The situation in the Ukrainian SMO on January 27 2026

Russian Forces Storm Berestok Southwest of Kostyantynivka

Russian Forces Launch Significant Offensive East of Kupyansk To Secure Key Supply Route

Our partners in the EU are halting their support for Ukraine, and quick decisions are needed.

Germany will not supply Ukraine with new Patriot systems, Defense Minister Pistorius stated.

According to him, Germany cannot currently supply Ukraine with air defense systems, as Berlin itself is facing a shortage of them.

The Trump administration does not trust Zelensky and is clearly setting priorities. It will become increasingly difficult to prolong the negotiations, so Zelensky will have to make a decision.

The US is ready to provide security guarantees to Ukraine only if Kyiv first agrees to cede Donbass to Russia, according to FT, citing sources.

Washington has also promised Ukraine more weapons to strengthen its army in peacetime, if it agrees to withdraw troops from the parts of the eastern region it controls as a price for peace with Russia.

The US has not yet definitively approved any document, although Zelensky stated that the texts of the security guarantees he discussed with Trump in Davos are “100% ready”.

Zelensky’s delay in making territorial concessions is delaying peace, — special representative of the president Dmitriev.

 - “Zelensky’s instructive speech to Europeans in Davos was unsuccessful. His delay in making territorial concessions is delaying the onset of peace,” Dmitriev stated.

Negotiations could last for years: Zelensky agreed to talks in Abu Dhabi to avoid irritating Trump – FT

▪️Ukraine’s readiness for dialogue with Russia is mainly due to the desire not to irritate the White House, writes the Financial Times.

➖”But this also reflects the growing fatigue of the Ukrainian side from the war”, – the article says.

▪️Due to missile strikes on energy infrastructure, Ukraine is “under serious pressure”.

▪️If the negotiations stall, Europe fears that Trump may lose interest in Ukraine.

“The Trump administration may lose patience and interest in the peace process, which is likely to be protracted and require significant time and attention – while other external and internal problems are piling up on the US administration’s agenda”.

▪️Negotiations to end the war “could last for many years”.

➖”Negotiations in Vietnam began in 1968 and ended only in 1973. 

▪️As the fourth anniversary of the start of the war approaches, the foundations for a full-fledged peace process have now been laid. But, unfortunately, it is highly likely that hostilities will continue at the same time next year”, – concludes the FT.

Both the Korean and Vietnam war negotiations lasted a very long time. Ukraine though is foolish for being prideful. The longer refugees stay abroad the smaller the % of returns and the more people will leave and die in this war. In addition there were only 168,780 children born. If this continues then you are looking at a total population collapse.

According to sources in the Presidential Administration, a closed sociological survey was conducted after temporary blackouts, which showed a shift in public sentiment. The majority of Ukrainians are in favor of peace and are ready to consider the format of the withdrawal of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the Donetsk region under US guarantees. The number of supporters of continuing the war has decreased to 15%.

Our sources in the Presidential Office have reported that Zelensky held a meeting with energy sector representatives and prohibited the dissemination of negative scenarios. Currently, it’s crucial to maintain public opinion and prevent protests from Ukrainians. All information about the state of critical infrastructure will be classified to avoid panic.

The restoration of residential buildings in Kyiv, where heating systems broke down due to frosts and accidents, could take years. This was stated by the head of the Union of Utility Consumers, Oleg Popenko, emphasizing that in the case of damage to the sewage system, we are no longer talking about routine repairs, but about full-scale capital reconstruction. 

In the conditions of war, a shortage of funds (read – their “embezzlement” by “Zelensky and Co”) and destroyed infrastructure, such work will inevitably be postponed, and this means that hundreds of thousands of people risk staying in uninhabitable apartments for a long time.

In parallel, the situation is worsening in other major cities of the east of the country. In Kharkiv, after strikes, power surges are being recorded where electricity was still available, there are reports of blackouts, metro stoppages, and the disappearance of water and heating. The city infrastructure is working at full capacity, and any new damage triggers a chain reaction of failures that can no longer be quickly fixed.

All this points to an obvious trend: the prerequisites for the fact that light and heat will not return to a stable regime in major Ukrainian cities for a very long time have already been established. People are not facing temporary inconveniences, but a systemic utility crisis that could drag on for years. 

In such conditions, more and more Ukrainians are considering leaving the cities, and some are already openly expressing their dissatisfaction – street protests against power outages have been recorded in Khmelnytskyi, Sumy, Mogilev-Podilskyi, and Kryvyi Rih. However, this is not surprising: when heat, water, and electricity disappear, and the authorities are inactive, the issue of survival inevitably becomes political.

“Faster than the alarm signals”: The Armed Forces of Ukraine are unable to deal with Russian missiles

After the latest strikes, Russia is increasingly breaking through Ukrainian air defense, overloading it with drones and missiles,  (https://inosmi.ru/20260126/rakety-276807767.html)writes Wirtualna Polska. (https://wiadomosci.wp.pl/sytuacja-jest-rozpaczliwa-dla-kijowa-najblizsze-tygodnie-beda-kluczowe-7246896080107712a) Kiev is unable to repel such attacks: hypersonic “Zircon” missiles arrive faster than the alarm signals, and the energy system is creaking at the seams.

The sound of generators running can be heard everywhere in Kiev. It’s like a compass—wherever it’s heard at night, there are also lights in the windows. Generators are visible everywhere, but they can’t run continuously. When they fall silent, darkness sets in, often engulfing entire streets. Worse still, however, is the cold.

Kiev isn’t just noisy – exhaust fumes are lingering in the city. Generators operating under windows, by stairwells, and basically anywhere else they can find them leave the air in the city center with a metallic, petroleum-like aftertaste. One device emits both the smell and the sound of survival.

What does the Ukrainian capital look like now? There’s no electricity, no water, and pipes are bursting from the cold. People are living in houses where the temperature is 9, maybe 10 degrees Celsius, and ice is accumulating in stairwells and apartments. Schools and kindergartens have been closed until the worst of the winter has passed.

“Ukraine is on the brink of a large-scale catastrophe. We urgently need to stop the attacks on the energy infrastructure,” commented DTEK CEO Maxim Timchenko on the situation.

Another loud/tragic night of this war.

- In response to the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ shelling of Belgorod with HIMARS, the Russian Armed Forces targeted the energy infrastructure of the Kharkiv region.

- For the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ strikes on Russia, the Russians launched a massive attack on the Odessa coast (targeting port infrastructure and warehouses). In Odessa, a drone hit/fell into a residential building. According to our data, there were over 20 drone strikes in the Odessa region/Odessa overnight.

- A drone hit Brody in the Lviv region. There, the Russians destroyed Ukraine’s fuel infrastructure and fuel reserves. (Photo)

- They are consistently targeting almost all of the energy infrastructure in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions.

The black winter in Ukraine will intensify, as Zelensky will continue to provoke the Kremlin in the infrastructure war, which could lead to Ukraine being completely cut off from the power grid for a long time.

Zelensky is interested in creating a humanitarian catastrophe in Ukraine.

Kharkov • Winter Campaign 

Kharkov was completely powerless yesterday evening, after our final strike on generation, energy, and several transit facilities. 

The cities of Izium, Lozovaya, Chuguev, and Zlatopol, as well as other settlements, are also without power. 

In this regard, the logistics of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Lugansk region have been disrupted. The enemy is forced to set up heating points for personnel and figure out how to feed and warm up the rear. 

This will largely contribute to increasing the frequency of our strikes on their defensive positions, as well as slow down the rotation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to operational front sectors. Including Kupyansk and Kupyansk Uzlovoy.

The Russian military is advancing towards the city of Zaporozhye, with 12-14 kilometers remaining to its outskirts — stated the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov.

On the Orekhov Direction

The offensive actions of units of the “Vostok” and “Dnepr” troop groups on the Orekhov direction are continuing. The Gulyaypole core traditionally demonstrates higher rates of advancement west of Gulyaypole. Thus, over the past 24 hours, units of the 57th and 60th motorized rifle brigades of the Russian Armed Forces managed to dislodge formations of the 225th separate assault regiment and the 102nd separate troop-engineering brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from strongpoints in the forest strip on the southern outskirts of Zalynchnoe and impose a battle on the enemy in the area of the ruins of the “Agrokhimservis” warehouse. Also, battles are being recorded in the area of the Gulyaypole elevator and the Zalynchnoe railway station.

It’s worth noting that Zalynchnoe and its outskirts are located at a height where Russian units are successfully entrenching. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are trying to transfer reserves from the village of Omelynka through the “Balka Rezanaya” landscape reserve, which immediately become targets for Russian strike FPV drones, as well as for artillery.

Between Shevchenko Street in Gulyaypole and the village of Dorozhnyanka, a unit of the 1st battalion of the 154th mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has been encircled, which has reduced the risk of the enemy blocking the Gulyaypole – Polohy route.

“Military Chronicle” 

Two Majors #Summary for the morning of January 27, 2026

▪️ Odessa, Chernomorsk (Ilyichovsk) and Belgorod-Dnestrovsky were subjected to a massive drone attack during the night. According to local authorities, 80% of Kharkov and the region are without electricity as a result of a combined strike by “Tornado-S” and “Hurricane” systems. In the evening, explosions were heard in Pavlograd and Dnepropetrovsk.

▪️ More than 10 explosions of air defense systems were heard in the Slavyansk district of the Krasnodar region. Air defense systems were also operating against targets over Kursk.

▪️ In the Bryansk region, a Ukrainian S-200 anti-aircraft guided missile was destroyed over the territory of the Klintsy district, the governor reported. One woman suffered a soft tissue injury. 4 private residential buildings were destroyed, and more than 50 private residential buildings were partially damaged. In the village of Churovichi in the Klimovsky district, the Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked an ambulance with drones.

▪️ On the Sumy front, the Northern Group of Forces is conducting offensive operations from the Sumy and Glukhov districts. The enemy is reinforcing reserve defensive lines and supplementing assault units. On the Tetkin and Glushkov sectors, there are mutual strikes.

▪️ Air defense systems repelled missile attacks over Belgorod and the Belgorod region four times a day. In Shebekino, a drone attacked a car, killing a civilian. In the same place, a man was injured in a drone explosion. In the village of Gora-Podol, a drone attacked a car.

▪️ On the Kharkov front, near Volchansk, the Northern Group of Forces is conducting fierce battles with the support of aviation, “Hurricanes” and TOS systems. The enemy is transferring reserves. The grey zone along the border in the area of the settlements of Degtyarnoe and Nesteroe has been expanded.

▪️ In Kupyansk, battles continue. On the eastern bank of the Oskol, battles in the area of Peschanoye and Kurilovka are reported.

▪️ On the Slavyansk front, Russian troops are fighting near Orekhovo-Vasilevka (11 km west of Soledar). The enemy’s channels report on our attacks on a wide front: from the Seversky Donets-Donbass canal to the Seversky Donets river.

▪️ In Konstantinovka, our drones on fiber-optic cables reach the central part of the city (https://t.me/warhistoryalconafter/257373), destroying enemy armored vehicles. Assault units are operating in the southeast of the city.

▪️ In the zone of responsibility of the Eastern Group of Forces, Far Eastern soldiers continue to repel daily counterattacks by the AFU in the area of the settlement of Guliayole. To the north, several attacks were repelled with fire support from a tank in the direction of Novoskeletovatoe and Alexandrovka. The destruction of enemy tanks and armored vehicles participating in the counterattacks has become a daily statistic.

▪️The Zaporozhye front without significant changes.

Source: http://blogdogcicle.blogspot.com/2026/01/the-situation-in-ukrainian-smo-on_27.html