WAR IN UKRAINE: January 25, 2023
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 336
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has decided to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, and allow other countries to do the same, reports in Germany say. Now, after international pressure, Mr Scholz has decided to send at least 14 Leopard 2s, German outlets say - BBC
In addition, US President Joe Biden's administration is expected to send approximately 30 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, two US officials familiar with the deliberations told CNN. The announcement to send the US-made tanks could come as early as this week, CNN reported earlier Tuesday. The timing around the actual delivery of the tanks is still unclear and it normally takes several months to train troops to use the tanks effectively, officials said. The US will also send a small number of recovery vehicles, one of the officials said. Recovery vehicles are tracked vehicles used to assist in the repair of tanks on the battlefield or the removal from the battlefield for service and maintenance in a different location.
There are no indications Putin has changed his goals on Ukraine, NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg says. "The only way to lasting peace is to make it clear to Putin that he will not win on the battlefield. Therefore, we must provide heavier and more advanced systems"
The Netherlands may provide Ukraine with 18 Leopard 2 tanks. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that the Netherlands is considering buying 18 Leopard 2 main battle tanks, which it leases from Germany, to provide them to Ukraine - Kyiv Independent
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is expected to decide today whether to hear a case in shooting down of Flight MH17. Dutch govt claimed Russia played key role, failed to investigate/cooperate & generating disinfo which worsened relatives grief. Hearing starts at 1330GMT
The Defense Forces of Ukraine withdrew from Soledar in Donetsk region in order to preserve the lives of personnel, Cherevaty, the spokesman of the Eastern Group of Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, told Suspilno.
Governors, government officials lose jobs in biggest reshuffle since start of full-scale war. The Cabinet of Ministers has officially dismissed six government officials and greenlighted the firing of five governors in the most significant reshuffle since the start of the full-scale war. The Jan. 24 reshuffle came after a series of journalist investigations alleged misappropriation of funds among several top officials - Kyiv Independent
State Department: Corruption cases among Ukrainian officials do not involve US aid. The recent corruption scandals that led to the biggest government reshuffle since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022 do not appear to have involved the military and humanitarian assistance supplied to Ukraine by the United States, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Jan. 24. Meanwhile, the EU said: ‘We welcome Ukrainian authorities taking corruption allegations seriously.’ "The general rule is that we do not comment on ongoing investigations, but we welcome the fact that the Ukrainian authorities are taking this seriously,” Ana Pisonero, a representative of the European Commission, said after the Cabinet of Ministers dismissed six government officials amid allegations of misappropriation of funds - Kyiv Independent
British volunteer aid workers Chris Parry and Andrew Bagshaw were killed during an attempted humanitarian evacuation in eastern Ukraine, Parry's family said on January 24, weeks after they were reported missing in the war-torn country.
A growing number of high-level Russian officials is defecting to the West, emboldened and disgruntled by the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine. Ex-generals and intelligence agents are among their number, CNN reported. But Russian President Vladimir Putin has shown his determination to hunt the Kremlin’s perceived enemies overseas.
Ukrainian officials say the Russians are learning from their battlefield mistakes and making it harder for Ukraine’s missiles to hit their ammunition depots and logistics hubs. That’s why, they say, Ukraine needs longer range missiles that can reach inside Russia. The deputy chief of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, Vadym Skibitsky, told CNN Monday that the Russians have begun dispersing military supplies “across the entire territory of the Russian Federation.” In particular, he said, “everything is moved to the southern regions through the Crimean peninsula” from logistical hubs in the Russian region of Rostov.
Required reading…
Wartime Ukraine must maintain course from Russian past to European future
As Ukraine fights for its survival against invading Russian forces, the struggle for the country’s future is also unfolding far from the front lines. While Ukraine holds off Putin’s troops and endures Moscow’s terror campaign against civilians, efforts to modernize the country continue. By pursuing important reforms even in wartime, Kyiv is paving the way for a Euro-Atlantic future while distancing itself from the Soviet past.
Indications of Ukraine’s European trajectory remain evident despite the horrors of Russia’s ongoing invasion. The tiny state-owned Ust-Dunaisk port complex sits in an inlet in southwestern Ukraine where the Black Sea meets the Danube River, roughly thirty miles northwest of Snake Island. There are no roads traversing the small canals from the nearby village of Vylkove to the port, which serves as a key cargo loading point for transport between seafaring vessels in the Black Sea and river ships on the Danube.
Read the complete Atlantic Council analysis here