By Ben Aris in Berlin Russia is being hit harder than most by the globalbig freeze that is causing its ageing regional power infrastructure to collapse. A wave of public service failures in recent weeks left tens of thousands without heating or power in sub-zero temperatures in some of the coldest cities in the world.

The swift advance of Moscow’s forces into the town of Huliaipole showcases a central challenge for Kyiv: how to defend 700 miles with too few troops.

MOSCOW, ‌Jan ​29 (Reuters) - ‌The Russian ​Defence ‍Ministry ​said ​on Thursday ⁠its forces ‌had captured ​the village ‌of ‍Bila Bereza, in ⁠Ukraine's ​Sumy region. Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports.

A new report warns that the number of soldiers killed, injured or missing in Russia's war in Ukraine could reach 2 million by spring

Russia claimed on Thursday that it took control of a settlement in Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region. The Defense Ministry said in a statement that its forces captured the village of Bila Bereza, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) east of the city of Shostka, the administrative center of the region’s northern Shostka district.