Ukraine News – The Latest: Abrams tanks ‘do not pose an offensive threat’ to Russia, Biden insists

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The US will send 31 M1 Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine and Germany will send its own Leopard 2s – after weeks of persistent calls from Kyiv for weapons to help it fight off the Russian invasion.

President Joe Biden said battle tanks “do not pose an offensive threat,” with Russia denouncing the decisions as an “extremely dangerous” move, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the move.

Urging the Allies to provide large quantities of tanks quickly, he said: “The key now is speed and volume. Speed ​​in training our forces, speed in supplying tanks to Ukraine. Numbers in tank support.”

Ukraine is seeking hundreds of modern tanks to recapture occupied territories in the south and east, as the two warring countries rely mainly on Soviet-era T-72 tanks.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any shipments of the Abrams would be a waste of money because they “burn out” like other tanks.

It overestimates the potential it will add to the Ukrainian army. “These tanks are burning like all the others,” Peskov told reporters.

View latest update 1674703370 US makes ‘long-term commitment’ to Ukraine as it sends fleet of Abrams tanks and tow vehicles to Kyiv

Several Biden administration officials have said the United States will provide 31 new M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine’s armed forces as part of a U.S. effort to help bolster Ukraine’s defense against the nearly year-old war waged by Russia.

The 31 tanks will be accompanied by eight M88 rescue vehicles—heavy armored tow trucks used to rescue tanks that have been disabled or battle-damaged—and will be enough to outfit an entire Ukrainian tank battalion with the American-made beasts, which first gained worldwide recognition for their firepower and armored capabilities during engagements with troops. Iraq during Operation Desert Storm in 1991.

Read this report from my colleague Andrew Feinberg to learn more about President Joe Biden’s commitments to Ukraine:

Namita Singh Jan 26 2023 03:22

1674707410 Zelensky urges UN to take action on deportations

President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged a top UN official to help find a way to resolve what Ukrainian authorities denounce as a dangerous consequence of the 11-month-old war – the deportation of thousands of adults and children to Russia.

Ukraine has for months denounced reports of mass deportations to Russia, often to remote regions thousands of kilometers from Ukraine. Russia denies any suggestion of abuse or criminal intent and has described the mass movements as evictions.

President Volodymyr Zelensky gestures as he speaks during a joint press conference with his Finnish counterpart after their talks in Kyiv, on January 24, 2023

(AFP via Getty Images)

“The discussion focused above all on our people deported to Russia by the occupiers,” Mr. Zelensky said in his nightly video address, referring to talks with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, earlier yesterday.

These are the adults, these are our children. A mechanism is needed to protect and return people and to hold all those responsible for deportations to account. I am sure that the United Nations organizations can show leadership in resolving this issue.

Volodymyr Zelensky

Namita Singh Jan 26 2023 04:30

Biden says the tanks “do not pose an offensive threat” to Russia

President Joe Biden said Abrams tanks “do not pose an offensive threat” to Russia as he announced plans to supply them to Ukraine.

He said there was a need to help the Ukrainians “improve their ability to maneuver in open ground,” a decision that Russia denounced as an “extremely dangerous” step.

President Volodymyr Zelensky applauded the commitment and urged allies to quickly provide large quantities of tanks.

“The key now is speed and volumes. Speed ​​in training our forces, speed in supplying tanks to Ukraine. We have to form such a ‘tank fist’, like a ‘freedom fist,'” he said in a video speech yesterday night.

US President Joe Biden announces additional military support to Ukraine as Secretary of State Antony Blinken listens in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on January 25, 2023 in Washington, DC.

(Getty Images)

Ukraine is seeking to acquire hundreds of modern tanks to give its forces the firepower to break through the Russian defensive lines and restore occupied lands in the south and east. Ukraine and Russia mainly rely on Soviet-era T-72 tanks.

The promise of the tanks comes as both Ukraine and Russia are expected to launch new offensives in the war and as fighting rages in Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, officials said.

Namita Singh Jan 26 2023 04:22

Ukraine fires five top regional prosecutors in a shake-up

Five top regional prosecutors were sacked from their jobs on Wednesday, a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky launched Ukraine’s biggest political shake-up during the war.

Prosecutor General Andrei Kostin’s office said in a brief statement that the officials, who were the top prosecutors in their regions, were dismissed “voluntarily” by Prosecutor General Andrei Kostin.

“Andrei Kostin signed orders for voluntary dismissal from managerial positions of heads of regional prosecutor’s offices in Zaporizhia, Kirovohrad, Poltava, Sumy and Chernihiv,” it said on its website.

More than a dozen senior officials, including a deputy attorney general, were sacked on Tuesday in what analysts described as a reaction to recent corruption and abuse of office scandals.

Emily Atkinson Jan 26, 2023 04:00

1674702000 “German tanks will again meet Russian tanks in Ukraine”

Eckehard Pruss, head of the German Army’s Federal Academy for Security Policy, pointed to the deeper historical significance of Berlin’s decision to send Leopard 2 tanks to the front lines in Kyiv.

“German-made tanks will meet Russian tanks in Ukraine again,” he said, adding that this was “not an easy idea” for Germany, which takes its responsibility for the horrors of World War II very seriously.

“However, this is the right decision,” Bruce said, arguing that it was up to Western democracies to help Ukraine stop Russia’s military campaign.

Emily Atkinson Jan 26, 2023 03:00

A Russian warship simulates a hypersonic missile strike in the Atlantic Ocean

A Russian warship simulated a hypersonic missile strike on a mock enemy ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Admiral Gorshkov frigate ran a “computer simulation” of a Zircon missile that Moscow said “hit” a target about 500 miles away.

The Russian Defense Ministry said: “According to the training situation, the frigate trained in order [a] Tsirkon hypersonic missile attack on a sea target at a distance of more than 900 km.

Read our full report here:

Emily Atkinson Jan 26 2023 02:00

1674694800 WATCH: Mimi depicts Ukraine’s new tank brigades meeting for the first time

Mimi films Ukraine’s new tank brigades meeting for the first time

Emily Atkinson Jan 26 2023 01:00

1674691200 The Wagner Group is advancing on Bakhmut

The head of the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine’s Donetsk region claims that units of Wagner’s contract militia are advancing on the town of Bakhmut.

“The enemy is increasing its pressure on the Bakhmut and Vuhledar regions,” said Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister, Hanna Malyar, on the messaging app Telegram.

She said that Russia is throwing a large number of personnel and equipment into the battle, despite the heavy losses.

“The fighting intensifies.”

Emily Atkinson Jan 26, 2023 00:00

1674687640 Speed ​​and numbers are now keys to saving the tank, Zelensky says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that the key to providing tanks for Ukraine’s defense against Russia is speed and sufficient numbers.

In his nightly video address, Zelensky also said he had spoken to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and called for supplies of long-range missiles and aircraft to add to US and German commitments to provide advanced battle tanks.

“The key now is speed and volumes. Speed ​​in training our forces, speed in supplying tanks to Ukraine. Numbers in tank support,” Zelensky said.

“We must form such a force of tanks, such a force for liberty that, after blows, tyranny will never rise again.”

Emily Atkinson Jan 25 2023 23:00

1674684040 American Abrams tanks will not reach the front line for several months, says the White House

The White House says the powerful American tanks President Joe Biden has agreed to send to Ukraine could take several months to reach their destination.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Ukraine needed to be ready when the weather cleared and the Russian offensive intensified quickly.

He said Washington should be willing to support Ukraine as long as it takes, and that there was no indication that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had plans to strike NATO territory.

Emily Atkinson Jan 25, 2023 22:00

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