Kyrylo Budanov has led the Hur military intelligence, which has claimed a number of highly-effective strikes against Russia.

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha rejected criticism by the Czech foreign minister directed at Ukraine’s Ambassador Vasyl Zvarych over his response to statements by the Speaker of the lower house of the Czech parliament, Tomio Okamura, about Ukraine.

In the Odesa region, as a result of a Russian drone attack on Friday, January 2, a fire broke out in the Danube River delta and spread to the lands of the Vylkove Forestry of the Izmail Forestry District and to Ochakivskyi Island.

As a result of a Russian strike on a residential building in Kharkiv, a child was killed, later the body was found under the rubble.

How the blaze took hold with such ferocity, killing at least 40 people and leaving many more critically injured, is now a key focus for officials.

The investigation into the fire that killed 40 people will consider whether criminal prosecutions are necessary, officials said.

Russian troops shelled and attacked the Synelnykove and Nikopol districts of Dnipropetrovsk region with artillery, UAVs, and FPV drones, injuring two people and damaging civilian facilities.

In Kharkiv’s Kyivskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts, as of 19:00 on Friday, January 2, damage to at least 27 buildings was recorded as a result of a Russian ballistic missile attack.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed Kyrylo Budanov from the post of Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) and appointed him Head of the Presidential Office. Oleh Ivashchenko has officially become Chief of the HUR.

The number of people injured as a result of Russian strikes on Kharkiv on January 2 has increased to 31.