01/12/2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 03:30 Lambrecht inspects companies with “Marder” tanks +++
Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht wants to visit two Panzergrenadier companies equipped with the “Marder” infantry fighting vehicle, which are part of the NATO spearhead VJTF, in Marienberg, Saxony. The ministry announced that the minister would be given a demonstration of her efficiency and that she wanted to speak to the soldiers. Lambrecht had stopped an obligation to use the more modern infantry fighting vehicle “Puma” due to technical defects. Now two companies of Panzer Grenadier Battalion 371 with their “Marder” tanks are contributing to the rapid reaction force.
+++ 01:20 Selenskyj pleased with the “Leopard” offer +++
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomes Poland’s initiative to provide his country with “Leopard” main battle tanks. “Many thanks to President Duda, the Polish government and all our Polish friends,” says Zelenskyj in his daily video address. Western-made tanks are “the work of our entire anti-war coalition and a new level of our potential.”
+++ 23:41 mercenary group Wagner shows ID cards of missing Britons +++
According to its own account, the notorious Russian mercenary group Wagner found the body of a missing Brit in Ukraine, along with ID and the documents of a second British citizen. On a Telegram channel, which is assigned to the mercenaries, photos of the documents of the two Britons can be seen. The body of one of the men and the ID cards were found in the heavily contested eastern Ukrainian city of Soledar, sources said. There is no information about the fate of the second missing person.
+++ 22:03 Selenskyj: Russian propaganda action at Soledar +++
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Russian side’s announced capture of the heavily contested small town of Soledar in eastern Ukraine is a propaganda maneuver. “The front in the Donetsk region is holding,” says Zelenskyj in his daily video address. “Fighting continues and we are doing everything we can to strengthen Ukraine’s defenses.” Zelenskyy further says: “Now the terrorist state and its propagandists are trying to pretend that part of our city of Soledar – a city that was almost completely destroyed by the invaders – is some kind of property of Russia.” With these claims of supposed success, Russia tried to deceive its population and “support the mobilization”. In addition, the “advocates of aggression” should receive further hope. The Ukrainian general staff had also denied Russian reports about the conquest of Soledar. “Fighting continues,” it said in a statement.
+++ 21:25 talks about the protection zone around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant made more difficult +++
According to the UN nuclear regulatory agency IAEA, the agreement on a protection zone around the Russian-controlled Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is made more difficult by the involvement of the military in the talks. “I don’t think an agreement is impossible, but it’s not an easy negotiation,” IAEA boss Rafael Grossi told Italian TV broadcaster RAI. Talks with representatives of Ukraine and Russia have become more complicated because not only diplomats but also the military are involved. “It has become a longer and more difficult negotiating table,” says Grossi. He wants to return to Ukraine for talks next week and hopes to travel to Moscow later. Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of shelling the facility.
+++ 20:50 Video shows risky rescue of a soldier under fire in Soledar +++
The eastern Ukrainian city of Soledar is currently heavily contested. A drone video now shows spectacular footage of a rescue operation there. According to the Ukrainian news portal “censor.net”, it shows Ukrainian medics rescuing an injured soldier. The place could be verified by “ntv.de” as Soledar. The recording date is not clear. The extent of the destruction suggests it was probably taken after the particularly heavy shelling of the past few weeks.
+++ 20:23 SPD parliamentary group: Don’t let the thread of conversation with Putin break +++
The SPD in the Bundestag continues to rely on diplomatic initiatives to reach a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. “Because we know that wars are not usually ended on the battlefield,” says the draft for a position paper by the largest government faction, which is to be decided at the annual meeting beginning tomorrow, Thursday. “Even if, for understandable reasons, there is no longer any trust in the current Russian leadership, diplomatic talks must remain possible.” That is why the talks between Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin are right and necessary. Diplomatic initiatives should be taken wherever possible, according to the draft, which was available to several media.
+++ 19:55 Russia and Ukraine agree in Turkey on further prisoner exchanges +++
Russia and Ukraine agreed on another prisoner swap in Turkey on Wednesday. Russian human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova said after meeting her Ukrainian colleague Dmytro Lubinets in Ankara that they had agreed to exchange more than 40 prisoners each. Talks are scheduled to continue on Thursday.
+++ 19:21 Kiesewetter: “There is no way around the delivery of ‘Leopard’ battle tanks anymore” +++
CDU foreign politician Roderich Kiesewetter welcomes Poland’s announcement that it intends to supply the Ukraine with a company of Leopard 2 main battle tanks. “Poland is showing once again that it thinks strategically with foresight and is a reliable partner in the rule-based order,” Kiesewetter told the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland”. “That increases the pressure on Germany to finally rethink here,” said Kiesewetter. “In the event of further delays, one must therefore put up with the accusation of failure to provide assistance.” Kiesewetter is pushing for a quick decision. “The sooner the delivery takes place, the sooner we start training alongside the infantry fighting vehicle, the faster Ukraine can win the war and free its territory from Russian occupation and war crimes.” The delivery will protect and save lives. “There is no way around the delivery of ‘Leopard’ main battle tanks anymore.”
You can read earlier developments in the Ukraine war here.