Kyiv and Wagner dispute Blahodatne control in Ukraine - DW (English)

Ukraine's subject and the Russian Wagner Group backstage subject radical some claimed to power the Blahodatne country successful the eastbound portion of Donetsk connected Sunday.

"Units of Ukraine's Defense Forces repelled the attacks connected the occupiers successful the areas of ... Blahodatne ... successful the Donetsk region," the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said successful its regular briefing, referring to warring connected Saturday. 

It listed different 13 settlements successful the Donetsk portion wherever Ukrainian troops had repelled attacks. 

Meanwhile, the Wagner Group, designated by the US arsenic a transnational transgression organization, said connected the Telegram messaging app that its units were successful power of Blahodatne successful eastbound Donetsk. 

DW could not verify the specifics of either side's claims.

Fighting has intensified successful the Donetsk portion and successful peculiar astir Bakhmut, good to the northbound of Blahodatne.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had described it arsenic "acute" successful his video briefing precocious connected Friday.

Here are different updates connected the warfare successful Ukraine connected Sunday, January 29:

Ukraine: Three killed by Russian shelling of Kherson

Russian shelling of residential areas successful Ukraine's southern metropolis of Kherson near astatine slightest 3 radical dead, section authorities said. 

"Enemy artillery pounded the city's residential areas," the Kherson determination medication said connected societal media. The attacks near 2 men and 1 pistillate dead, and six others wounded, the medication said.

It added that civilian facilities were damaged, including the Kherson Regional Clinical Hospital, a school, a autobus station, a station office, a slope and residential buildings. 

Kherson was occupied by Russian troops from the aboriginal days of Moscow's penetration of Ukraine until its recapture by Ukrainian forces successful November. Since its liberation, the metropolis has regularly been shelled by Russians.

Scholz, Putin would beryllium 'open' to nonstop telephone call

Russian President Vladimir Putin would beryllium unfastened to speaking with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told the authorities RIA Novosti quality bureau connected Sunday.

"For now, determination are nary agreed talks [with Scholz] successful the schedule. Putin has been and remains unfastened to contacts," Peskov was quoted arsenic saying by RIA Novosti.

The past clip that Putin and Scholz spoke by telephone was successful aboriginal December, 2022.

"I volition besides talk to Putin connected the telephone again, due to the fact that it is indispensable to speech to each other, " the German chancellor told paper Tagesspiegel successful an interrogation published on Sunday.

"But of people it is besides clear: arsenic agelong arsenic Russia continues the warfare successful unchecked aggression, the existent concern volition not change," Scholz said. 

He said helium had kept successful comparatively regular interaction with Putin, that the calls had not been impolite successful tone, but that they had been acold isolated successful their views. 

"You can't person immoderate illusions," Scholz said. "Putin wants to annex parts of his neighboring state by force. And that is perfectly unacceptable." 

French President Emmanuel Macron has besides made repeated nonstop interaction with Putin since the invasion, sometimes facing disapproval from allies for doing so.

US President Joe Biden and Putin held a video telephone successful December. 

New Czech President Pavel calls Zelenskyy

New Czech president and erstwhile NATO wide Petr Pavel called Ukraine's President Zelenskyy connected Sunday aft winning the 2nd circular runoff connected Saturday. 

Pavel's squad said helium spoke to Zelenskyy by phone, having already said connected the run way that helium wanted to sojourn Ukraine astatine the earliest accidental if elected.

Czech presidents customarily sojourn Slovakia successful their archetypal overseas engagement, but Pavel had said helium would sojourn Ukraine next, hopefully with his Slovakian counterpart. 

Zelenskyy besides shared quality of the telephone and said helium had issued an invitation to Pavel.

"I personally congratulated Petr Pavel connected winning the Czech statesmanlike elections," Zelenskyy wrote successful English connected Twitter. "Thanked him and the Czech radical for their unwavering support. Invited him to sojourn Ukraine." 

Ukraine sanctions much Russian, Belarusian firms

Kyiv announced that it had imposed sanctions connected 182 Russian and Belarusian companies, arsenic good arsenic 3 individuals. It was the latest of a bid of attempts by President Zelenskiy to sever Belarusian and Russian links to his country.

The sanctioned companies were said to beryllium progressive successful the transport of goods, conveyance leasing and chemic production, according to the database published by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.

It includes Russian potash fertilizer shaper and exporter Uralkali, Belarus state-owned potash shaper Belaruskali, Belarusian Railways, arsenic good arsenic Russia's VTB-Leasing and Gazprombank Leasing some dealing with transport leasing.

"Their assets successful Ukraine are blocked, their properties volition beryllium utilized for our defense," Zelenskiy said successful a video address.

Pyongyang denies arms dealing with Russia 

North Korea has denied providing arms to Russia. It comes aft the US said Pyongyang had supplied rockets and missiles to Russia's backstage subject radical Wagner, which Washington has labeled a "transnational transgression organization."

Among the evidence, The White House showed US quality photographs of Russian obstruction cars entering North Korea, picking up a load of infantry rockets and missiles, and returning to Russia, according to nationalist information spokesperson John Kirby.

Senior North Korean authoritative for US policy, Kwon Jong Gun, said the accusations were a "self-made rumor." 

In a connection carried by the Korean Central News Agency, helium warned that the US would look a "really undesirable result" if it persisted successful spreading the rumor.

"Trying to tarnish the representation of [North Korea] by fabricating a non-existent happening is simply a sedate provocation that tin ne'er beryllium allowed and that cannot but trigger its reaction," said Kwon.

Germany's Rheinmetall to boost production

German weapons institution Rheinmetall said it was acceptable to summation the output of vessel and artillery munitions, successful bid to fulfill beardown request successful Ukraine and the West.

In an interrogation with Reuters, CEO Armin Papperger said the institution whitethorn adjacent commencement producing HIMARS aggregate rocket launchers successful Germany.

"We tin nutrient 240,000 rounds of vessel ammunition (120mm) per year, which is much than the full satellite needs," Papperger said.

Demand for munitions has risen since Russia's penetration of Ukraine owed to their predominant usage connected the battlefield.  But request has besides risen arsenic Western militaries backfill their ain stocks, bracing for what they spot arsenic a heightened menace from Moscow.

Papperger's remarks travel up of an expected gathering betwixt Germany's defence manufacture bosses and the country's caller defence curate Boris Pistorius. 

Rheinmetall makes a scope of defence products. The institution is celebrated for manufacturing the 120mm weapon of the Leopard 2 tank.

Erdogan hints Turkey mightiness o.k. Finland connected NATO and not Sweden

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan connected Sunday appeared to accidental his state mightiness beryllium consenting to o.k. Finland joining NATO, but not Sweden. 

Joining NATO requires unanimous support from existing members.

Turkey has tried to usage this for leverage successful a longstanding quality with the Nordic countries taking successful often Kurdish Turks fleeing Turkey, galore of whom Turkey considers separatist terrorists.

Last week, Turkey enactment the process with some countries connected ice, angered at Sweden successful peculiar aft 2 nationalist protests — the archetypal by pro-Kurdish groups who burned an effigy resembling Erdogan and the second by far-right groups who burned copies of the Quran successful effect to Turkey's menace to withhold NATO membership. 

Yet connected Sunday, Erdogan spoke chiefly successful generalities astir Sweden "extraditing terrorists." 

"We whitethorn present Finland a antithetic connection [on their NATO application] and Sweden would beryllium shocked erstwhile they spot our message," Erdogan said successful a televised speech. "But Finland should not marque the aforesaid mistake Sweden did." 

More connected the warfare successful Ukraine connected dw.com

Russia has announced plans to revamp and grow its military. But are the plans realistic, tin they beryllium funded, and could hundreds of thousands of caller recruits oregon conscripts be equipped? DW's Russian connection work dug deeper. 

This DW video takes a look astatine the Wagner Group's signifier of utilizing convicts promised clemency if they spell to the beforehand lines. 

And here's much connected the Wagner Group and its financiers from Marina Miron, a information expert and honorary probe chap astatine King's College London. 

The attraction whitethorn person been connected German Leopard 2 tanks and M1 Abrams vehicles from the US, but Morocco besides appears to beryllium the archetypal African state sending subject instrumentality to Ukraine. We took a person look astatine what would beryllium a alteration successful overseas policy. 

You tin besides work much connected the occidental vessel deliveries to Ukraine successful caller weeks  here. 

msh, jcg/dj (AP, Reuters, dpa, AFP)