New strikes on Russian oil refineries, Ukrainian Forces' success in Kursk region - Friday brief

Ukraine's General Staff confirms night strikes on Russia's Ryazan and Bryansk

On the night of January 24, drones of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Special Operations Forces attacked many Russian facilities involved in the supply of the Russian occupation army, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The attack resulted in fires at the production facilities of the Ryazan Oil Refining Company and at the Ryazan oil pumping station.

According to sources in the SSU, the drones also attacked the Ryazan thermal power plant.

Among other things, the Kremniy El microelectronics plant in Bryansk, which is one of the key enterprises in Russia's microelectronics industry, was hit. The plant produces a range of chips and components used in strategically important weapons systems.

Ukraine's forces disrupt Russian army's plans in Kursk region and advance in some areas

In the Kursk region, despite the advantage of the Russian army, the Defense Forces continue their counteroffensive actions. In some areas, Ukrainian troops are pushing the enemy out of their positions, according to the head of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation (CCD), Andriy Kovalenko.

According to the head of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation, Russian-Korean forces maintain a numerical advantage in the Kursk region, but losses in equipment and personnel have slowed their advance.

Kovalenko also noted that the enemy's initial plans were disrupted due to the terrain and significant losses.

Military exchange: Ukraine returns bodies of 757 dead defenders

Ukraine has returned the bodies of 757 fallen soldiers to its controlled territory. These are defenders who participated in battles in the Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia regions, according to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

As reported by the Coordination Headquarters, among the returned defenders brought back "on the shield" are:

• 451 defenders from the Donetsk direction;
• 71 from the Bakhmut direction;
• 51 from the Vuhledar direction;
• 13 from the Luhansk direction;
• 137 from the Zaporizhzhia direction.

Trump's team names oil price that would force Russia to come to negotiating table

Simply helping Ukraine cannot force Russia to stop the war. The price of oil must be reduced to $45 per barrel, states Keith Kellogg, the special envoy of US President Donald Trump on Ukraine and Russia, according to AP News.

He believes that the world cannot force Russia to stop the war simply by helping Ukraine achieve victories on the battlefield. He suggested that the answer might lie in implementing "tougher measures" against Russia's oil industry.

"Russia is gaining billions of dollars of money from oil sales. What if you drop that to $45 a barrel, which is basically a baseline breakeven point?" Kellogg said.

Putin invents excuse to avoid talks with Ukraine - Ukraine reacts

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Kyiv has a ban on negotiations with Russia. Ukraine swiftly responded to his remarks, according to RIA Novosti and a statement by Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office.

Putin used this as a pretext to accuse Ukraine of blocking talks, asserting that "the sponsors of the Kyiv regime" must force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to "lift the ban on negotiations."

Andriy Yermak responded by highlighting that Putin is now attempting to push for negotiations with the United States.

"But he has one condition: he wants to decide Europe's fate without Europe and discuss Ukraine without Ukraine. That won't happen. Putin needs to face reality himself, or he will be brought back to it," Yermak stressed.