Russian invasionRussian reactions , The outside world's response

 

Shoigu/Russian soldier. TT

   

Russian invasionRussian reactions 

Sjojgu: The West's involvement could lead to escalation  

 

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says Western arms shipments to Ukraine are drawing NATO into the conflict - which could lead to "unpredictable levels of escalation", according to Reuters citing Russian news agency Interfax.  

 

Shojgu claims that the US and its allies are trying to prolong the war as much as possible.  

 

He also says that Russian troops continue to make progress in the battles around Vuhledar and Bachmut. 

 

Russian soldier in Donetsk, January 31. Alexei Alexandrov / AP  

 

The Russian InvasionThe Battles  

Russia is said to have tried to get a new offensive in Donetsk: "Unlikely to succeed"  

 

It is highly likely that Russia tried to launch a new major offensive in Ukraine since early January this year, the British Ministry of Defense states in its latest situation report. The operation's goal is described with "almost certainty" as taking the parts of the Donetsk region still held by Ukraine.  

 

According to the British data, Russian forces have only managed to gain a couple of hundred meters a week - presumably because of the ammunition and manning required for a successful offensive. 

 

"It remains unlikely that Russia will be able to build up the forces needed to significantly influence the outcome of the war in the coming weeks," the ministry writes. 

 

Serhiy Hajdaj. Efrem Lukatsky / AP  

 

The Russian InvasionThe Battles  

Ukraine warns: Russia pours troops into the East  

 

Russia is pouring reinforcements into eastern Ukraine ahead of a possible new offensive. This is what the Ukrainian Luhansk governor Serhiy Hajdaj says, according to Reuters. 

 

- We see more and more Russian reservists being deployed in our direction. We are seeing more equipment being brought in.  

 

He says the ammunition is being used differently than before – it's not round-the-clock shelling anymore. 

 

 - They are slowly starting to save and get ready for a large-scale offensive, according to Hajdaj. 

 

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius during a tank exercise in Germany. Martin Meissner / AP  

 

The Russian invasion. The outside world's response  

Germany gives green light to delivery of 178 Leopard 1s 

 

The German government has approved the delivery of 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine, according to information provided to Der Spiegel. 

 

- Ukraine will receive over 100 Leopard 1 tanks from several European countries, says German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius during a visit to Kyiv on Tuesday.  

 

The announcement means that a significantly larger amount of German tanks than previously promised will be delivered to Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced two weeks ago that they will send 14 of the more modern Leopard 2 tank model. 

 

The German arms company Rheinmetall has already announced that it will deliver 88 Leopard 1 tanks. According to the newspaper's sources, the company Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft has also been given the green light to send 90 tanks.

 

Zelenskyj in Kyiv with EU leaders Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel AP  

 

The Russian invasion. The outside world's response  

The EPP is accused of leaking plans for Zelenskyi's EU visit  

 

Information that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky planned a visit to Brussels was leaked to the media on Monday. Accusations are now directed at the Christian Democratic party group EPP for being behind the leak, write The Guardian and Politico.  

 

Italian media were the first to publish the information, and shortly afterwards the EPP tweeted about the planned visit. The tweet was quickly deleted.  

 

The Guardian writes that the security situation surrounding the Ukrainian president requires that details of the trip be kept secret and within the EU the EPP is now singled out as being behind the leak. 

 

Oleksiy Reznikov Daniel Cole / AP  

 

Russian invasionUkraine's response  

Unclear if the Minister of Defense left: "Holding the line"  

 

Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov was poked this weekend after corruption allegations, but the message was softened on Monday, writes CNN. Now David Arakhamia, who is the party secretary of President Zelenskyi's party, says that no changes are expected this week.  

 

Reznikov himself does not give clear statements but writes on Twitter that he is "holding the line". 

 

"Thank you for all the support, as well as constructive criticism. We draw conclusions. We continue the changes. Even during the war," he writes.