UNCATEGORIZED

https://www.politico.eu/article/worlds-cartoonists-on-this-weeks-events-73/

While welcomed in Kyiv, Germany’s volte-face has come much later than the Ukrainians had hoped | Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images Western battle tanks could be a game changer, but only if there is proper training and if they arrive soon. What a difference a war makes.  The Ukrainians’ months-long campaign to secure German-made Leopard 2 tanks and American-made M1 Abrams attests to how battle tanks are once again being identified as key ground components in combined-arms warfare. Only two years ago, countries like the U.K. were debating whether they should do without tanks altogether given the advances of drones and cyber warfare.  Ukrainian officials say that…

https://youtu.be/Tif3cpq51aw?t=3 General Patton once said: "I don’t want to get any messages saying, “I am holding my position.” We are not holding a Goddamned thing. Let the Enemy do that. We are advancing constantly and we are not interested in holding onto anything, except the enemy’s balls. We are going to twist his balls and kick the living shit out of him all of the time. Our basic plan of operation is to advance and to keep on advancing regardless of whether we have to go over, under, or through the enemy".

Ukraine’s breakthrough in securing heavy tanks from the U.S. and Germany has ignited talk about sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine to defend the nation’s skies. The government of Ukraine quickly renewed its calls for world-class fighter jets after it secured the victory on tanks, arguing it needed the help to defend itself against Russia. Shortly after the U.S. announcement on tanks, Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense secretary, told The Hill that Kyiv would do everything possible to secure the fighter jets. And Dymytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs, tweeted Wednesday morning that Ukraine has “new tasks ahead,” naming western…

Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Medvedev gives an interview outside MoscowPutin warned NATO on Thursday that a defeat of Russia in Ukraine could trigger a nuclear war, while the head of the Russian Orthodox Church said the world would end if the West tried to destroy Russia. Such apocalyptic rhetoric is intended to deter the U.S.-led NATO military alliance from getting even more involved in the war, on the eve of a meeting of Ukraine's allies to discuss sending Kyiv more weapons. But the explicit recognition that Russia might lose on the battlefield marked a rare moment of public…

Speaking at the Ramstein meeting, President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed convening a new meeting to discuss sending long-range missiles and F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. This is reported with reference to Sky News. According to the head of state, this will be a step forward compared to the military aid that the allies are providing now.

Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister said Thursday that Kyiv will pursue adoption of a resolution in the U.N. General Assembly that would enshrine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s 10-point peace formula. “The Ukrainian leadership decided that the priority number one that will be considered in February is the resolution dedicated to the peace formula,” Emine Dzhaparova told reporters at the United Nations, where she attended a Security Council meeting on the rule of law. February 24 marks one year since President Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At the Group of 20 Summit in November, Zelenskyy addressed the meeting by video…

https://youtu.be/x9DqLu3OvkA?t=2219

The French government is working on an option with a possible shipment of AMX-56 Leclerc main battle tanks to Ukraine. Politico reports this with reference to an unnamed representative of the French authorities, Censor.NET informs with reference to Interfax-Ukraine. "This is a difficult issue, and it has not yet been resolved in Paris. But we are thinking about it," the source said. He noted that the situation could be clarified by a joint meeting of the Cabinets of France and Germany scheduled for Sunday. Earlier, the Elysee Palace announced that French President Emmanuel Macron promised to supply Kyiv with "French-made…