05.02.2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 02:18 Scholz: “Consensus” with Selenskyj on the use of Western weapons only in Ukraine +++
According to Chancellor Olaf Scholz, there is an agreement with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that the weapons supplied from the West may only be used on Ukrainian territory and not on Russian territory. “There is a consensus on that,” Scholz replied to a question from “Bild am Sonntag”. The SPD politician rejects the statement by Russian President Vladimir Putin that German tanks would again threaten Russia with the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks.
+++ 00:10 EU oil embargo against Russia takes hold +++
Oil products from Russia have not been allowed to be imported into the European Union since midnight. The import restriction is based on a sanctions regulation passed by the 27 member states last June. Although it has been in force for some time, a transitional period has applied until now. The import of Russian crude oil into the EU has been largely banned since last December. There is only one exception to the oil products embargo for Croatia.
+++ 22:58 Parts of Odessa have electricity again +++
After the extensive power failure in Odessa, the supply of critical infrastructure has been restored, according to Ukraine. Accordingly, the water and heat supply would be put back into operation, Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko announced. A third of private consumers also have electricity again. In support, 31 high-power generators would be brought into the city.
+++ 22:06 First Leopard tank from Canada is on its way +++
According to the Defense Minister of Canada, Anita Anand, a plane took off from Halifax with a Leopard 2 towards Ukraine today. She shares a video on Twitter showing how a tank is loaded onto an airplane. “Canada stands with the people of Ukraine – and we will continue to provide Ukraine’s armed forces with the equipment they need to win.”
+++ 21:40 General Staff: Russia has recruited female prisoners in Donetsk +++
Russian forces have recruited 50 women from a penal colony, according to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. “In order to replenish their losses, the opponent is trying to involve convicted women in the fighting. During the week, the occupiers recruited about 50 people from the women’s prison colony in Snizhne (the temporarily occupied area of Donetsk Oblast). They are also supposed to go to the territory for training be sent to the Russian Federation”, it says in the General Staff report on Facebook.
+++ 21:18 Ukrainian Ministry of Defense: Moscow uses all its strength to surround Bakhmut +++
Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar stressed that in the past week Russian forces have used all their strength to “break through our defenses and encircle Bakhmut and launch a heavy offensive near Lyman.” However, Maliar adds that Russia’s attempts to encircle the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast have so far failed.
Ukraine’s intelligence service issued a stark warning on February 2 that Russia is redeploying additional assault groups and military equipment to capture Donbass by March. Russian regular forces, along with the Wagner mercenary group, have been attempting to capture Bakhmut for months, while Russia seeks to consolidate its hold over the entire Donetsk Oblast, of which it currently controls half.
+++ 20:40 Report: Ukrainian hackers hack Russian Foreign Ministry briefing on cybersecurity +++
A Video published by the Guildhall site, aims to show the successful operation of Ukrainian hackers who claim to have infiltrated a conference of the Russian Foreign Ministry. Interestingly, according to the Guildhall report, it was a cybersecurity briefing for African nations. “Russia is a terrorist state, and Russia’s war against Ukraine is definitely a colonial war,” the hackers said, which can also be heard on the video.
You can read earlier developments in the Ukraine war here.