The German government will deliver another Patriot air defense system to Ukraine. The situation on the front is getting worse, says a Ukrainian commander.
The Patriot air defense system in Bavaria 2023 Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa
Germany supplies Ukraine with another Patriot air defense system
Germany will supply Ukraine with another Patriot air defense system. As the Federal Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday, the decision was made “due to the new increase in Russian airstrikes” against the country. The delivery of Bundeswehr stocks will begin “immediately.” So far, Germany has delivered two Patriot systems to Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj thanks Chancellor Olaf Scholz for the delivery of an additional Patriot missile defense system. He also welcomes the provision of additional air defense missiles and explains via Telegram that this occurs at a “critical moment.”
“Russian terrorism against Ukrainian cities and the country's infrastructure is causing immeasurable suffering,” said Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD). “It endangers the population's energy supply and destroys industrial facilities that are important for the operational readiness of the Ukrainian armed forces.” Germany is therefore “going as far as we can to support Ukraine with a view to our own operational readiness.”
Patriot is designed to combat larger aerial targets, such as aircraft, drones, rockets and cruise missiles. A system, also called a fire unit, consists of a radar system and several defensive missile launchers. Patriot can track up to 50 incoming targets and attack five objects simultaneously. According to the Bundeswehr, the range is about 68 kilometers.
The ministry explained that the delivery of the additional system was “possible through returns of scheduled repairs.” “All our alliance obligations can be met with the systems available in Germany,” but at the same time “all necessary measures will be taken immediately to accelerate replacement and new acquisitions.” (afp/rtr)
Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine: the situation on the front is getting worse
The Ukrainian military says it has found itself in a difficult situation when it comes to defending itself from the Russian war of aggression. “The situation on the Eastern Front has deteriorated significantly in recent days,” Commander-in-Chief Olexander Syrskyj wrote on Telegram on Saturday. This is due to increased offensive efforts by Russian troops after the presidential elections in Russia, he stated. In his opinion, the situation around the cities of Lyman, Bakhmut and Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region is especially delicate. Especially in Pokrovsk, west of the town of Avdiivka, which was captured by the Russians at the beginning of the year, the Russian army is trying to break through the defense lines using dozens of tanks.
Syrskyj called for the Ukrainian army to be armed with high-tech weapons, such as drones. Only with technological innovations will it be possible to offset the numerical preponderance of the Russian attackers. kyiv has been asking the West for greater support for months. The lack of ammunition and weapons has left Ukrainians increasingly on the defensive.
Ukrainian media recently reported that Russian troops had taken the town of Bohdanivka west of Bakhmut. kyiv has not officially recognized the loss of the city. Russian troops have advanced to the northern edge of the settlement and there is intense fighting. The General Staff in kyiv said Bohdanivka was under Ukrainian control.
But Mykhailo Podoljak, advisor to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, also spoke about serious problems in an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian. According to him, the destruction of Ukrainian infrastructure by Russian drone and missile attacks is due to the fact that the air defense system is overloaded. There is a significant deficit, especially when it comes to ammunition for the Patriot and Iris-T systems, he admitted. (dpa)
Ukraine builds new nuclear reactors in the middle of war
Amid the ongoing bombing of its energy facilities, Ukraine has begun building two more nuclear reactors in the west of the country. The Interfax-Ukraina news agency reported on Saturday that the foundation stone for reactor units 5 and 6 of the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant was laid in the presence of Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko and the US ambassador to kyiv. Bridget Brink. The ceremony is said to have taken place on Thursday, but was not announced until now for security reasons.
Unlike other types of power plants, Russia has so far prevented nuclear facilities from being targeted by drone and missile attacks, also aware that this could lead to a nuclear catastrophe that is difficult to calculate in terms of magnitude.
The blocks are built in collaboration with the American nuclear energy company Westinghouse Electric Company. These are pressurized water reactors of the AP 1000 type with a useful life of at least 60 years, according to the company. “This is a more modern and safer technology than what we use now,” said Petro Kotin, acting CEO of Ukrainian nuclear power operator Enerhoatom. He hailed this as a step towards a new, secure and reliable energy supply.
The construction time of a reactor is estimated at four or five years and its cost at around five billion dollars.
The new reactors do not represent a quick solution to Ukraine's energy supply problems: Russia, which launched a war of aggression against Ukraine more than two years ago, systematically bombs energy supply facilities in the country. More recently, it specifically attacked thermal and hydroelectric power plants with its missiles: the Ukrainian air defense system is overloaded due to the large number of attacks. (dpa)