A Russian drone strike on a bus transporting miners in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region resulted in the deaths of at least twelve people on Monday, February 1, according to local officials. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal condemned the action as a targeted assault on energy sector employees, whose employer, DTEK, confirmed the victims were concluding a shift.
Further Russian attacks targeted civilian areas, including Dnipro, where a man and a woman were killed, and Zaporizhzhia, where nine individuals sustained injuries from strikes on a maternity ward and a residential block. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of using over 980 attack drones and nearly 1,100 guided aerial bombs in an effort to sever logistical connectivity between Ukrainian cities.
Meanwhile, energy infrastructure damage continues to impact the capital, Kyiv, where Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba reported that nearly 700 apartment buildings remained without heating amid a severe cold snap. On the territorial front, Russia’s Ministry of Defence claimed control over the village of Zelene in Kharkiv and Sukhetske in Donetsk, while also reporting strikes on Ukrainian military transport facilities, as reported by TASS.
Geopolitical maneuvering intensified as trilateral peace talks, based on a Washington-drafted proposal, were postponed to February 4 and 5 in Abu Dhabi, according to President Zelenskyy. Separately, Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council, commented on US politics, praising President Trump’s “brash” style as effective for peace efforts, though noting Moscow had seen no evidence of claimed US nuclear submarine movements.
In technology security, Elon Musk’s SpaceX indicated success in curbing Russia's unauthorized use of the Starlink internet system after Ukrainian officials identified terminals on Russian long-range drones. Ukrainian Minister of Defence Mykhailo Fedorov stated Kyiv is developing countermeasures to restrict Starlink access to only authorized terminals within Ukrainian territory.
High-level diplomatic engagement also occurred in Beijing, where Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Wang emphasized that bilateral relations could reach new heights this year and stressed the need for both nations to uphold multilateralism amidst global turbulence, advocating for an orderly multipolar world.
The immediate focus shifts to the impending expiration of the New START nuclear arms treaty on Thursday, which currently restricts the nuclear arsenals of the US and Russia. While President Putin suggested a one-year extension in September, concrete movement from the US side regarding the final major arms control pact remains uncertain.
