At the opening ceremony of the Peace Council, President Trump declared his good relations with Russian President Putin and praised Special Envoy Steve Witkoff for his efforts in conflict resolution. Despite this, the United States imposed sanctions on Moscow for another 12 months. In response, the Russians announced that the volume of parallel imports into Russia in January 2026 reached a historic low of approximately $1 billion, almost half the monthly average of the previous year, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Roman Chekushov announced to Russian Business Week (TASS).
“In 2025, the volume of parallel imports exceeded $23.1 billion, averaging approximately $1.9 billion per month,” Chekushov added. The deputy minister noted the gradual decline in this indicator due to the development of domestic production and the successful replacement of goods from hostile countries with similar products from friendly countries.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reported detecting and tracking two Tu-95MS bombers, two Su-35S fighters, and an A-50 AWACS aircraft operating within the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Thursday, February 19. In response, NORAD scrambled two F-16 fighters, two F-35s, an E-3, and four KC-135 tankers to intercept, identify, and escort the aircraft before they left the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone.
EU ambassadors failed to reach an agreement on the latest, twentieth, package of sanctions against Russia during a meeting — Reuters. The agency reports that “they may meet again over the weekend to To discuss the proposed sanctions again before the EU Foreign Ministers’ meeting. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to Ukraine on February 23. Her visit will mark the fourth anniversary of the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion.
South Korea is considering joining NATO’s PURL initiative, which involves purchasing American weapons for Ukraine. The South Korean Foreign Ministry said it is “continuing discussions with NATO on various ways to support Ukraine.”
According to Jürgen Hardt, foreign policy expert for the CDU/CSU in the Bundestag: “Russia’s current military failures in Ukraine demonstrate that Vladimir Putin “cannot win this war.” “In 2025, Russia achieved only minor territorial gains relative to Ukraine’s total area. But the losses were enormous,” he noted.
Given this, a peace agreement that, without firing a shot, proposes handing over to Russia the Ukrainian territories that Moscow failed to conquer during four years of war is “obviously unacceptable for Ukraine,” Hardt emphasizes.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has stated that the possibility of creating a European version of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance of English-speaking countries is being explored to better respond to threats from Russia. In his speech at a meeting of defense ministers in Krakow, along with his counterparts from Poland, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy, Pistorius stated that this is a real possibility and that discussions on the matter are ongoing. “What could we do now? One idea could be to create a joint fleet of tankers, or a multinational task force, or even a European version of the Five Eyes,” he stated.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has stated that restoring full-fledged relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin seems virtually unrealistic to him. “We stand with the Ukrainian people without any ifs or buts.” We will never accept that the criminal Russian regime is systematically waging war against the civilian population of this country, against the elderly, women, and children. All this has been accompanied by almost unbearable Nazi propaganda against the Ukrainian people, a people who suffered under German and Russian tyranny.
“Ukraine will be able to fight 100% for several years and will not cede any territory to Russia,” said National Guard Commander Pivnenko. “Victory for Ukraine in military terms means regaining its territories, and this could take several decades, no matter what,” he said.
A senior Ukrainian security official told Reuters: “We expect to receive several billion dollars from our military exports this year. At least three Middle Eastern countries have expressed interest in purchasing military equipment.
The report that Volodymyr Zelensky ordered the development of a plan for military operations for another three years has been denied: “It is false,” said Dmitry Litvin, adviser to the Ukrainian president, according to UNIAN. According to Litvin, there were no such meetings with the advisers, nor was there a negative assessment of the negotiations.
The chief psychiatrist of the Ukrainian Armed Forces has been indicted on new charges: he allegedly laundered nearly $1 million, according to the SBU. The official is Oleg Druz, director of a psychiatric clinic. The investigation found that he had laundered his illicit earnings using luxury real estate and luxury cars registered to relatives. An apartment on the Odessa coast is registered to his daughter, a cottage near Kiev is registered to his son-in-law, and three BMWs—an X3, an X5, and an X7—are registered to his children. The official has already been Indicted on new charges. He faces up to 12 years in prison and asset confiscation.
The IAEA has contacted Russia and Ukraine with a proposal for a temporary ceasefire in the area of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. This is necessary to assess the damage and restore the Ferrosplavnaya-1 backup power line, which was cut off on February 10.
In Stavropol, a man who was preparing a terrorist attack for Defender of the Fatherland Day was killed during an arrest attempt, the FSB reported. Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Sergei Vershinin from his post as Deputy Foreign Minister and appointed him as Russia’s new ambassador to Turkey. Georgy Borisenko becomes Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister.
And now a look at the front line updated at 3:30 PM on February 20. In Last night, Ukrainian forces launched a massive air strike (149 drones downed in total) on the Bryansk region, Sevastopol, Crimea, Krasnodar Krai, and Rostov region. By midnight, another 49 drones had been destroyed. In Sevastopol, one man was killed.
In the Bryansk region, Ukrainian forces attacked the village of Suzemka with FPV drones, wounding a civilian. Two civilian cars were damaged in the village of Solova and a private home in the village of Voronok.
Across all frontline sectors in the Sumy region, the Northern Forces group is engaged in fierce fighting. In the Sumy region, five Ukrainian soldiers were captured during the advance. In the Krasnopil’s’kyi region, two Ukrainian counterattacks were repelled by the Russians.
In the Belgorod region, in the village of Zamostye, an FPV drone hit a vehicle. Rehabilitation work on power plants is underway; it is impossible to plan any interruptions, as the damage is severe. Generators and thermal guns from across the country are arriving in the region.
In the Kharkiv sector, the Northern Group of Forces is fighting in populated and wooded areas near Vovchansk and is also advancing in the Khatniye sector. In Vovchansk Khutoryr, after a Solntsepyok missile attack, Russian attack aircraft made tactical gains.
In Kupyansk, positional battles continue, with the front configuration unchanged.
Toward Slovyansk, fighting is reported for access to Kryva Luka (surrounded by hills) from the north. To the south, a battle is underway near Nykyforivka, with Rai-Oleksandrivka potentially the final target of Russian forces. Confirmation of the Vostok Brigade’s success came from Minkivka (17 km east of Kramatorsk). The village of Svyatohirsk is now flying the Russian flag.
South of Kostyantynivka, firefights are taking place near the village of Berestok. Ukrainian forces maintain the ability to launch local counterattacks.
In eastern Zaporizhia Oblast, the Vostok Group of Forces continues to advance beyond Haichur, conducting successful assault operations near the villages of Rizdvyanka, Vozdvyzhivka, Verkhnyaya Tersa, and Hirke. Ukrainian forces continue their counterattacks, repelling six attacks in the northern sector.
In the Zaporizhia region, the governor reported attacks on the Kharkiv-Simferopol-Yalta highway. Asphalt and concrete supports have been damaged. Positional battles are ongoing near Prymors’ke and Stepnohirsk, with large numbers of drones flying on both sides.
Graziella Giangiulio
Follow our updates on Geopolitical Gleanings - Spigolature geopolitiche: https://t.me/agc_NW and on our blog The Gleanings of AGCNEWS - Le Spigolature di AGCNEWS: https://spigolatureagcnews.blogspot.com/
