Germany has delivered the air defense system it promised to Ukraine. The government in Berlin announced the news of the handover of the Patriot system on its website on Tuesday evening.
Ukrainian soldiers who were trained to use the system by Germany and the United States recently demonstrated how to use the Patriot during a military exercise in a NATO member, according to information from dpa.
Members of the Ukrainian Air Defense Forces thus received the final training lessons on the use of the system in defense against Russian air attacks.
Patriot is one of the most modern air defense systems in the world. It can be used to combat enemy aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles.
At a distance of about 100 kilometers and up to an altitude of 30 kilometers, the defense missiles can hit targets within an imaginary ring around the position - depending on the guided missile used.
Together with the US, Germany has agreed to provide Ukraine with this modern system to defend against Russian airstrikes, which are increasingly targeting the country's civilian infrastructure.
(dpa)
The Russian State Duma today adopted a draft law that provides for life imprisonment for treason.
The draft law, which the Russian Government submitted to the State Duma in November last year, also foresees a series of amendments to the Russian Criminal Code, which aim to increase the punishment for terrorist crimes and crimes against the constitutional order and state security, reports TASS.
A conviction for treason, which is now punishable by 20 years behind bars, will be punishable by life imprisonment.
(MINE)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited soldiers in the small eastern town of Avdeyevka, where commanders briefed him on the situation on the battlefield, his office said.
As Reuters reports, Avdeyevka was one of the main targets of Russia's winter offensive aimed at reviving Moscow's full-scale invasion, launched in February 2022, but has made little territorial progress in the east.
A video released by Zelenskiy's office shows him addressing soldiers in combat gear and presenting them with awards in what appeared to be a large industrial warehouse, with sandbags piled against at least one of the high walls.
"I am honored to be here today, to thank you for your service, for defending our country, Ukraine, our families," he said.
"I only wish you victory - that's what I wish for every Ukrainian, that's what's very important for all of us," Zelensky said.
The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven most developed countries (G7) condemned Russia's announcements about the stationing of nuclear weapons in Belarus and assessed them as unacceptable.
In a statement after the end of the three-day meeting in the Japanese resort of Karuizawa, the ministers emphasized that the Russian military intervention in Ukraine and the fear of similar actions by China against Taiwan were in the center of their attention.
"Russia's irresponsible nuclear rhetoric and its threat to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus are unacceptable," the diplomats said.
They warned that any Russian use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons would be met with severe consequences, reports Free Europe.
Ukraine claims that the support of the G7 countries is crucial if the war continues.
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously stated that Russia will station so-called short-range tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of neighboring Belarus.
Moscow claims that it is forced to this move due to the expansion of the NATO alliance towards the Russian borders.
Apart from Japan, the G7 consists of Great Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United States.
(mine)
Russian forces are stepping up the use of heavy artillery and airstrikes in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces said.
The fighting in and around Bakhmut has been the epicenter of the war in Ukraine for months.
"The enemy is currently increasing heavy artillery strikes and the number of airstrikes, turning the city into ruins," General Oleksandr Sirsky said in a statement, Reuters reports.
He said Russia remained committed to capturing Bakhmut "at all costs" but was suffering significant losses in the battle for the city.
The Russians claim the same for the Ukrainian forces in Bakhmut.
On the other side of the Atlantic, "Washington Post" columnist David Ignatius also points out that "the government of US President Joseph Biden must come up with a convincing plan to end the Ukrainian war."
Reuters has published photos taken during the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Kherson region in the south of Ukraine.
Opposition leader Vladimir Kara-Murza has joined a growing list of Russians who have received lengthy prison terms after speaking out against Putin or the invasion of Ukraine.
Related Articles
Russian President Vladimir Putin attended a meeting of the military command in Ukraine's Kherson region, which is partly controlled by Russia, the Kremlin said, as reported by Reuters.
According to reports, Putin heard the reports of the commanders of the airborne forces and the "Dnieper" army, as well as other high-ranking officers.
Russian troops withdrew from Kherson, the capital of the region, last November and were strengthening their positions on the opposite bank of the Dnieper River in anticipation of a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Putin also visited National Guard headquarters in Ukraine's eastern Luhansk region, another part of Ukraine annexed by Moscow last year.
The war in Ukraine entered the 418th day - you can see what happened in the east of Europe at the link below.
Related Articles
See more:
Download the app and follow the news
FOLLOW US ON
