Ukraine to get 120-140 modern Western tanks in first wave of deliveries, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister says
Ukraine will receive 120 to 140 tanks in a first wave of deliveries from a coalition of 12 countries, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a news conference Tuesday.
He said those tanks would include the German Leopard 2, the British Challenger 2 and the U.S. M1 Abrams, and that Ukraine was also counting on supplies of French Leclerc tanks being agreed.
“It is too early to name all the countries of the coalition and their contributions as some of them still have to go through internal procedures to formalize their decisions. I can only say that in the first round of contributions, the Ukrainian Armed Forces will get between 120 and 140 modern Western tanks,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister said.
Ukraine continues with efforts to expand the tank coalition and increase the contributions from already announced participants, Kuleba added.
Ukraine needs 300 to 500 tanks to launch a counteroffensive, Ukrainian President Zelenskyi earlier said. Western countries will deliver 321 tanks to Ukraine, Ukraine’s Ambassador to France said in an interview with French television.
Some 326,000 Russian forces fighting in Ukraine, Ukraine’s military intelligence chief says
Approximately 326,000 Russian forces are fighting in Ukraine now, Head of the Main Intelligence Department of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry Major General Kyrylo Budanov told The Washington Post in an interview published Tuesday, January 31.
Budanov is so confident in his intelligence that he occasionally opens a folder to give exact figures, the article says. The Washington Post quotes him as saying that Russia has just 9 percent of its stock of Kalibr long-range missiles left.
Budanov’s forecast for this year is that Russia will focus on occupying more territory in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions. A renewed offensive from its forces stationed north of Ukraine, in Belarus, is unlikely, he said, and just an attempt to distract and divide Kyiv’s troops. He also said that “we must do everything to ensure that Crimea returns home by summer.”
Ukraine’s expectations ahead of EU-Ukraine summit
At the upcoming EU-Ukraine summit, Ukraine readies to demonstrate progress on all seven recommendations of the European Commission and expects the EU’s positive evaluation, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in an online briefing Tuesday.
Ukraine expects progress on access to the EU’s single market, cooperation on energy, and renewable gases. “The prospect of a quick start to the EU accession negotiations is to become the centerpiece of the agenda after Ukraine fulfils all the requirements of the European Commission and gets a positive evaluation,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister said.
Ukraine and the EU will also discuss a new round of EU sanctions on Russia, including measures against Russia’s missile and drone production, and nuclear energy.
Talks will continue around security, President Zelenskyi’s peace formula, and accountability for Russia’s crimes [in Ukraine], Kuleba said.
“We’ll focus on Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction as the EU could take a lead in that,” the Minister said.
The EU and Ukraine plan to sign a number of sectoral papers and a final joint statement.
At the EU-Ukraine summit scheduled for February 3, the EU is expected to commend Ukraine on its progress on membership-bound reforms, according to a draft summit communique seen by EURACTIV, but member states remain divided over the speed of accession.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and commissioners plan a meeting with the Ukrainian government in Kyiv in early February. The initial plan is for 10 to 15 commissioners that work on files related to Ukraine to take part, Politico says.
Sectoral integration of Ukraine’s economy with the EU’s single market is expected to take center stage at the EU-Ukraine summit scheduled for February 3 in Kyiv.
Prioritizing renewable energy in post-war reconstruction. Ukraine in Flames #327
The important lesson of russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure is that Ukraine should rebuild the energy sector strengthening its security and independence. One of the top priorities for post-war energy sector reconstruction is focusing on potential renewable energy resources. Watch Ukraine in flames #327 to find out how renewable energy can help meet Ukraine’s future energy needs and what role international institutions and donors will play in this transition.
Guests:
- Gennadiy Ryabtsev, Expert in the field of energy market, Director of special projects of Science and Technology Center “Psyche”
- Stepan Kushnir, Head of the Khmelnytskyi energy cluster, Consultant for the development of green energy projects
