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President Volodymyr Zelensky declared a state of emergency in Ukraine’s energy sector on Wednesday – prompting a review of Ukraine’s regional curfew rules and the establishment of an energy headquarters in Kyiv among other special measures.

In recent weeks, Russian missile attacks have created disasters verging on a humanitarian crisis by targeting energy infrastructure across Ukraine. Early Tuesday, a massive overnight Russian drone attack on Kryvyi Rih knocked out heat to more than 700 apartment buildings as temperatures dropped to –7°C (+19°F).

Writing on Telegram, Zelensky announced plans to combat the “severe” consequences of Russian strikes on energy infrastructure and worsening weather conditions in three main areas.

Firstly, he said, a special headquarters will be established in Kyiv to coordinate a full-time response to the energy crisis.

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The State Department said Wednesday it will suspend the processing of immigrant visas for citizens of 75 countries whose nationals are deemed likely to require public assistance while living in the United States.

The State Department, led by Secretary Marco Rubio, said it had instructed consular officers to halt immigrant visa applications from the countries affected in accordance with a broader order issued in November that tightened rules around potential immigrants who might become “public charges” in the U.S.

The suspension, which will begin Jan. 21, will not apply to applicants seeking non-immigrant visas, or temporary tourist or business visas.

“The Trump administration is bringing an end to the abuse of America’s immigration system by those who would extract wealth from the American people,” the department said in a statement. “Immigrant visa processing from these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassess immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits.”

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The Trump administration has completed its first Venezuelan oil sale, valued at $500 million, an administration official confirmed to The Hill on Wednesday.

The official also said additional sales are expected in the coming days and weeks. 

Semafor first reported the deal, including that revenue from it is being held in bank accounts, including one in Qatar, that are controlled by the U.S. government. 

The announcement comes after President Trump announced last week that Venezuela would turn over between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S.

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Russian strikes damaged the Polish consulate in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa overnight, according to Poland’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Maciej Wewiór.

"As a result of the overnight bombardment, the Polish consulate in Odesa was damaged,” Wewiór wrote on X, describing it as “another night of Russian terror.”

He added that no consulate employees had been injured and praised the diplomats’ work, saying: “Great respect for the entire [Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs] team working in Ukraine.”

Russia overnight struck cities across the country in one of its largest attacks of the yr so far.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Moscow had launched almost 300 drones, 18 ballistic missiles and seven cruise missiles in the sweeping attacks which affected eight regions and targeted energy-generation facilities and substations.

Four people were killed in Kharkiv when missiles and drones hit a postal terminal.

At least five people were injured in Odesa as temperatures dropped to –7°C and fires broke out at a residential building, a fitness center and a garage, causing extensive damage.

Emergency psychologists were forced to assist 14 people, including one child.

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A senior Greenland government official said Tuesday it’s “unfathomable” that the United States is discussing taking over a NATO ally and urged the Trump administration to listen to voices from the Arctic island’s people.

Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business and mineral resources, said people in Greenland are “very, very worried” over the administration’s desire for control of Greenland.

She spoke a day before a key meeting in Washington between foreign ministers of the semi-autonomous Danish territory and Denmark and top U.S. officials, at a time of increased tensions between the allies over the stepped-up U.S. rhetoric.

The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly on the sensitive matter and spoke on the condition of anonymity, declined to provide details about what the support entailed.

“People are not sleeping, children are afraid, and it just fills everything these days. And we can’t really understand it,” Nathanielsen said at a meeting with lawmakers in Britain’s Parliament.

Earlier, a Danish government official confirmed that Denmark provided U.S. forces in the east Atlantic with support last week as they intercepted an oil tanker for alleged violations of U.S. sanctions.

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President Donald Trump's desire to annex Greenland will not be thwarted and there could be meaningful U.S. action related to the Arctic island within "weeks or months," according to a senior administration official.

That's the view of Thomas Dans, Trump's Arctic commissioner. He's regarded as one of the main proponents of the president's interest in Greenland, an idea first brought to Trump by billionaire and former diplomat Ronald Lauder.

Dans has been working on the issue since 2020.

"This is a train route with multiple stops," he said in an exclusive interview with USA TODAY. "Things could move on an express basis, skip the local stops and go direct to the main station. That's where President Trump wants to move it − at high speed."

US official says Greenland action could come within 'weeks or months'
Next steps on Greenland could come as soon as a few 'weeks,' a US official tells USA TODAY in an exclusive interview.

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