A top Biden administration official said a deal struck by the new Republican House majority to cap 2024 spending would not imperil aid to Ukraine that was part of a government funding bill enacted in December.
(Bloomberg) — A top Biden administration official said a deal struck by the new Republican House majority to cap 2024 spending would not imperil aid to Ukraine that was part of a government funding bill enacted in December.
The UK government is considering sending Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine, a move that would mark the first time a Western country would provide Ukraine with NATO-standard main battle tanks to fight Russian forces.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his country has been among the most generous in supplying Ukraine with financial aid and weapons and vowed that “we’ll keep doing this as long as it will be needed.”
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine is sending reinforcements to two front-line towns in the Donetsk region that he said have seen some of the bloodiest fighting since Russia’s invasion.
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Key Developments
- UK Considers Sending Battle Tanks to Ukraine, Officials Say
- Commodity Ship Heads for Inspection After Suez Canal Mishap
- Russia’s Oil Output Stable After Western Price Cap Takes Effect
- Estonia to Move Ahead of EU With Plans to Seize Russian Assets
On the Ground
Russian troops began a powerful assault on Soledar in the Donetsk region after suffering heavy losses in a previously unsuccessful attempt to capture the city, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said on Telegram, citing Minister Hanna Malyar. Moscow’s forces shelled a market and residential areas in the Sumy, Kharkiv and Kherson regions, killing at least two people, injuring others and damaging at least 100 buildings, Ukrainian authorities said. Moscow’s forces also carried out seven missile and 31 air strikes, as well as 73 multiple rocket launcher attacks over the past day, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Facebook.
(All times CET)
Scholz Says He’ll Keep Talking to Putin (6:42 p.m.)
Scholz, the German chancellor, said he’ll keep talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine — with the purpose of hammering home the message that Germany and Europe will never accept that Russia is trying to change borders in Europe through military force.
Saying Germany has become one of the most generous countries supplying Ukraine with financial aid as well as weapons, Scholz won applause from fellow Social Democrats at a campaign event by vowing that “we’ll keep doing this as long as it will be needed.”
The chancellor added that Germany would continue to work closely with allies like the US on any future weapon deliveries for Ukraine, saying that there won’t be any German go-it-alone moves.
Jake Sullivan Says Ukraine Aid Secure Despite McCarthy Deal (5:50 p.m.)
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the $47 billion in new aid for Ukraine approved in the $1.7 trillion government funding bill last month won’t be at risk. His comments followed a deal struck by new House Leader Kevin McCarthy with GOP hard-liners to cap 2024 spending in a move that could potentially include efforts to cut defense spending.
“That is money that has been appropriated,” Sullivan said. “I do not see that money getting taken away from us and therefore our ability to have the resources to support Ukraine, with both the security assistance it needs, as well as the economic humanitarian and energy assistance its needs.”
Estonia to Move Ahead of EU With Plans to Seize Russian Assets (5:58 p.m.)
Estonia plans to introduce a legal blueprint for seizing Russian assets this month as the Baltic nation moves ahead with a bid to deliver funds frozen under European Union sanctions to Ukraine.
The legal framework will come by the end of January as the European Commission develops a bloc-wide arrangement to deal with €300 billion ($322 billion) in Russian central-bank reserves and billions more in frozen assets of sanctioned Russian individuals.
UK Mulls Sending Battle Tanks to Ukraine (2:50 p.m.)
If it goes ahead, the move would be the first time a Western country has provided Ukraine with modern battle tanks to fight Russian forces. No final decision has been taken, the people said. Neither wished to not be identified because of the sensitivity of the discussions.
The Challenger 2 is a main battle tank designed to destroy other tanks, according to the UK’s Ministry of Defence website.
Scholz Ally Sees No Limits on Arming Ukraine (1:57 p.m.)
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition government will continue to send heavy weapons to Ukraine to help it fight back against Russia’s invasion.
Lars Klingbeil, the co-leader of Scholz’s ruling Social Democrats, told reporters in Berlin that his party is backing the chancellor’s course without limit, including Scholz’s latest decision — in tandem with the US — to supply Ukraine with armored infantry fighting vehicles and an additional Patriot air-defense system.
Scholz has won praise from his domestic allies for pledging to send 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, but some of his coalition partners have called on him to go further by giving Kyiv NATO-grade Leopard 2 battle tanks.
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