[Korrespondent] 23:20 G7 is discussing the imposition of sanctions by February 24 against companies from China, Iran and North Korea due to Russian supplies of components and technologies used for military purposes, writes Bloomberg.
23:18 Reznikov said that today he received his Lithuanian colleague Arvydas Anusauskas on a visit to southern Ukraine: "He was the first of the defense ministers who visited us during a large-scale war back in March last year. Today we met again on the territory of Ukraine and agreed on further steps to defeat a terrorist country."
23:09 Zelensky announced a "strong defense package from the UK" following his visit to London. According to him, they agreed on "a powerful amount of armored vehicles and the supply of long-range weapons, and agreed to start training Ukrainian pilots." "I believe that this is our clear signal - Ukraine and Great Britain - that we are not only going together, but will go all the way to our common victory," the president stressed.
Meanwhile, the media report that Zelensky has arrived in Paris, where Macron and Scholz are waiting for him.
22:59 Zelensky said in an interview with Le Figaro that the Minsk agreements signed in 2015 were a concession to Russia: “I don’t want to offend anyone, but the Minsk agreements, seen as a way to calm the situation, were actually a concession to Russia ... I told Macron and Merkel , and also to Putin, when we were in Normandy, that in this form the Minsk agreements cannot be implemented."
According to the president, there was a “deliberate mistake” in the Minsk agreements that was not eliminated: “They did not include the issue of Crimea. And when I asked the Europeans when we were going to raise this issue, they said that it was not here and not now... I could never talk about Crimea in Normandy. It was a real problem."
Zelensky also said that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are not leaving Bakhmut, since they must hold out until Ukraine receives the necessary weapons. According to him, from a strategic point of view, Bakhmut is not very important, since the Russian Federation completely destroyed the city with artillery, "but if they take Bakhmut, they want to go further, this will give them an advantage. The question is, what will happen after Bakhmut?"
22:22 Portugal will hand over three Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine in March, Prime Minister António Costa said.
22:15 Zelensky showed a video of his visit to the Ukrainian military training base in the UK:
21:43 Zelensky said that Ukraine has no chance of winning in a situation where it has ten infantry fighting vehicles against a hundred Russian ones: "When we have ten NATO infantry fighting vehicles against hundreds of Russian infantry fighting vehicles - what are the chances?" According to him, Ukraine "needs a lot of various weapons, depending on the circumstances on the front line."
"Our priorities are long-range missiles. The Russians must think about how to leave our territory," the president stressed.
20:59 Zelensky in London held an official meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, spoke in Parliament and met with King Charles III at Buckingham Palace. Read more about his visit in Wings for Freedom .
20:55 The Swedish Parliament supported the government's proposal to allocate military assistance to Ukraine in the amount of about $407 million. Kyiv, in particular, will receive anti-tank weapons, demining equipment, Robot 57 light anti-tank weapons and CV 90 infantry fighting vehicles.
20:34 Rishi Sunak noted that the training of Ukrainian fighter pilots is the first step towards providing aircraft to Ukraine, and Britain does not rule out any options for military assistance to Ukraine. Zelensky said he heard from Sunak "a desire to provide fighter jets."
20:10 Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands have announced a joint initiative to send about 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine, some of which may arrive within a few months. However, the opinions of military experts regarding the great benefits of the old Leopard 1 for the Armed Forces of Ukraine were divided. Read more in the article Tanks without armor?
19:52 British Challenger 2 tanks will arrive in Ukraine in March , Rishi Sunak said during a visit with Zelensky to the Lulworth military base in Dorset, where the Ukrainian military is trained to operate these vehicles.
19:46 Zelensky and Rishi Sunak arrived at a military base in the county of Dorset in southern Britain to meet with the Ukrainian military, who are trained by the British army, Sky News reports. They were shown the Challenger 2 tank simulator used for training.
19:31 The Russians fired at the village of Dvurechnaya in the Kupyansky district of the Kharkiv region today, as a result of which two people were killed. In the Chuguevsky district, five people were wounded during the day, Oleg Sinegubov, the head of the OVA, said.
18:50 The first battalion of Leopard 2 tanks can be sent to Ukraine within the first three to four months of 2023, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said: "Our Leopard 2A6 tanks will be in Ukraine at the end of March. Others will be soon after that. Leopard 1A5 tanks "They don't come from our stocks. These are stocks of the defense industry, which are now being purchased and technically prepared for shipment to Ukraine by other countries together with Germany. So we cannot have a direct impact on this process."
18:26 Zelensky met with King Charles III of Great Britain - he became the first president of Ukraine in the history of Ukrainian-British relations, who was hosted by the British monarch.
17:47 Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk held an interdepartmental meeting on preparations for the reintegration of Crimea. Special attention was paid to the issues of personnel training for the Crimea. "The prospect of the de-occupation of Crimea indicates that it is necessary to start training personnel for Crimea right now: law enforcement agencies, justice workers, teachers and other public servants. In the near future, the relevant departments will be instructed to prepare a personnel reserve for Crimea," Vereshchuk stressed.
17:31 Rishi Sunak asked British Defense Minister Ben Wallace to find out what planes London could potentially provide to Ukraine , the office of the British Prime Minister said. Sunak also promised to ensure the defeat of Putin this year.
16:59 Germany handed over another batch of military aid to Ukraine. According to the updated list on the website of the federal government, it included, in particular, two Gepard anti-aircraft self-propelled guns and 6,000 anti-aircraft ammunition. Also, five cars for border guards, six trucks, 29 power generators, etc. were handed over.
16:48 The Russians fired artillery at the center of Kherson today, as a result of which one person was killed, the OVA reported. The enemy struck the children's rehabilitation center for the fourth time.
16:40 Russian aviation fired two missiles at the Semyonov community of the Chernihiv region, the head of the OVA Vyacheslav Chaus said. OK Pivnich clarified that the city of Semyonovka was attacked by two combat aircraft. It is known about one wounded, three people under the rubble.
15:52 Zelensky will visit Paris after London and before Brussels, where he will meet with Macron and Scholz, BFM TV reports.
15:49 Zelensky, during a speech in the British Parliament, handed over to Speaker Lindsey Hoyle a helmet of a Ukrainian pilot with the inscription "We have freedom. Give us wings to protect it." The President of Ukraine recalled the aircraft that are now needed for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He also called for the creation of a special mechanism for the confiscation of Russian assets.
"In Britain, the king is an Air Force pilot, and in Ukraine today every Air Force pilot is a king," Zelensky said in his speech.
Zelensky handed over the helmet of the Ukrainian pilot to the British and asked to provide aircraft to Kyiv
15:28 Investigators of the crash of flight MH17 believe that Putin personally could give permission to send the Buk air defense system to Ukraine. Experts refer to recordings of conversations between Russian officials in early June 2014 - they discussed providing support to the LDNR militants and said that everything was in the hands of the President of the Russian Federation.
14:56 Scholz, during a speech in the Bundestag, criticized the "public competition" between some countries in who will supply more of the best weapons to Ukraine: "We maintain and strengthen cohesion, first preparing decisions confidentially - and only then reporting them ... What harms our unity, is it a public competition to outdo each other on the principle: battle tanks, submarines, aircraft - who is greater?"
According to the chancellor, Germany does not intend to transfer military aircraft and submarines to Ukraine.
14:37 The court sentenced a resident of Kiev to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property, who corrected attacks on the capital from Gradov and Tornadoes. It was on his "tip" that in March last year, the Russians fired on one of the districts of the capital, as a result of which two people were killed and four more were injured, the SBU reported.
14:15 The number of wounded as a result of the shelling of the Chuguevsky district of the Kharkiv region has increased to five people, in Volchansk - up to two people, the head of the OVA Oleg Sinegubov said.
13:43 The Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada for Human Rights Dmitry Lubinets announced that he was leaving the European Ombudsman Institute after one of the members of the organization illegally took two Ukrainian children from Austria to Russia who were in the country due to the Russian invasion. The Ombudsman said that this was done by Dr. Josef Siegele, Secretary General of the ESI, board member of the organization and Deputy Ombudsman of Tyrol. Austrian authorities launched an official investigation into his actions.
Lubinets stressed that Siegele's actions are a violation of the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, and the forced transfer of children in this case is one of the signs of genocide. At the same time, the organization itself does not respond to Lubinets' requests, and does not conduct an internal investigation.
13:35 Britain announced new sanctions against Russia: 15 individuals and legal entities are included in the lists, including Rostekhkomplekt, Oboronlogistics and the Universalmash plant.
13:29 Zelensky will pay an official visit to Brussels on Thursday, February 9, Reuters reports. The President will address the European Parliament and hold a series of meetings with EU leaders.
13:04 The Russian Foreign Ministry said that US actions against Russia "are fraught with a real danger of a direct military clash between the two nuclear powers."
13:02 Rishi Sunak posted a photo with Zelensky, whom he met at the London airport:
12:46 Zelensky will meet with King Charles III at Buckingham Palace, reports The Guardian. According to the publication, the C-17 aircraft of the Royal Air Force, carrying Zelensky, has already landed at Stansted Airport (London).
12:34 Russians fired today with. Varvarovka, Chuguevsky district, Kharkiv region, as a result of which two people were injured. Another person - an employee of the regional energy company - was wounded in Volchansk, Oleg Sinegubov, head of the OVA, said.
12:19 NSDC Secretary Alexei Danilov said in an interview with Reuters that Russia is preparing an offensive in the Kharkiv and Zaporozhye regions. According to him, the Russian troops are already probing the Ukrainian defense in the Zaporozhye region. Ukraine is preparing for a Russian offensive, but much depends on Western supplies, Danilov stressed.
11:55 Rishi Sunak, during Zelensky's visit to London, may offer to transfer long-range weapons to Ukraine in order to "prevent Russia from constantly striking Ukraine's civilian and critical infrastructure," SkyNews reports.
11:32 Ukroboronprom has agreed with the Czech manufacturer of military equipment VOP CZ on the joint production, repair and development of armored vehicles, as well as the creation of supply chains for parts and products.
10:58 The UK will expand the training of Ukrainian fighter pilots and marines, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's office said. The statement said the training will allow pilots to fly modern NATO-standard fighter jets in the future. In addition, London promises to speed up the delivery of military equipment.
Also , the office of the British Prime Minister confirmed Zelensky's visit to the UK , calling it "a testament to the courage, determination and struggle of his country, as well as evidence of the unbreakable friendship between our two countries."
10:53 On February 8, electricity consumption in Ukraine increased due to lower temperatures, while production also increased slightly. The power deficit persists, most of all in the evening hours, Ukrenergo reported. In Odessa and nearby areas, emergency shutdowns are applied.
Consumption limits have been brought to all regions, except Zaporozhye, Donetsk and Mykolaiv, where it was planned to measure actual consumption. However, due to damage to the water supply as a result of Russian shelling, measurements in the Nikolaev region will not be carried out yet, restrictions in the region are not applied.
10:38 Zelensky will arrive in the UK today, where he will meet with Rishi Sunak, Sky News reports, citing the office of the British Prime Minister. The Telegraph writes that the Ukrainian president will address the British Parliament on February 8 before a trip to Brussels.
10:19 The commander of the "People's Militia of the LNR" Igor Mangushev (call sign Bereg) has died after being shot in the head a few days ago, Russian media report. The propagandist, who once performed on stage, allegedly holding the skull of a defender from Azov, was shot by his own people, write local publics. Recently, he has collaborated with Prigogine.
09:36 In the Lugansk region, the maximum escalation in the Kremenskoye direction, said the head of the OVA Serhiy Gaidai: "If we take the Svatovsko-Kremenskoye direction and Belogorivka, then in the Kremenskoye direction now there is a maximum escalation, the maximum number of attacks and attempts to break through the defense forces. Almost daily attacks in small groups up to a platoon, but in constant waves. Sometimes with the support of heavy equipment - armored personnel carriers, tanks. And constant shelling." In Belogorovka, according to him, there are also constant shelling and unsuccessful attempts by the Russians to attack.
09:10 British intelligence writes that since Russia withdrew its troops from the western bank of the Dnieper in November, hostilities and reconnaissance have continued on the complex network of islands and waterways that make up the Dnieper Delta. Russian forces are using small boats to maintain a presence on key islands. Ukraine has successfully used long-range artillery several times to neutralize Russian outposts.
Analysts suggest that both sides have also deployed small groups on the Kinburn Spit and are seeking to maintain a presence in these areas in order to control sea access to the strategically important river and warn of any enemy attempts to launch a major offensive across the river. At the same time, intelligence considers it extremely unlikely that Russia will try to force the Dnieper by storm: most likely, it will be extremely difficult and expensive.
09:02 The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) notes that the Russian military command is in a hurry to launch a large-scale offensive operation to capture the Donetsk region in an unrealistic time frame and, probably, without sufficient combat power.
08:49 Biden, in his annual message to Congress, called Russia's war against Ukraine the biggest test for the world. "We united NATO and built a global coalition. We stood against Putin's aggression. We stand with the people of Ukraine. We will stand with the Ukrainians for as long as it takes," the US president said.
08:35 Late in the evening on February 7, the Russians launched a missile attack on the center of Kharkov. Four missiles, previously S-300, hit a civilian industry facility, Oleg Sinenubov, head of the OVA, said. Buildings were destroyed, there was a large-scale fire. Ground strikes were also recorded in Central Park. People were not hurt.
Also during the day, the enemy massively shelled Volchansk, Kupyansk, Dvurechnaya, Strelechye, Veterinary and other settlements close to the collision line in the Chuguevsky, Kupyansky and Kharkov regions. In Volchansk, one person died, a 16-year-old child was injured. Also, the city hospital of Volchansk received repeated damage as a result of shelling, a fire broke out. One of the fragments hit the ambulance, which was carrying a patient, there were no injuries.
08:32 The General Staff announced the approximate losses of the enemy as of the morning of February 8.
- personnel - about 134,100 (+910) people liquidated,
- tanks - 3253 (+8),
- armored fighting vehicles - 6458 (+15),
- artillery systems - 2236 (+4),
- MLRS - 461 (+0),
- air defense systems - 228 (+1),
- aircraft - 295 (+1),
- helicopters - 285 (+1),
- UAV operational-tactical level - 1961 (+3),
- cruise missiles - 796 (+0),
- ships/boats - 18 (+0),
- automotive equipment and tankers - 5112 (+5),
- special equipment - 211 (+3).
08:25 The enemy is concentrating its main efforts on conducting offensive operations in the Kupyansky, Limansky, Bakhmutsky, Avdeevsky and Novopavlovsky directions in the areas of Kremennaya, Bakhmut, Avdeevka, Experienced, Marinka and Vugledar. It suffers significant losses, especially in manpower, the General Staff said in the morning summary .
Over the past day, units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine repelled the attacks of the invaders in the areas of the settlements of Novoselovskoe, Chervonopopovka, Shipylovka and Belogorovka of the Luhansk region and Verkhnekamenskoe, Fedorovka, Orekhovo-Vasilyevka, Dubovo-Vasilyevka, Spornoye, Vyemka, Bakhmut, Krasnaya Gora, Chasov Yar, Kamenka, Vodyane, Pervomaiskoye, Krasnogorovka, Avdeevka, Maryinka and Bogoyavlenka of Donetsk region.
03:26 Russia convened on Wednesday, February 8, a regular meeting of the UN Security Council on Ukraine. Roger Waters, one of the founders of the Pink Floyd group, is to act as a speaker at it, Russian media write. Earlier, he wrote a letter to Elena Zelenskaya, urging her to ask her husband to choose "another path" and criticizing the West for supplying weapons to Ukraine. After that, his concert was canceled in Poland.
00:57 Despite the war, active personnel changes continue in Ukraine. Thus, the parliament appointed a new minister of internal affairs and head of the SBU. True, Igor Klimenko and Vasily Malyuk already performed their respective duties. About what is known about them - in the material New-old security forces .