01/15/2023 09:45 (act. 01/15/2023 09:50)
Russia practices war and terror ©APA/AFP
After the new Russian rocket attacks on Ukraine with dead and wounded in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the leadership of the attacked country demanded more weapons from the West. Terrorism can be stopped with Western weapons, which the Ukrainian army is waiting for, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video message on Saturday. After the attack on an apartment block in Dnipro, authorities now speak of 20 dead.
On Sunday morning, 73 injured people were rescued from the rubble of the partially collapsed skyscraper – including 14 children, Ukrainian civil defense said on Telegram. A 15-year-old girl was also among the dead. The search for around 30 missing people continues.
According to official figures, more than 230 apartments in the building were damaged, with 72 apartments completely destroyed in Saturday’s attack. About 3,450 tons of rubble and 39 damaged cars were removed from the site. Psychologists work with people, volunteers help those affected to warm up and eat.
The presidential administration in Kyiv released photos of the crumbling building. The head of the presidential office Andriy Yermak was shocked: “Russians are terrorists who will be punished for everything. Everyone – without exception.” He said the anti-aircraft and air force were doing their job. “Let’s fight back.” The enemy does not change tactics and continues to attack civilian infrastructure.
In his video speech, Zelenskyy thanked Britain, which wants to be the first country to deliver Western main battle tanks to Ukraine. This is a signal to Ukraine’s other partners to do the same. Britain plans to supply Ukraine with 14 Challenger 2 main battle tanks in the coming weeks to ward off Russian attackers.
Until now, Ukraine has not received any Western-style main battle tanks, only Soviet models from the stockpiles of Eastern European NATO countries. Kyiv has long demanded the delivery of the German Leopard 2 tank, which is technically superior to Russian tanks. Poland and Finland agreed to supply Leopard tanks as part of the European alliance. The German federal government has not yet taken a position on this.
On Friday next week, defense ministers from Ukraine’s western allies will discuss more military support for the country at the US air base at Ramstein in Rhineland-Palatinate. Before the negotiations, the Ukrainian ambassador Oleksii Makeiev asked the German government to quickly deliver Leopard 2 tanks to his country. “German weapons, German tanks are essential for survival,” he said in an interview with dpa. “We have very little time to discuss. And we hope our allies understand this and act accordingly.”
However, the German armaments group Rheinmetall pointed out that the delivery of repaired Leopard main battle tanks from their stockpiles would take time. “Even if the decision is taken tomorrow that we can send our Leopard tanks to Kyiv, the delivery will take place by the beginning of next year”, said CEO Armin Papperger of “Bild am Sonntag”. Rheinmetall has 22 Leopard 2 vehicles and 88 of the older Leopard 1 model.