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The head of Russia’s Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, signaled publicly that after Ukrainian strikes on the energy infrastructure, the region cannot provide residents with heat and electricity. In effect, the Belgorod governor is suggesting that after two thermal power plants were knocked out, it may be better for people to leave the region. Authorities are openly discussing moving residents and acknowledge they cannot fully restore power. In statements released publicly, the governor stresses this is not about an immediate rush to flee. But the substance of his remarks is clear: if conditions worsen, authorities will not be able to help people. Regional officials are effectively acknowledging they cannot guarantee basic living conditions. At the same time, they are shifting responsibility to residents, urging them to understand the steps they should take in the event of widespread outages. At an emergency meeting with the full regional government, Gladkov said plainly that even backup generation cannot meet the region’s needs. That means prioritization won’t cover everyone. Officials are already preparing lists and scenarios for who will be “relocated” and where - either within the region or to other parts of Russia. The cost of war comes home The Belgorod region is facing a crisis of this scale for the first time. The situation is a stark outcome of Russia’s policy, experts say. Strikes on Ukraine’s energy system that the Kremlin called “retaliation” and “pressure” have come back like a boomerang. Now Russian authorities are publicly advising citizens to save themselves.

Ukraine’s Armed Forces have begun using Tempest air-defense buggies to help protect the country’s skies, a system designed primarily to destroy Russian attack drones. The Ukrainian Air Force released video purporting to show the platform in action. The clip appears to capture a missile launch from a Tempest during a nighttime Russian strike on Ukraine - what would be the first confirmed use of the new American short-range air-defense buggy in the war. Ukrainian troops are seen engaging what are believed to be Russian attack drones, notably Shahed and Gerbera. In the footage, a Ukrainian service member with the call sign “Korotun” says the Tempest crew has already destroyed at least 21 Russian drones. There is little official information about Tempest so far. US company V2X unveiled the system in October 2025 at the AUSA defense expo in Washington. Neither the United States nor Ukraine has formally announced a delivery of the system to the Ukrainian military. The Tempest platform is manufactured by V2X, a Virginia-based US company that also markets the system to the US military. Its high mobility and ability to rapidly change position are crucial against drones that can fly at more than 160 km/h, leaving air defenses little time to respond Tempest is a short-range air-defense platform whose key advantages are high mobility and a low visual profile, making it harder for adversaries to detect. It’s based on a civilian buggy similar to the Can-Am Maverick X3, allowing rapid movement over difficult terrain and operations near the front line. The system is believed to use AGM-114 Hellfire missiles with an active radar seeker to intercept low-flying aerial targets at short range. It can fire two missiles in a salvo; each Hellfire carries a 9 kg warhead, sufficient to destroy various types of UAVs.

Spain slashed imports of Russian liquefied natural gas by 41% in 2025 compared with the previous year, while nearly doubling purchases from the United States, according to data from Spanish energy operator Enagas . U.S. gas deliveries to Spain jumped 98% to 111,660 GWh (about 10.6 billion cubic meters), accounting for roughly 30% of total supplies. Russian shipments fell to 42,629 GWh (around 4 bcm), or 11.4% of Spain’s total imports, down from 72,360 GWh (nearly 6.9 bcm) a year earlier. That made Russia Spain’s third-largest LNG supplier, behind Algeria and the United States. Algeria remained Spain’s top gas supplier for the third straight year, providing 38.5% of imports. In 2025, Algeria shipped 128,504 GWh (about 12.2 bcm), though volumes were 2% lower than in 2024. Across Europe, LNG imports hit a seasonal record as weaker demand in Asia - particularly in China - helped push prices lower ahead of the storage refill season. France, Spain and Belgium remain the biggest buyers of Russian LNG in Europe, accounting for 85% of the bloc’s imports from Russia.

Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada voted to appoint former minister of digital transformation Mykhailo Fedorov as minister of defense. A total of 277 MPs backed the move. News of Fedorov’s appointment came during a live broadcast of the Verkhovna Rada session on January 14. Lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak of the Holos party said all factions supported the decision. In all, 277 voted in favor, none opposed, nine abstained and 32 did not vote. Fedorov then took the oath of office as Ukraine’s defense minister from the parliamentary rostrum. “My first task is to conduct a real financial audit at the Ministry of Defense, to understand how we need to function this year when the ministry received 300 billion hryvnias less than last year, to deal with the human capital already in the Defense Forces, and only after that to forecast further actions,” Fedorov said in remarks before the vote. President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed that Digital Transformation Minister Fedorov take over the defense portfolio on January 2. The president noted that Fedorov has been “deeply involved in drones” and has delivered strong results in digitizing government services and processes, saying he could bring more technological capability to the Defense Forces. The Rada voted to dismiss Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov on January 13, but a subsequent move that day to proceed to a vote on his defense appointment did not receive enough support.

Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have released what they say is an audio recording of a wiretapped meeting between Yulia Tymoshenko and an unnamed member of parliament, in which a scheme to buy lawmakers’ votes is discussed. Overnight into January 14, representatives of the anti-corruption bodies searched the Kyiv headquarters of Tymoshenko’s Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party.  While the suspect was not named in official statements, SAPO spokesperson Olga Postoliuk told the outlet Suspilne that suspicion was served specifically to Tymoshenko. Tymoshenko confirmed that searches took place at her party’s offices and said she “categorically” denies all allegations. NABU also published a photo from the party office search that appears to show a woman with a hairstyle resembling Tymoshenko’s seated at a table with stacks of U.S. dollars. On the recording, a woman identified by investigators as Tymoshenko speaks in Russian with another member of parliament about coordinating votes. According to investigators, the suspect approached individual lawmakers and offered them money in exchange for loyal behavior during votes on legislation. The conversation suggests a regular, not one-off, arrangement. On the tape, the woman says this is “an ongoing arrangement” and that deputies would be paid in advance for two sessions. The published recording is dated January 12: Tymoshenko: But I need to pass along what to vote for. Deputy: Of course. Tymoshenko: Then can I just send it to your phone on Signal? ... I’ll send it on Signal. I’ll likely send you the bill number and, roughly, “for” or “against.” “Against” means you can abstain, not vote — just so there’s no vote. And “for” means “for.” For us, look... of course, it’s preferable there are no glitches. Deputy: Mm-hmm. Tymoshenko: Because everything for us is connected. We want to “wreck” this “majority,” so we shouldn’t give them any slack. So please talk to the guys. There won’t be any penalties, of course, but it’s very important... Deputy: So there’s discipline. Tymoshenko: Discipline, yes. Otherwise none of this makes sense. Separately, the two discuss personnel votes. The female voice says deputies should vote “for” when it comes to dismissals but not vote for appointments across all candidates. A day earlier, the Verkhovna Rada failed to approve new appointments for Denys Shmyhal and Mykhailo Fedorov, who had been slated to become energy minister and defense minister, respectively. The preliminary charge cited by authorities is Part 4 of Article 369 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, covering the offer, promise or provision of an improper benefit to an official.