Russia claims full control of Kupyansk as Ukraine reports continued fighting

China

Russia claims full control of Kupyansk as Ukraine reports continued fighting

2026-01-18 02:20 Last Updated At：15:17

Russia claimed full control of Kupyansk on Friday, while Ukraine reported ongoing Russian attacks in the Kupyansk direction.

According to Russian media reports, Sergey Kuzovlev, commander of the Moscow Military District, on Friday briefed Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, saying that Ukrainian forces had repeatedly attempted to break into Kupyansk but failed. He claimed that all areas of Kupyansk are now under Russian control.

Ukraine said the same day that Russian forces launched six attacks in the Kupyansk direction.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday welcomed the signals from Italy, France, and Germany regarding the need for dialogue with Russia, TASS reported.

Peskov said this aligned with Russia's position and called it a "positive development" in the stance of European countries -- if it truly reflects their strategic vision. However, he noted that no European country has formally requested contact with Russia so far.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that the Ukrainian delegation had arrived in the U.S. that day.

The main task of the delegation is "to present the full and accurate picture of what Russian strikes are causing," he said on X.

Ukrainian and U.S. teams will hold another round of negotiations on Saturday in Miami. The delegations are expected to refine agreements on security guarantees and Ukraine's economic recovery, which could be signed at the World Economic Forum in Davos next week.

Ukraine has never been and will never be a roadblock to peace, and it is now up to our partners to determine whether diplomacy moves forward, Zelensky said on X.

In another X post on Saturday, the Ukrainian president said he held a special energy coordination call to address the aftermath of Russian strikes. Energy facility restoration efforts are underway across the entire country, he said, adding that the most difficult situation is in Kiev and the region, Kharkiv and the region, and Zaporizhzhia and the region. Zelensky instructed that a separate review be conducted in Kiev regarding buildings that remain without heating. He also emphasized the need to "accelerate as much as possible the increase in electricity imports and the provision of additional equipment from partners."

He also said that he had issued special instructions to Ukraine's defense minister regarding air force operations and air defense.

Massive protests against US push on Greenland held in Denmark, Greenland

Massive protests against U.S. actions and remarks suggesting control over Greenland were held on Saturday in multiple cities across Denmark.

In Copenhagen, Denmark's capital, a large crowd gathered at City Hall Square in central Copenhagen around 12:00 local time before marching toward the U.S. Embassy, about two kilometers away.

Protesters included people from both Denmark and Greenland, many of whom carried Danish and Greenlandic flags as they marched through the city.

Similar protests were held or planned in the Danish cities of Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg, according to Danish media.

Later in the afternoon, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States will impose 10-percent tariffs on all goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands and Finland over Greenland starting on Feb 1.

Those tariffs would increase to 25 percent on June 1, and would continue until a deal is reached for the United States to purchase Greenland, Trump said on social media.

Greenland is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, with Copenhagen retaining control over defense and foreign policy. The United States maintains a military base on the island.

Trump has repeatedly demonstrated his interest in Greenland, from "buying" the island during his first presidential term, to the current employment of "a range of options" including "utilizing the U.S. military" to seize the autonomous island.