an exhibition in India on Monday, state news agency Tass reported. India’s position on the conflict has been mixed.

More live updates here.
Russians abandon wartime Russia in historic exodus

YEREVAN, Armenia — As Russian troops stormed into Ukraine last February, sending millions of Ukrainians fleeing for their lives, thousands of Russians also raced to pack their bags and leave home, fearing the Kremlin would shut the borders and impose martial law.

Some had long opposed rising authoritarianism and the invasion was a last straw. Others were driven by economic interest, to preserve livelihoods or escape the bite of sanctions. Then, last autumn, a military mobilization spurred hundreds of thousands of men to flee.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war has set off a historic exodus of his own people. Initial data show that at least 500,000, and perhaps nearly 1 million, have left in the year since the invasion began — a tidal wave on scale with emigration following the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991.

Read the full story here.