The essentials in brief:
- Ukraine continues to refuse negotiations with Putin
- Zelenskyj announces retaliation after attack on Zaporizhia
- US wants to announce new military aid for Ukraine
- Chancellor Scholz visits President Biden to discuss Ukraine
- Two Americans arrested for illegal exports to Russia
In an interview, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov rejected calls for negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. His President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said very clearly “that we will not negotiate with the current head of the Kremlin,” Resnikov told the “Bild” newspaper. Ukraine will only talk about “reparations, an international tribunal and responsibility for the war crimes committed by Kremlin personnel.”
At the same time, Reznikov was optimistic that the war in his country will end in the course of this year with the recapture of all Russian-occupied territories. “I am an optimist, I see the situation on the battlefield, I see the development of the support and I really see that there is a chance to end this war with our victory this year.” At the same time, he said he was convinced that the West would soon be delivering fighter jets to his country.
Zelenskyj announces retaliation after attack on Zaporizhia
After the Russian rocket attack on the city of Zaporizhia that killed at least two, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced retaliation. “We will react militarily and legally to today’s brutal Russian rocket attack on Zaporizhia,” he said in his nightly video address. “The occupier will inevitably feel our strength, the power of justice in the truest sense of the word.”
A multi-storey residential building in the southern Ukrainian city was hit by a rocket during the Russian air raid on Thursday night. Two residents were killed, eight people were injured. According to official information, ten residents are still missing.
US announces new military aid
The US plans to announce a new package of military aid for Ukraine this Friday. US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in the White House that ammunition for weapons systems that Ukraine already has will be the primary concern.
John Kirby praises the close coordination between the US and Germany
However, he gave no details and no volume. Since the war began a little over a year ago, the United States has provided Ukraine with security aid totaling around $27.2 billion.
Chancellor Scholz visits President Biden to discuss the war
Before Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s working visit, the White House once again reiterated the good relationship between the United States and Germany. Support for Ukraine during the course of the conflict was closely coordinated. That also applies to the announcements to deliver armored personnel carriers and main battle tanks to Ukraine, said John Kirby. Germany is an important NATO partner and has supplied crucial weapon systems such as the Iris-T and Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine.
President Joe Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz last June at the G7 meeting in Elmau, Bavaria
Further support for the country attacked by Russia would certainly be a topic of talks between US President Joe Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Kirby said. According to a senior US government official, the call on Friday afternoon US Eastern Time will last around an hour.
Shortly before the chancellor’s trip, it became known that no press conference was planned after Biden and Scholz met. German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said the two wanted to “exchange very confidentially”. The chancellor wants to use the time in the White House “as grossly as possible”. It is Scholz’s second visit to the White House in the almost 15 months of his tenure so far. At the beginning of February 2022 he was in Washington for his inaugural visit.
Two Americans arrested for illegal exports to Russia
The two Americans have been arrested for illegally exporting avionics to Russia. For years, they are said to have supplied Western components to Russian companies and repaired equipment used on Russian planes, the US Department of Justice said. The illegal activities continued even after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
The accused had concealed the true addressee of the exported goods by, among other things, specifying Germany as the destination, it was said. In other cases, goods were sent to Russia via Armenia and Cyprus. The two men are accused of conspiracy, illegal export of controlled goods and smuggling, among other things. If convicted, they face decades in prison.
qu/bru (dpa, afp, rtr)
This article will be continuously updated on the day of its publication. Reports from the combat zones cannot be independently verified.