Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

Zelensky would only meet Putin

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, was the only Russian representative he would meet to discuss how to end the war. Three months after the Russian invasion, he made another call for international pressure on Russia and more weapons for Ukraine.

In a video link with the World Economic Forum in Davos, Zelensky expressed his position on possible talks with Moscow:

"I cannot accept a meeting with anyone from the Russian Federation except the president. And only if there is one issue at the negotiating table: stopping the war - a decision that cannot be made without him."

According to Zelensky, however, negotiations have become more difficult due to Russian crimes against civilians in the occupied territories.

Ukraine is losing many people

President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of waging a "total war" against Ukraine and continuing to attack civilians. In another speech, Zelensky said 87 people had been killed in a Russian missile attack on Desna last week. Russia is now concentrating its troops in the eastern Donbas region, around cities such as Bakhmut, Popasnaya and Sievierodonetsk, he said. “We are losing too many people in Donbas”, the Ukrainian president acknowledged, adding that restoring Ukrainian control over Crimea by force would result in hundreds of thousands of casualties

Russia denies targeting civilians during its so-called “special operation”

Pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk region have announced that Ukrainian defenders of Mariupol defending themselves at the Azovstal plant will face a tribunal.

The West accuses Russia of spreading fake news

At a meeting of the UN Security Council, the United States and Britain accused Russia of spreading disinformation online and manipulating public opinion about the war in Ukraine. For its part, Moscow claims that the West is trying to fully control the flow of information and determine what is true and what is not.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia would consider re-establishing ties with the West and, in the meantime, develop relations with China.

Zelensky with a plan "B" if he gets killed

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has a Plan B in the event of his assassination. He announced this himself during a speech at the forum in Davos

“According to our legislation, someone must rule the country. Ukraine is a parliamentary-presidential republic. We, the Prime Minister and the Speaker of Parliament were prepared. We understood that if there is any loss, we will be ready for this process. We have divided the Council of Ministers into two parts so that the country can be protected even in the worst-case scenario."

Zelensky was twice asked if there was a plan to react in case one of the Russian attempts (and according to intelligence there were many) to assassinate the president succeeded.

"So much effort, people have spent their energy and money ... I'm ready to help them ... but every morning I keep waking up and I'm alive. I take it philosophically," the head of state said.

He added that such a threat persists on a daily basis. "This is not a hologram, I'm alive and I'm really talking to you," Zelensky joked.

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