🔄 Click here for the latest updates
12 posts
35 mins ago
Erdogan repeats offer to mediate between Moscow and Kyiv during a call with Zelensky
By Hande Atay Alam
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
(Photo: KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images)
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan repeated the offer to mediate between Moscow and Kyiv during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, according to the statement from the Communications Directorate of the Turkish Presidency.
During the call, the evolution of the war between Russia and Ukraine was discussed, according to the statement.
President Erdoğan also expressed his condolences for the helicopter crash that took place in Ukraine on Wednesday.
A helicopter carrying the leadership team of Ukraine's Interior Ministry crashed near a kindergarten and a block of flats in the Kyiv region on Wednesday, killing at least 14 people, including nine on board.
President Erdoğan reiterated that they are ready to make a strong diplomatic contribution to the establishment of a lasting peace between Russia and Ukraine and take on the role of facilitator and mediator.
1 hour ago
Germany 'ready to act quickly' if allies reach consensus on tanks for Ukraine, defense minister says
By Claudia Otto, Niamh Kennedy
Germany is "ready to act quickly" if the allies reach a consensus on sending tanks to Ukraine, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Friday.
"As far as the delivery of the Leopards is concerned, there is no unanimous opinion," Pistorius told reporters on the sidelines of a high-level defense meeting at Germany's Ramstein airbase.
Pistorius rejected claims that Germany has been "standing in the way" of a "united coalition" of countries in favor of sending tanks to Ukraine.
"There are good reasons for shipping and there are good reasons against it. And given the general situation of a war that has lasted almost a year now, all the pros and cons have to be weighed very carefully, and that assessment is explicitly shared by many allies. ", he added.
"They have us on the ropes": why the US and Germany fail to agree to send tanks to Ukraine
Pistorius said he had instructed officials to carry out an audit of Germany's stock of Leopard 2 tanks so the country can "move quickly" in the event of a "positive decision".
The Defense Minister added that the issue of export authorizations was not discussed during the meetings this Friday.
Poland has been waiting for the go-ahead to send German-made tanks to Ukraine.
On Thursday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki declared that if Poland does not get the green light from Germany, "we will do the right thing ourselves."
2 hours ago
German Defense Minister says tank shipment to Ukraine has not yet been decided, denies decision linked to Abrams
By Chris Stern, Claudia Otto in Berlin and Niamh Kennedy
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley during a Ukrainian Defense Contact Group meeting at the Ramstein airbase, January 20, in Ramstein -Miesenbach, Germany.
(Photo: Thomas Lohnes/Getty Images)
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius denied that the country's decision to potentially send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine is linked to whether the United States makes a similar move and sends M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine.
When asked about the issue during an interview on Thursday with the German public broadcaster ARD, Pistorius said he "was not aware of such an agreement."
According to Pistorius, no decision has been made on whether Germany will send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.
The defense minister told reporters on the sidelines of a high-level defense meeting at Ramstein airbase on Friday that "we cannot all say today when a decision will be made and what that decision will be on the Leopard tanks."
Some background
: the German and US authorities are at an impasse regarding the dispatch of tanks after numerous requests from the Kyiv leadership.
CNN reported Friday that German authorities had indicated that they would not send their Leopard tanks to Ukraine or give any other country with German-made tanks in their inventory permission to do so unless the United States also agreed to send its M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Kyiv.
"If the United States decides to send main battle tanks to Ukraine, it will make it easier for Germany," German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck told Bloomberg from Davos on Tuesday.
"They've got us in a bind," a senior Biden administration official told CNN on Thursday, adding that the Germans are demanding tanks for tanks, and won't budge when it comes to considering any other offer the US has made to goad Berlin. to send the Leopards.
However, the German government spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit, denied these claims on Friday.
"I find it hard to imagine a German chancellor dictating conditions to an American president or making demands."
The spokesman added that Germany considers it "important" that Ukraine's allies "act in a very unified and joint manner," especially when it comes to the delivery of main battle tanks.
With prior reporting from CNN's Natasha Bertrand, Kylie Atwood and Oren Liebermann.
2 hours ago
The Russian electoral body begins preparations for the presidential election campaign
By Katharina Krebs
Ella Pamfilova, chairperson of the Russian Central Election Commission, at the Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) in Moscow on September 11.
(Photo: Gleb Schelkunov/Kommersant/Sipa USA/AP)
The organization responsible for conducting federal elections in Russia has begun preparations for a presidential vote next year, said Ella Pamfilova, the chairwoman of the Central Election Commission.
"We are preparing it now with an eye on the presidential campaign, because we understand what presidential elections are in the current conditions," Pamfilova told reporters on Friday, according to the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.
Russia is scheduled to hold presidential elections in the spring of 2024. The current head of state, President Vladimir Putin, has not yet announced his decision to participate.
Some background
: Putin has been in power for a long time.
He was president between 2000 and 2008, and then a job swap with his then-prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, in 2008, allowed him to return to the presidency in 2012.
Since then he has held the position.
The law would have forced him to resign after this term, which ends in 2024, but in 2021 he signed a law that cleared the way for him to run for two more presidential terms, which could extend his term until 2036.
3 hours ago
The Russian Defense Ministry announces the capture of the settlement of Klishchiivka, near Bakhmut
By Katharina Krebs
Russia's Defense Ministry said its troops had captured the small settlement of Klishchiivka, near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.
"In the direction of Donetsk, the volunteers of the assault detachments, with fire support of the operational-tactical and army aviation, missile troops and artillery of the Southern Military District, liberated the settlement of Klishchiivka from the Donetsk People's Republic "He said in a statement on Friday.
CNN cannot independently verify this claim.
The leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, backed by Moscow, had made the same claim early on Friday.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group, claimed responsibility for the capture of Klishchiivka on Thursday.
Prigozhin said in a statement released by his holding company that the settlement had been captured "exclusively by units of the Wagner group."
Klishchiivka is located a few kilometers southwest of the city of Bakhmut, where both sides have been locked in a bitter battle for months.
Prigozhin said that Klishchiivka was "one of the important suburbs" that had to be captured near Bakhmut.
The fighting around Bakhmut has subsided slightly as Russian forces focused their efforts on the nearby town of Soledar.
If the battle there is in its final phase, it is assumed that the Russians will resume their offensive to take Bakhmut.
4 hours ago
Ukraine needs arms, ammunition and repairs, according to the defense minister
By Jo Shelley
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov attends the "Ukrainian Defense Contact Group" meeting at Ramstein airbase, Germany, on January 20.
(Photo: Michael Probst/AP)
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov outlined his country's priorities during a meeting in Germany on Friday where Kyiv's allies will discuss sending more weapons to Ukraine.
"There are three priorities of Ukraine in #Ramstein... More air defense systems... Weapons for offensive operations (tanks, howitzers, ammunition)... Systematic supplies of ammunition [and] service [and] repair for armament and machinery," he said in a post on Twitter.
.@oleksiireznikov
There are three priorities of Ukraine at #Ramstein 8:
✅ More air defense systems;
✅ Weapons for the offensive operations (tanks, howitzers, ammo);
✅Systematic ammo supplies +service&repair for armament and machinery.
We will win together!
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) January 20, 2023
5 hours ago
Zelensky says that "hundreds of thanks are not hundreds of tanks"
By Radina Gigova, Alex Hardie
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses a meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base January 20, in Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany.
(Photo: Thomas Lohnes/Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged countries to send more weapons to Ukraine without delay, warning that "hundreds of thanks are not hundreds of tanks."
Speaking during a virtual address at the start of a Ukrainian Defense Contact Group meeting in Germany, Zelensky said the results of unity and allied support are seen on the battlefield in Ukraine, but asked: " we have a lot of time?".
"No, terror does not allow discussion, the terror that burns city after city, becomes insolent when [...] the defenders of freedom are left without weapons against it. The war started by Russia does not allow delay and I can give you the thank you hundreds of times over and it will be absolutely scary fair given everything we've already done," he said.
"But a hundred thanks is not a hundred tanks. We can all use thousands of words in discussions, but I cannot put words in the place of cannons that are needed against Russian artillery or anti-aircraft missiles that are needed to protect the people from Russian air strikes," he said.
Zelensky said he was "truly grateful" for the weapons the allies have provided so far, but "time is still a Russian weapon."
"Each unit helps to save our people from terror. But time is still a Russian weapon. We have to speed up. Time must become our common weapon, just like anti-aircraft defense and artillery, armored vehicles and tanks , about which we are negotiating with you," he said.
Some background
: The United States is immersed in a struggle with Germany over the shipment of tanks to the Ukraine.
In recent days, the German authorities have indicated that they will not send their Leopard main battle tanks to Ukraine, nor will they allow any other country with German-made main battle tanks in their inventory to do so, unless the United States also agrees to send its tanks. M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Kyiv, something the Pentagon has been saying for months that it has no intention of doing, given the logistical costs of maintaining them.
5 hours ago
North Korea and Iran will not admit to supplying Russia with weapons, according to the US Secretary of Defense.
By Radina Gigova, Angus Watson
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, left, and Ukrainian participant Oleksii Reznikov, right, attend the "Ukrainian Defense Contact Group" meeting at Ramstein Air Base in Ramstein, Germany, on January 20. .
(Photo: Michael Probst/AP)
Russia "is running out of ammunition and suffering significant combat losses," US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told a meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group in Germany on Friday.
Austin said Moscow is now "turning to its few remaining partners to resupply its tragic and unnecessary invasion, but not even Iran and North Korea admit they are supplying Russia."
"Just compare that to the outpouring of support for a free and sovereign Ukraine represented in this room," Austin told delegates on Friday.
Some background:
Iran has previously denied supplying Russia with weapons for use in Ukraine, stating that it "has not and will not," following claims by Kyiv and US intelligence that Russia is using "drones kamikazes" of Iranian manufacture in their attacks against Ukrainian territory.
Meanwhile, the US has previously accused North Korea of secretly supplying Russia with artillery shells for the Ukraine war by concealing where they are being transported, according to declassified intelligence.
5 hours ago
US will support Ukraine 'as long as it takes', says Austin
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (2nd left) meets with his US counterpart Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (4th left), Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov (5th left) , and the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark A. Milley (third from left), to discuss how to help Ukraine defend itself, at the Ramstein airbase, Germany, on January 20.
(Photo: Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters)
The United States will support Ukraine "for as long as it takes" as Kyiv and the world face a "defining" moment, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Friday.
"This is a defining moment for Ukraine in a defining decade for the world, so make no mistake, we will support Ukraine's self-defense for as long as it takes," Austin said in his opening remarks at a meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group. Defense of Ukraine in Germany.
"Now, we know that Russia is still bent on aggression and conquest. And Russian forces have increased their horrific attacks, killing many innocent Ukrainians. We saw the cruelty of Russia's war choice again just a few days ago in the city of Dnipro," he said.
Austin added that it is "time to dig in" as Russia regroups.
This is a crucial moment.
Russia is regrouping, recruiting and trying to re-equip.
This is not the time to slow down.
It's time to go deeper.
The Ukrainian people are watching us.
The Kremlin watches us.
And history watches us.
So we will not give up on our efforts.
And we will not waver in our determination to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian imperial aggression," she said.
"The United States remains determined to lead and to do our part to help Ukraine defend itself," Austin added.
"Russia's attacks are designed to break the spirit of Ukraine. But they have failed. And the people of Ukraine have inspired the world," he said.
5 hours ago
Moscow-backed eastern Ukrainian leaders claim the Russians captured a small settlement near Bakhmut
By Kostan Nechyporenko
Leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) in eastern Ukraine, supported by Moscow, said Russian troops have taken control of the small settlement of Klishchiivka, southwest of Bakhmut.
Fighting around Bakhmut has been going on for months, but has subsided slightly as Russian forces focused their efforts on the nearby town of Soledar.
If the battle there is in its final phase, it is assumed that the Russians will resume their offensive to take Bakhmut.
In a statement on the Telegram messaging app, they said: "As of January 20, 2023, Russian troops liberated Klishchiivka on the territory of the Donetsk People's Republic."
CNN was unable to verify the claim.
Some background
: Russia is the only country that considers the DPR independent.
The international community does not recognize the region or its institutions, and considers the territory to be part of Ukraine.
Independent watchdog groups have long accused separatists of a dismal human rights record and mistreatment of prisoners.
5 hours ago
Putin Loyalist Raises Nuclear Rhetoric as NATO Partners Push for More Weapons in Ukraine
By Uliana Pavlova
Vladimir Putin (left) toasts with then-Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, in a 2017 image.
Dmitry Medvedev, vice president of Russia's Security Council and a key ally of President Vladimir Putin, warned on Thursday that a Russian defeat in Ukraine could lead to nuclear war.
The former Russian president made the threat in a Telegram message ahead of a key meeting of NATO allies and other nations, where they are expected to make additional pledges of military support for Kyiv.
"The loss of a nuclear power in a conventional war can lead to the outbreak of a nuclear war," Medvedev wrote.
"Nuclear powers do not lose the great conflicts on which their fate depends. This should be obvious to anyone. Even a Western politician who has preserved at least some trace of intelligence."
Medvédev, que fue presidente de Rusia de 2008 a 2012, ha adoptado un tono belicoso durante la invasión de Ucrania por parte de Moscú, planteando repetidamente el espectro de un conflicto nuclear.
El pasado mes de abril, advirtió de la expansión nuclear rusa en caso de que Suecia y Finlandia entraran en la OTAN, y en septiembre dijo que las armas nucleares estratégicas podrían utilizarse para defender territorios incorporados a Rusia desde Ucrania.
Sus declaraciones de este jueves, aunque sin duda destinadas a intimidar a los socios de la OTAN, también parecen ser una rara admisión por parte de un alto funcionario ruso de que el Kremlin podría perder en Ucrania a medida que la vacilante invasión de Moscú se acerca a la marca de los 11 meses.
La retórica nuclear también se produce pocos días después de que Moscú dijera que está planeando aumentar sus fuerzas armadas debido a la "guerra por poderes" que dice que Occidente está librando en Ucrania.
Este viernes, el Grupo de Contacto de Defensa de Ucrania de la OTAN se reunirá en Alemania, en la base aérea estadounidense de Ramstein, bajo los auspicios del Secretario de Defensa estadounidense, Lloyd Austin, para tratar sobre el aumento de la ayuda militar a Ucrania.
El Pentágono anunció este jueves un paquete de medidas de seguridad para Ucrania por valor de US$ 2.500 millones, mientras Estados Unidos y sus aliados europeos debaten si envían armamento cada vez más sofisticado a Kyiv, incluidos misiles de mayor alcance que permitirían a Ucrania alcanzar objetivos situados a una distancia de hasta 200 millas.
Hace 5 horas
Zelensky agradece a EE.UU. el paquete de seguridad de US$ 2.500 millones
Por Angus Watson
El presidente de Ucrania, Volodymyr Zelensky, dio las gracias este viernes al presidente de Estados Unidos, Joe Biden, y al pueblo estadounidense por una nueva promesa de ayuda a la seguridad por valor de US$ 2.500 millones.
El Pentágono anunció el paquete este jueves, incluyendo por primera vez vehículos blindados Stryker y más vehículos de combate Bradley que podrían ser utilizados contra cualquier posible ofensiva rusa en Ucrania esta primavera.
"Gracias @POTUS por proporcionar [a la bandera de Ucrania] otro potente paquete de apoyo a la defensa por valor de 2.500 millones de dólares", escribió Zelensky en Twitter.
"Los IFV Stryker, los APC Bradley adicionales, los sistemas de defensa aérea Avenger son una ayuda importante en nuestra lucha contra el agresor. Gracias al pueblo [de la bandera estadounidense] por su inquebrantable apoyo al liderazgo".
Thank you @POTUS for providing 🇺🇦 with another powerful defense support package worth $2.5 billion. Stryker IFVs, additional Bradley APCs, Avenger air defense systems are important help in our fight against the aggressor. Thank you 🇺🇸 people for unwavering leadership support!
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) January 20, 2023
El paquete, hecho público un día antes de que una coalición internacional se reúna este viernes en Alemania para debatir más ayuda a Ucrania, es el segundo mayor anunciado por Estados Unidos.
Since the start of the war nearly a year ago, the United States has provided $26.7 billion to Ukraine in security aid.
war in ukraine