THE SQUIZ
Russia launched new missile attacks across Ukraine across the weekend, with explosions reported in the major cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv and Odesa. At least 23 civilians died when a 9-storey apartment building was hit in the eastern city of Dnipro, leaving locals scrambling in freezing weather to rescue survivors from the rubble. Local officials said many of those buried sent text messages asking for help, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to fight “for every person, every life”. Reports say the weekend saw the worst attacks in months and has caused widespread blackouts after more power infrastructure was targeted. The strikes were launched as Ukrainians marked the Orthodox New Year – and it came days after Russian President Vladimir Putin named a new war chief.

WHAT’S THE RESPONSE BEEN?
Zelensky has made a fresh plea for allies to supply Ukraine with heavier weapons, saying it would help prevent future Russian attacks on civilians. Western nations – including Australia – have provided varying degrees of assistance since the start of the war, but sending heavy weaponry was something they were resisting… Yesterday, there was a sign that approach might be changing ahead of this week’s 12-month anniversary of Russia’s invasion. UK PM Rishi Sunak has promised to send ‘Challenger 2’ battle tanks (which the British military claim have ”never experienced a loss at the hands of the enemy”) and artillery systems to Ukraine. Sunak believes the tanks will help Ukrainian forces “push Russian troops back”, and Zelensky said thanks for the support. He tweeted that the move would “send the right signal to other partners”.

WHAT DOES RUSSIA SAY TO THAT?
No prizes for guessing… Russia isn’t happy with the UK’s tank announcement, which follows a ramping-up of other recent weapons assistance pledges for Ukraine from countries including Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, France and the US. Russia says the international help will lead to intensified operations and more civilian casualties, and yesterday, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that “weapons supplies are legitimate targets for Russian strikes”. Meanwhile, Russian forces say they have taken control of the eastern Ukrainian town of Soledar – but that’s disputed by Ukrainian authorities who have called the claims “information noise”. Reports say the town has little strategic value, but it would be considered a symbolic win for Moscow after months of setbacks.