War in Ukraine
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko have decided on candidates for the new head of the State Border Guard Service. The appointment will take place soon, as Zelenskyy announced on social media.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on adaptive badminton as a fast racket sport that is ideal for veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war. This sport is recommended for physical recovery, especially for injuries to limbs, spinal cord, and PTSD.
As a result of the Russian shelling of Kharkiv, the death toll has risen to five. Another body fragment was found at the search and rescue operation site.
In Kyiv on January 4, 2026, a device exploded while opening a car trunk, injuring a serviceman. The prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into the terrorist act.
In Korenovsk, Krasnodar Krai, Russia, on December 26, 2025, at about 07:40, an explosion occurred at the entrance to the deployment site of the 47th Missile Brigade. As a result of a mine-explosive strike, a military Kamaz truck carrying personnel caught fire, and there were losses among the occupiers.
Serhiy Deineko, head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, has been appointed advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, Ihor Klymenko. After rehabilitation, he will lead a combat unit of the State Border Guard Service.
According to the results of 2025, Russia's foreign trade continued to degrade due to falling world energy prices and oil production quotas. The share of fuel and energy goods in exports decreased to 54.9%, and imports of investment goods decreased by 8.7%.
The Defense Forces of Ukraine, including the 14th and 20th brigades of the National Guard of Ukraine "Azov" and the 132nd reconnaissance battalion of the Air Assault Forces, are holding Rodynske in Donetsk region. Russian propaganda is spreading false claims about the capture of the settlement, while the occupiers are suffering significant losses.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys recalled that Nicolás Maduro's regime supported Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine. Lithuania did not recognize Maduro as the legitimate president of Venezuela.
In the village of Kushuhum, Zaporizhzhia region, a forced evacuation of children with their parents or other legal representatives has been announced. The evacuation must be carried out within 30 days from the date of its announcement.
Ukraine has imposed sanctions against 95 individuals and 70 legal entities, most of whom are citizens and residents of the Russian Federation. The restrictions apply to individuals and companies that produce communication equipment, electronic warfare systems, and microelectronics for the Russian military-industrial complex.
From February 24, 2022, to January 4, 2026, Ukrainian law enforcement officers recorded 191,822 crimes committed by Russian occupiers. Among them are 174,883 war crimes and 144 criminal proceedings related to sexual offenses.
Police, together with the SBU, detained a 32-year-old man for selling an automatic rifle, five magazines, about 150 cartridges, six grenades, and detonators. He tried to sell the arsenal for 64,000 hryvnias.
Negotiations between Ukraine and its partners have entered a new phase, bringing the parties closer to discussing the format of a peace settlement. President Zelenskyy expects the basic provisions on security guarantees and economic recovery to be agreed upon as early as January.
On January 3, Russian troops killed one person in Sloviansk and wounded another in Donetsk region. The total number of victims of Russian aggression in the region reached 3865 dead and 8747 wounded.
On January 3, a fire broke out in a one-story residential building on Spuskny Lane in the Novokodatsky district of Dnipro, covering 60 square meters. During the extinguishing, firefighters found the body of a man.
On the night of January 4, 2026, Russian occupiers attacked Ukraine with 52 attack drones. The Defense Forces shot down or suppressed 39 enemy targets, including about 40 "Shaheds."
Over the past day, the enemy engaged in 211 combat clashes and used over 4,800 kamikaze drones for attacks. More than 2,700 shellings of Ukrainian troop positions and peaceful cities were recorded.
The Ukrainian partisan movement ATESH recorded emergency measures to increase security at the facilities of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Novorossiysk. The command of the occupation forces switched to an intensified camouflage regime for logistics centers after a series of successful strikes by the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Over the past day, the Defense Forces of Ukraine eliminated 900 occupiers. The total enemy losses as of the morning of January 4, 2026, amount to over 1.2 million people.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin stated that the Russian capital was attacked by more than two dozen drones late on Saturday evening. The capital's airports temporarily suspended operations.
Latvia will hand over 21 confiscated cars to Ukraine, seized from drunk drivers or as part of criminal proceedings. Among them is a 22-year-old luxury SUV, a 2003 Lincoln Navigator.
In the temporarily occupied territories of the Kherson region, the invaders are intensifying the militarization of youth, planning to open cadet classes of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation in schools in Henichesk, Chaplynka, and Novotroitske districts starting from 2026.
The number of victims of the Russian shelling of Kharkiv has risen to four. Rescuers found the remains of another person, and search operations are ongoing.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported 191 combat engagements on January 3, 2026, with 1 missile and 41 air strikes recorded. The highest activity was observed in the Pokrovsk and Huliaipole directions.
The number of victims of the Russian attack on Kharkiv on January 2 increased to three after body fragments were found. Emergency services continue to work at the sites of the strikes, and the identification of the found fragments is ongoing.
ATESH agents conducted reconnaissance of the Bryansk Automobile Plant, which produces chassis for S-400, S-350 air defense systems, Iskander-M tactical missile systems, and Uragan multiple rocket launchers. The obtained data has been transferred to the Ukrainian Defense Forces for planning targeted impact measures.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a "major reboot" of the state system, including rotations of heads of the security, defense, and law enforcement sectors. The replacement of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, is not foreseen.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with national security advisors of the member states of the Coalition of the Willing. Security guarantees, reconstruction, and a basic framework for real peace, as well as the sequence of further meetings, were discussed.
The Defense Forces of Ukraine control the northern part of Pokrovsk and hold the defense in Myrnohrad, eliminating the enemy on the approaches to the city. Since the beginning of January 3, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have repelled 49 Russian assaults, 16 of which were in the Pokrovsk direction.