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The speaker of Russia’s parliament has warned that any country that supplies Ukraine with more powerful weapons could kill itself.
Ukraine’s backers on Friday pledged billions of pounds in military aid to the country, including armored vehicles, air defense systems and other equipment, but not the main battle tanks that Kyiv has requested.
“The supply of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime will lead to a global catastrophe,” said Vyacheslav Volodin, chairman of the State Duma.
“If the weapons provided by Washington and NATO can be used to strike peaceful cities and try to seize our territory as they threaten, it will trigger retaliation with even more powerful weapons.”
Friday’s pledge was overshadowed by defense leaders’ failure to agree on Ukraine’s urgent request for a German-made Leopard 2 main battle tank at an international conference in Ramstein, Germany.
Germany, one of the major arms donors to Ukraine, ordered a review of its Leopard 2 stockpile in preparation for a possible green light for approval.
Still, the Berlin government has shown caution at every step in increasing its commitment to Ukraine, a hesitation seen as rooted in its history and political culture.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he would not rule out sending Leclerc main battle tanks to Ukraine and had asked his defense minister to “study” the idea.
Mr Macron spoke at a news conference in Paris with German Chancellor Olaf Schulz as their countries commemorated the 60th anniversary of their post-World War II friendship treaty. In a joint statement, France and Germany pledged “unwavering support” for Ukraine.
France will make tank decisions based on three criteria, Mr Macron said: sharing equipment will not lead to escalation of the conflict, it will provide effective and feasible assistance taking into account training time and it will not weaken France’s own army.
Mr Scholz did not respond when asked about the Leopard 2 tank on Sunday, but stressed that his country had already made considerable military contributions to Ukraine.
“The United States has done a lot, and Germany has done a lot,” he said. “We’re constantly expanding our delivery to use very effective weapons that are already available today. We’ve been coordinating all of these decisions closely with our valued allies and friends.”
Germany’s indecision has drawn harsh criticism, especially from Poland and the Baltic states, which are on NATO’s eastern flank that used to be controlled by Moscow and are particularly threatened by Russia’s new territorial ambitions.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Poland was ready to form a coalition of states and would send their tanks anyway if Germany did not agree to transfer the Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
“Almost a year has passed since the war broke out,” Mr Morawiecki said in an interview published Sunday by Polish state news agency PAP.
“Evidence of war crimes committed by Russian troops can be seen on TV and YouTube. Does Germany still need to open its eyes and start acting on Germany’s potential?
“Above all, Berlin should not weaken or disrupt the activities of other countries.”
In Washington, two leading lawmakers on Sunday urged the United States to send some of its Abrams tanks to Ukraine to overcome Germany’s reluctance to share its own, more suitable Leopard 2 tanks.
“If we announced that we were only offering one Abrams tank, that would Unleash” tank traffic from Germany.
“I’ve heard that Germany is waiting for us to take the lead.”
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, said the meeting in Ramstein “has no doubt that our enemies will try to exhaust us or better yet destroy us”, adding “they have enough weapons” to achieve this goal.
Russia’s former president, Mr Medvedev, has warned on his messaging app channel that Russia may seek military alliances with America’s enemies.
He did not name the countries he had in mind, but Russia has defense cooperation with Iran and Venezuela, an existing military alliance with Belarus and strong ties with North Korea.
Russia has also increased the scope and frequency of joint military exercises with China since its invasion of Ukraine.
“In the event of a protracted conflict, a new military alliance will emerge that will include countries fed up with Americans and a pack of neutered dogs,” Medvedev said.
Ukraine is demanding more weapons as it anticipates a new offensive by Russian forces in the spring.
Oleksii Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, warned that Russia may try to intensify its attacks in the south and east and cut off supplies of Western weapons, while conquering Kyiv “remains the main dream of President Vladimir Putin.” “,He said.
He described the Kremlin’s goal in the conflict as “total and absolute genocide, a war of total destruction”.
“Moscow wants to completely destroy Ukraine as a historical phenomenon — its language, its history, its culture, its carrier of Ukrainian identity,” Mr. Danilov wrote in an op-ed published by Ukraine’s Pravda newspaper.
Among those calling for more arms for Ukraine was former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who made a surprise visit to Ukraine on Sunday.
“Now is the time to redouble our efforts and give Ukrainians all the tools they need to get the job done. The sooner Putin fails, the better for Ukraine and the world,” Johnson said in a statement.
Mr Johnson was photographed in the town of Borodyanka in the Kyiv region. He said he was in Ukraine at the invitation of President Zelensky.
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