Ukraine must accept 'new territorial realities' to negotiate, Putin tells Turkey's Erdogan
4 min agoGermany will send Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine, official says From CNN's Fred Pleitgen and Chris SternEmily Margarethe Haber is pictured in Boston on October 31, 2019. (Britta Pedersen/picture alliance/Getty Images)Germany will provide Ukraine with Marder infantry fighting vehicles and an additional Patriot air defense battery, German ambassador to the US Emily Haber said on Thursday. “Germany will provide Marder infantry fighting vehicles to #Ukraine️. We’ll also join the U.S. in supplying an additional Patriot air defense battery,” she wrote on Twitter. The Marder is an infantry fighting vehicle used by the German military since the early 1970s but continuously upgraded. While the German military is in the process of phasing the vehicle out, hundreds are still in service. An infantry fighting vehicle is a heavily armed armored vehicle used to move soldiers around the battlefield. It’s usually deployed together with main battle tanks. German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck on Thursday hailed his government’s “logical” decision to send more military aid to Ukraine. "This is a good decision. Since the beginning of the war, we have increasingly expanded our support in cooperation with our partners. It is logical that we also take this step. Ukraine has the right to defend itself against the Russian attack, and we have a duty to help it do so,” he said.6 hr 56 min agoUS considering training Ukrainian forces on Patriot missile system in the US, Pentagon saysFrom CNN's Haley Britzky, Michael Conte and Oren LiebermannThe United States is considering bringing Ukrainians to the US to train on the Patriot missile system and training overseas “or a combination of both,” according to a Defense Department spokesperson.“I think clearly we’re at a point in this battle where we’re going to be able to provide that kind of training to enable Ukraine to sustain those kind of systems so that they can focus on defending their country and taking back territory,” Pentagon press secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a press briefing.The US announced last month that it is providing a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine "capable of bringing down cruise missiles, short-range ballistic missiles, and aircraft at a significantly higher ceiling than previously provided air defense systems," according to a State Department spokesperson.7 hr 4 min agoKyiv dismisses Putin's call for 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine as "hypocrisy"From CNN's Anna Chernova, Sebastian Shukla, Yulia Kesaieva and Tara JohnRussian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his defense minister to implement a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine for 36 hours this week to allow Orthodox Christians to attend Christmas services, according to a Kremlin statement Thursday. But the proposal was swiftly dismissed as “hypocrisy” by Ukrainian officials.Putin’s order came after the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, called for a ceasefire between Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, when many Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas.But Ukrainian officials voiced skepticism about the temporary ceasefire, saying Moscow just wanted a pause to gather reserves, equipment and ammunition.During his nightly address on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia aims to use Orthodox Christmas “as a cover” to resupply and stop Ukrainian advances in the eastern Donbas region.“What will this accomplish? Only another increase in the casualty count,” he added.Serhiy Haidai, head of the Luhansk regional military administration, told Ukrainian television: “Regarding this truce – they just want to get some kind of a pause for a day or two, to pull even more reserves, bring some more ammo.”“Russia cannot be trusted. Not a single word they say,” Haidai added.Read more here.6 hr 46 min agoUS to send Bradley vehicles to Ukraine as part of new aid packageFrom CNN's Kevin LiptakThe United States will supply Ukraine with Bradley fighting vehicles as part of a new security assistance package to the country as it nears the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion.The nearly $3 billion package is among the largest packages of military equipment sent from the Pentagon to Ukraine since the war began. It comes as Ukraine prepares for intensive fighting in the spring as the weather warms.US President Joe Biden affirmed the new commitment in a telephone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday. Germany will also send Ukraine new fighting vehicles, along with a Patriot missile battery to protect against Russian air attacks.The new security package comes as Russia intensifies its attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who visited the White House last month, has called for additional assistance from Western nations to protect against Russian aggression. He said the support was not “charity” but “an investment in the global security and democracy.”Read more here.3 hr 39 min agoPutin te
Landwebs
Germany will send Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine, official says
From CNN's Fred Pleitgen and Chris Stern
Germany will provide Ukraine with Marder infantry fighting vehicles and an additional Patriot air defense battery, German ambassador to the US Emily Haber said on Thursday.
“Germany will provide Marder infantry fighting vehicles to #Ukraine️. We’ll also join the U.S. in supplying an additional Patriot air defense battery,” she wrote on Twitter.
The Marder is an infantry fighting vehicle used by the German military since the early 1970s but continuously upgraded. While the German military is in the process of phasing the vehicle out, hundreds are still in service.
An infantry fighting vehicle is a heavily armed armored vehicle used to move soldiers around the battlefield. It’s usually deployed together with main battle tanks.
German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck on Thursday hailed his government’s “logical” decision to send more military aid to Ukraine.
"This is a good decision. Since the beginning of the war, we have increasingly expanded our support in cooperation with our partners. It is logical that we also take this step. Ukraine has the right to defend itself against the Russian attack, and we have a duty to help it do so,” he said.
US considering training Ukrainian forces on Patriot missile system in the US, Pentagon says
From CNN's Haley Britzky, Michael Conte and Oren Liebermann
The United States is considering bringing Ukrainians to the US to train on the Patriot missile system and training overseas “or a combination of both,” according to a Defense Department spokesperson.
“I think clearly we’re at a point in this battle where we’re going to be able to provide that kind of training to enable Ukraine to sustain those kind of systems so that they can focus on defending their country and taking back territory,” Pentagon press secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a press briefing.
The US announced last month that it is providing a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine "capable of bringing down cruise missiles, short-range ballistic missiles, and aircraft at a significantly higher ceiling than previously provided air defense systems," according to a State Department spokesperson.
Kyiv dismisses Putin's call for 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine as "hypocrisy"
From CNN's Anna Chernova, Sebastian Shukla, Yulia Kesaieva and Tara John
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his defense minister to implement a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine for 36 hours this week to allow Orthodox Christians to attend Christmas services, according to a Kremlin statement Thursday. But the proposal was swiftly dismissed as “hypocrisy” by Ukrainian officials.
Putin’s order came after the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, called for a ceasefire between Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, when many Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas.
But Ukrainian officials voiced skepticism about the temporary ceasefire, saying Moscow just wanted a pause to gather reserves, equipment and ammunition.
During his nightly address on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia aims to use Orthodox Christmas “as a cover” to resupply and stop Ukrainian advances in the eastern Donbas region.
“What will this accomplish? Only another increase in the casualty count,” he added.
Serhiy Haidai, head of the Luhansk regional military administration, told Ukrainian television: “Regarding this truce – they just want to get some kind of a pause for a day or two, to pull even more reserves, bring some more ammo.”
“Russia cannot be trusted. Not a single word they say,” Haidai added.
Read more here.
US to send Bradley vehicles to Ukraine as part of new aid package
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
The United States will supply Ukraine with Bradley fighting vehicles as part of a new security assistance package to the country as it nears the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
The nearly $3 billion package is among the largest packages of military equipment sent from the Pentagon to Ukraine since the war began. It comes as Ukraine prepares for intensive fighting in the spring as the weather warms.
US President Joe Biden affirmed the new commitment in a telephone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday. Germany will also send Ukraine new fighting vehicles, along with a Patriot missile battery to protect against Russian air attacks.
The new security package comes as Russia intensifies its attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who visited the White House last month, has called for additional assistance from Western nations to protect against Russian aggression. He said the support was not “charity” but “an investment in the global security and democracy.”
Read more here.
Putin tells Turkey's Erdogan that Ukraine must accept "new territorial realities" to negotiate
From CNN's Uliana Pavlova and Ipek Yezdani
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who positioned himself as a broker in the Russia-Ukraine conflict throughout 2022, held separate phone calls Thursday with both President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He told Zelensky that Turkey was ready to undertake a mediator and facilitator role for lasting peace between Russia and Ukraine and that it could provide diplomatic efforts regarding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, a Turkish government readout of the call said.
In his call with Putin, Erdogan told the Russian leader that calls for peace and negotiations should be supported by a unilateral declaration of ceasefire and a vision of “a fair solution.”
Putin, however, told Erdogan that Moscow is open to "serious dialogue," but Kyiv must accept the “new territorial realities,” according to a Kremlin statement.
“In light of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's readiness for Turkish mediation for a political settlement of the conflict, Vladimir Putin reaffirmed Russia’s openness to serious dialogue, provided that the Kyiv authorities comply with the well-known and repeatedly voiced demands and take into account new territorial realities,” the Kremlin said following a phone call between the two leaders on Thursday.
Putin also emphasized “the destructive role of the West, pumping Ukraine with weapons and providing it with target designation,” the Kremlin said.
The readout also mentioned that the two leaders discussed expanding ties in the energy sector and Putin also asked to lift barriers on Russian exports as part of the Black Sea grain deal.
What Zelensky says: Later on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he and Erdogan “discussed security cooperation” between their two countries and “nuclear safety issues, in particular the situation at ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station).”
“There should be no invaders there. We also talked about the exchange of prisoners of war with Turkish mediation, the development of the grain agreement. We appreciate Türkiye's willingness to take part in the implementation of our Peace Formula,” Zelensky said on Telegram, following a phone call between the two leaders.
