German Leopard tanks have arrived in Ukraine – the nightly update without photos

Selenskyj is informed about the situation at the front

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held his military briefing with the General Staff outside the capital Kyiv – for the first time, according to his own statements. The briefing took place in the industrial city of Dnipro, where many arms factories are located.

“We discussed the general situation in the front areas and strengthened and protected our borders along the entire front – from the Kherson region to the Kharkiv region,” Zelenskyy said in his daily video address on Monday. He gave no details about the outcome of the meeting.

The 45-year-old also visited Zaporizhia and the cities of Nikopol and Marhanets in the Dnipropetrovsk region, which are often exposed to Russian missile attacks. “Today, Russian missiles hit residential buildings in Zaporizhia,” Zelensky said. These went up in flames and were partially destroyed. He again accused Moscow of targeted terror against the civilian population. “But our soldiers, whom we visited today in Zaporizhia, know exactly what they need to drive the enemy out of our country.”

The current developments in the live ticker:

Leopard main battle tanks are in Ukraine

Guns are particularly needed, as Zelenskyy never tires of stressing. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army has also received 18 modern Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks from Germany to repel the Russian attack. “Yes, we delivered the Leopard tanks as announced,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said in Rotterdam on Monday. Ammunition and spare parts, two Buffalo-type armored recovery vehicles and German-trained crews have also arrived in Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Defense in Berlin. In addition, there are already 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles in the country.

“Our tanks, as promised, arrived on time in the hands of our Ukrainian friends. I am sure they can do something important at the front,” Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) said. Together with Sweden and Portugal, the federal government has pledged a battle group. Pistorius said: “To make up for that, Germany has even delivered four more tanks than originally planned. You can count on us!”

According to his ministry, the next step will be to provide older Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks. These are currently being repaired by German industry. The tank repair is therefore financed by Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands. The aim is to deliver the first 25 tanks by the summer, some 80 by the end of the year and to expand to a minimum of 100 Leopard 1A5s over the course of 2024.

Kiev confirms receipt of German Marder armored personnel carriers

In addition to the Leopard tanks, Ukraine received other models from Western countries. Today I had the honor of testing the new additions to our armed forces together with the Chief of the Ukrainian Airborne Forces, Major General Maxim »Mike« Myrhorodskyj, and our paratroopers: the Challenger from Great Britain, the Stryker and Cougar from the USA. and the Marder from Germany,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said on his agency’s Facebook page on Monday. He was confident that the new technology would be “good company on the battlefield” for previously delivered weapon systems.

Resnikov declined Western arms support. A year ago, such efforts by the partners were unthinkable. The entire “civilized world” is now opposing the Russian aggressor and will help Ukraine win, he wrote.

Selenskyj and Grossi visit Zaporizhia in southern Ukraine

President Zelenskyy and the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, visited a hydroelectric plant in Zaporizhia on Monday. “The hydropower plant is an essential part of the system that maintains the nuclear safety of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant,” Grossi wrote on Twitter. Selenskyj showed him damage to the dam. The men also discussed measures to protect the nuclear power plant, which is under Russian control and about 50 kilometers away. In the coming days, Grossi wants to travel for the second time since autumn to the Russian-occupied area around the shut down nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine.

Finland’s accession to NATO is getting closer

Finland’s head of government, Sanna Marin, thanked Hungary on Monday for ratifying Finland’s accession to NATO and also called for swift admission by neighboring Sweden. “The NATO membership of Finland and Sweden strengthens the security of the entire alliance,” the prime minister wrote on Twitter shortly after the vote in the Hungarian parliament. It is “in everyone’s interest” that Sweden also joins the alliance for the next NATO summit in July in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius.

Earlier on Monday, 182 Hungarian MPs voted in favor of Finland joining NATO and six against. Only Türkiye’s approval is still pending. After much hesitation, the government in Ankara recently announced that it would no longer block Finland’s accession.

That will be important on Tuesday

Beginning on Tuesday is this year’s “Summit for Democracy,” a virtual summit launched two years ago by US President Joe Biden, which will also include the Ukrainian side. The war is one of the main topics of the international summit. (sda/dpa)