“You can see significant progress being made towards demilitarization,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency. Since October, however, Russia has been bombing mainly civilian infrastructure, exposing millions of Ukrainians to winter without heating, electricity and water.
Melnyk demands Leopard main battle tanks
Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andriy Melnyk has now again called on Germany to supply battle tanks and armored cars to Kiev. He wanted Chancellor Olaf Scholz to “finally reconsider the unwillingness of, for example, the Leopard main battle tank and the Marder infantry fighting vehicle,” the former ambassador of Ukraine to Germany told the editorial network Germany (RND). “If the federal government does not want to go it alone with the supply, then Germany could pursue a leading role on the continent, forge a European tank alliance.”
Selenskyj is happy with “good results”
“I am coming back from Washington with good results,” the Ukrainian president said in his daily video address on Thursday. The US plans to send a Patriot air defense system to Ukraine as part of a new $1.85 billion military aid package, and new ammunition has also been promised. Zelenskyy emphasized that the Patriot anti-aircraft weapons could now protect both the state and the people.
Putin: Will Patriots “crack”
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the US would supply Patriot anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine, saying these weapons are obsolete and not as good as Russia’s S-300. Russia could overcome the air defenses. “There is always an antidote,” he said. Russia will “crack the patriots,” Putin announced. Since October, in an attempt to subdue Ukraine, Russia has mainly been destroying civilian infrastructure with missiles and drone attacks.
Russia: attack on military replacement district office and fire in barracks
In the southern Russian region of Saratov, a suspected arson attack was committed at a district military replacement office, the Vsglyad-Info news portal reported. There was no official information about the cause of the fire. However, media reported that a bottle with gasoline residue was found there. In Moscow, firefighters had to put out a fire at a military facility. Little is known about the causes of the fire or the extent of the material damage. More than 50 attacks on military objects have been reported since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Petersburg deputy reports to Putin for the word “war”.
A Russian opposition politician has sued Putin for discrediting the military – for using the word “war” for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “He called the war war,” MP Nikita Yuferev tweeted. At the same time, thousands of people had already been convicted across the country. Officially, the war against Ukraine in Russia can only be called a “military special operation”. However, Putin had stated: “Our goal is not to keep the flywheel of the military conflict turning, but to end the war”. The ad offers no prospect of legal success.
US government: tens of thousands of ‘Wagner’ mercenaries stationed in Ukraine
Tens of thousands of mercenaries from the Russian battle group “Wagner” are now stationed in Ukraine, according to the US government. An estimated 50,000 mercenaries are currently deployed there, including 40,000 ex-convicts, White House communications director John Kirby said. In the past few weeks alone, about 1,000 “Wagner” fighters have been killed in combat. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin puts people in Ukraine “literally through the meat grinder,” Kirby said. He has no respect for human life, especially for Ukrainian ones. Kirby also stated that North Korea supplied “Wagner” weapons.
London: Expansion of the Russian army should be difficult
According to British military experts, Russia’s plans to expand the army are likely to pose a major challenge. According to the plans submitted to Putin, the army will be expanded by 30 percent to 1.5 million soldiers. “It remains unclear how Russia will find the recruits to achieve such an increase at a time when its forces in Ukraine are under unprecedented pressure,” the British statement said.
Estonia decides on further military aid to Ukraine
Estonia will also continue to provide military aid to Ukraine in the fight against Russia. The government of the Baltic EU and NATO state decided on Thursday to deliver drones, personal protective equipment and winter uniforms to the attacked country. “Ukraine continues to need our help and support to face Russian aggression,” Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said.
Lithuania trains Ukrainian soldiers in the maintenance of self-propelled howitzers
In Lithuania, the first Ukrainian army mechanics have completed their training to repair and maintain the 2000 self-propelled howitzer. The Ukrainians have learned how to maintain howitzer engines and chassis, the agency BNS reported. “The goal is to train troops to detect problems and solve them on the battlefield in real time,” said Major Zilvinas Cerskus. Germany and the Netherlands handed over a dozen Panzerhaubitz 2000 to Ukraine.
«New York Times»: Russian division involved in Bucha massacre
After months of investigating the massacre in Bucha, a suburb of Kiev, the New York Times made serious accusations against a unit of the Russian army. The American newspaper published a video on Thursday with the background and the results of its investigation, according to which paratroopers of the 234th Airborne Division are responsible for the deaths of dozens of civilians on Jablunska Street in Bucha. More than 460 bodies were found in Bucha in April after the Russian army retreated, according to Ukrainian sources. Moscow claims shots of the dead were fictitious.
(SDA)