Zelenskyi comments on Russia’s demand for all countries to recognize Donbas as Russian. Ukraine strikes Russia’s launch site for Oreshnik missiles with the use of domestic Flamingo missiles. Starlink terminals used by Russia in Ukraine have been deactivated, Ukraine’s Defense Minister says.
Zelenskyi comments on Russia’s demand for all countries to recognize Donbas as Russian
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi dismissed Russia’s recent demand that “all countries” recognize Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions as Russian territory.
“Even if someone recognizes our territories as Russian, it will result in nothing. First, everyone will not [do that], as my Polish counterpart said. Second, Ukraine has its president who signs the documents, thank God. Other leaders do not sign respective important documents for Ukraine. So our territories are ours, despite the fact that their temporary status is ‘temporarily occupied,’” Zelenskyi said, speaking alongside Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Kyiv on Thursday.
Russia sees recognition of Donbas by all countries as part of a larger agreement, the country’s TASS state news agency said Thursday, citing an unnamed “western source” in Abu Dhabi. Such recognition is seen by Moscow as “very important,” the source added.
A second round of trilateral peace talks between Ukraine, Russia and the U.S. took place in Abu Dhabi on February 4 and February 5. The negotiators first met in the United Arab Emirates last month.
Ukraine’s delegation to the talks is led by Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov. Its members include head of the presidential office Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Servant of the People faction in parliament Davyd Arakhamiya, deputy head of the Office of the President Serhiy Kyslytsya, head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Andriy Hnatov, advisor to the Office of the President Oleksandr Bevz and Deputy Head of the Main Intelligence Department of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, Major General Vadym Skibitskyi.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Alexus Grynkewich and Commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service Josh Gruenbaum are part of the U.S. delegation.
Director of Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency Admiral Igor Kostyukov heads Moscow’s team. Its other members include First Deputy Head of the Information Directorate of the GRU General Alexander Zorin and Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev.
Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Kyrylo Budanov, who was part of his country’s delegation, described the talks as “truly constructive.”
Ukraine strikes Russia’s launch site for Oreshnik missiles with use of domestic Flamingo missiles
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Thursday that the Ukrainian military had damaged infrastructure at the Kapustin Yar missile test site in Russia’s Astrakhan region during a series of strikes that included the use of its domestically-made long-range FP-5 missile, known as the Flamingo.
In a statement on social media, the General Staff said the “series of successful strikes on a complex of hangar-type buildings” took place in January 2026. It said the hangars were used for “pre-launch preparation of medium-range intercontinental ballistic missiles”.
“According to available information, a number of buildings at the test site sustained damage of varying severity; one of the hangars was significantly damaged, and part of the personnel was evacuated from the area,” the General Staff said.
The Economist said in August 2025 that the Flamingo’s production, then at one missile a day, was promised to climb to seven a day by October.
Russia used Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missiles in a strike on Dnipro in November 2024 and in an attack on Lviv in January 2026.
Starlink terminals used by Russia in Ukraine deactivated, Ukraine’s Defense Minister says
Starlink internet terminals used by Russian troops in Ukraine have been deactivated, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said in a post to social media Thursday. “The Starlink terminals added to the ‘whitelist’ are working. The Russians’ terminals have already been blocked,” Fedorov said.
Ukraine earlier reported on Russia’s practice of mounting Starlink systems on its attack drones, which allow the weapons to bypass electronic defenses that jam the signals. Russia has made unauthorized use of Starlink internet connections, bypassing the sanctions.
Last week, Fedorov said that “within a few hours after Russian drones equipped with Starlink communications appeared over Ukrainian cities” his ministry had begun working with SpaceX to stop the weapons from using the U.S. internet system to guide them to targets inside Ukraine.
Elon Musk said on Sunday that SpaceX had successfully thwarted the “unauthorized use” by Russia’s military of his company’s Starlink satellite system to attack Ukraine. “Looks like the steps we took to stop the unauthorized use of Starlink by Russia have worked,” Musk wrote on X. “Let us know if more needs to be done.”
“The Starlink terminals added to the ‘whitelist’ are working. The Russians’ terminals have already been blocked,” Fedorov said in a statement Thursday. “We continue to verify Starlink terminals. The first batch of terminals that made it onto the ‘whitelist’ are already operational.”
Adviser on defense technology to Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Serhiy Beskrestnov who goes by the call sign “Flash” said Russian forces are facing “a catastrophe” after their Starlinks operating in Ukraine were cut off. “The enemy on the front lines is facing not just a problem, but a catastrophe. All command and control of the troops has collapsed. Assault operations have been halted in many areas,” Beskrestnov said in a post to Telegram Thursday.