“I am thinking about my comrades in the dugouts who are struggling and freezing and dying,” she said. Lieut Yulia Mykytenko: 'Ukraine is alone, fighting Russia with our blood'An estimated 250,000 Ukrainians still live in free Donetsk. Ukraine’s defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov said this month that 200,000 Ukrainian soldiers had deserted, and two million men had evaded conscription. Trump’s chief negotiator, Steve Witkoff, said on Thursday that talks between Ukraine and Russia will resume “in about a week”. The White House says Trump agrees that Ukraine should give up Donbas, but that he would not strong-arm Zelenskiy.

Source: The Irish Times January 31, 2026 13:30 UTC