Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 323

As the Russia-Ukraine war enters its 323rd day, we take a look at the main developments.

Here is the situation as it stands on Thursday, January 12, 2023:

Fighting

• Russia appointed Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov as overall commander of forces to take charge of its invasion of Ukraine in the biggest shake-up yet of its military command structure after months of battlefield defeats.
• The head of the private military firm Wagner Group said his forces had achieved the complete “liberation” of Soledar, killing about 500 pro-Ukraine soldiers.
• In a video address aired before the statement, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy mocked Russian claims to have taken over parts of Soledar, saying fighting was still on.
• Russia and Ukraine agreed on an exchange of 40 prisoners of war each, Russian and Ukrainian officials said.
• Wagner Group said it found the body of one of two British voluntary workers who had been reported missing in eastern Ukraine.
• Poland has decided to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine as part of an international coalition, the Polish president said, as Warsaw seeks to play a leading role in reaching a consensus among Western allies on such support.

Economy

• Russian oil revenues are falling due to the price cap that Western countries imposed on its crude oil shipments, a US Treasury official said. The Kremlin said it had not yet seen any cases of price caps on Russian oil.
• The Kremlin said Putin discussed energy and transport projects with Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi in a phone call.

Diplomacy

• Zelenskyy urged NATO to do more than just promise Ukraine its door was open at a July summit, saying Kyiv needs “powerful steps” as it tries to join the military alliance.
• Estonia has told Russia to reduce the number of diplomats at its embassy in Tallinn by February.
• The European Union is prepared for a long war and will support Kyiv for as long as it takes, Sweden’s foreign minister, Tobias Billstrom, said.
• Greece and Malta lag behind their EU peers in freezing Russian assets, an internal document and an EU official said.