The US will push for Ukraine’s allies to deliver more anti-air defense capabilities to fend off Russia, which still has “a substantial number of aircraft” left in its arsenal, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. He spoke after defense chiefs from NATO countries met in Brussels to discuss weapons deliveries, including tanks and ammunition for Kyiv.
(Bloomberg) — The US will push for Ukraine’s allies to deliver more anti-air defense capabilities to fend off Russia, which still has “a substantial number of aircraft” left in its arsenal, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. He spoke after defense chiefs from NATO countries met in Brussels to discuss weapons deliveries, including tanks and ammunition for Kyiv.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said “speed is very important” in delivering on such pledges.
Russia has placed thousands of Ukrainian children in camps where they’re subjected to Russian propaganda and forcible adoption by Russian families, with some even undergoing military training, a US government-backed report from Yale University found.
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Key Developments
- EU Sanctions Seek to Make Banks Divulge Frozen Russian Assets
- NATO Struggles to Meet Spending Goals as It Mulls Higher Target
- Ukraine Defense Chief Shakes Up Ministry Amid Corruption Probes
- Banks With Russia Ties Targeted by US Treasury Whistleblowers
- Russia Put 6,000 Ukrainian Kids in Re-Education Camps, Yale Says
On the Ground
Russian forces continued their offensive, focusing on Kupyansk, Lyman, Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, according to Ukraine’s armed forces general staff. The Institute for the Study of War said that Russian forces made marginal territorial gains near Bakhmut and continued to conduct ground attacks across the Donetsk region. The Russian army also unsuccessfully attacked Ukrainian positions in western Zaporizhzhia region while continuing to fortify positions in the region.
(All times CET)
US Law Draws More Whistleblowers to Treasury Program (1:20 a.m.)
A US law passed after Russia invaded Ukraine has bolstered a a flawed Treasury Department program that lawyers claimed deterred whistleblowers from providing tips on the role of banks in sanctions and anti-money laundering violations.
As a result, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, has received more than 100 whistleblower submissions over a three-week period this year, according to people familiar with the matter. The agency fielded just 100 tips in the program’s first two years and made no payments to whistleblowers.
Under the law enacted Dec. 29, whistleblowers can report violations of economic sanctions like those imposed on Russian oligarchs to FinCEN. Tipsters whose information leads to financial recoveries will now get minimum payments, replacing a system with no guaranteed awards.
Zelenskiy Urges Partners to Speed Weapons Deliveries (9:25 p.m.)
Zelenskiy said in his regular evening address that allies meeting in Brussels agreed that his country needs more tanks, artillery and air defenses because “Ukraine must be successful.”
“But speed is very important”, Zelenskiy said. “Speed — in decision-making, in the implementation of decisions, in supply and training. Speed saves lives and returns safety.”
Russia Put 6,000 Ukrainian Kids in Re-Education Camps, Yale Says (8:56 p.m.)
Russia has placed thousands of Ukrainian children in camps where they’re subjected to Russian propaganda and forcible adoption by Russian families, with some even undergoing military training, a US government-backed report from Yale University found.
The campaign violates the Geneva Conventions and could constitute war crimes, crimes against humanity and possibly genocide, researchers from the Yale School of Public Health’s Humanitarian Research Lab said. It’s involved children from four months old to 17 years.
Russia has portrayed its adoption program as humanitarian aid to abandoned children.
Ukraine Needs More Air Defense Help, Austin Says (6:06 p.m.)
Austin said western allies haven’t given Ukraine enough air defense systems and the US would press for more, given the threat posed by Russia’s air force.
“It’s not enough and we’re gonna keep pushing until we get more because that threat is out there,” Austin told a news conference, when asked about the flow of air defenses to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government. “We do know that Russia has a substantial number of aircraft in his inventory and a lot of capability left.”
Austin spoke alongside General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, on the sidelines of a Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Brussels. A top Ukrainian demand has been for increasingly advanced air-defense systems, from shoulder-fired Stinger missiles at the start of the war to Patriot missile interceptors in recent months.
Spain to Deploy Anti-Air Battery in Estonia (4:27 p.m.)
Spain will send a NASAMS anti-aircraft unit in April to defend Estonia’s main military base in Tapa for four months, the Estonian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The Spanish weapon system will fill a gap as Estonia finalizes the procurement of its own air defense system and the “short-term solution” with Spain could later become a “rotational” framework akin to the Baltic Air Policing mission.
Russia Seeks to Jeopardize Water Supply, Ukrainian Premier Says (4:21 p.m.)
Russia has opened sluices at the Kakhovska heating power dam, seeking to reduce water supply from the Dnipro River, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said during a government meeting in Kyiv.
This threatens to leave without water supply 70% of the towns and villages along the Dnipro as well as endangering safety of the Russia-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which needs water for cooling, he said.
Shmyhal added that Ukraine expects to get more than $2 billion from the US, World Bank and other international donors in February. Ukraine began talks with the International Monetary Fund mission on the new monitoring program on Monday in Warsaw, Poland.
Russia Faces Years of Headwinds From Sanctions, EU Says (3:45 p.m.)
EU sanctions are “biting hard” and are contributing to a sustained economic recession in Russia despite record high energy prices last year, European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis told a news conference.
“Economic headwinds are likely to persist for years to come,” he said. The commission is monitoring the implementation of sanctions closely to ensure their success, he added.
Romania Sends Jets Over Unidentified Object (3:23 p.m.)
Romania scrambled fighter jets after the Air Force detected a small-sized aerial target, similar to a weather balloon, spotted flying at about 11,000 meters (36,000 feet) altitude in the southeastern part of the country, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
However, the two MiG-21 fighter jets weren’t able to confirm the presence of any object once in the area, where they remained for 30 minutes before returning to base.
US Treasury Targets Banks With Russia Ties (2:20 p.m.)
A US law passed after Russia invaded Ukraine has given a boost to a flawed Treasury Department program that lawyers claimed deterred whistleblowers from providing tips on the role of banks in sanctions and anti-money laundering violations.
As a result, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has gotten more than 100 whistleblower submissions over a three-week period this year, according to people familiar with the matter. The agency fielded just 100 tips in the program’s first two years and made no payments to whistleblowers.
Moldova Temporarily Closes Airspace (2:06 p.m.)
Moldova temporarily closed its airspace Tuesday, according to national airline Air Moldova, which didn’t give a reason for the restrictions. The airline said in Facebook statement that it was waiting for flights to resume, but that there would be disruptions to its flight schedule.
Kyiv said last week that rockets fired from Russian ships in the Black Sea traversed Moldova before hitting targets in western Ukraine. On Monday, Moldova’s president called for heightened security and “maximum vigilance” after she cited fresh intelligence detailing Russian attempts to destabilize the country and overthrow her government.
Ukraine’s Reznikov Picks New Deputies After Graft Scandal (1:13 p.m.)
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said he picked three new deputies to strengthen his team after a graft scandal shook his ministry.
Reznikov nominated Oleksandr Pavlyuk, who was commanding forces to protect Kyiv when Russia launched its invasion last February, according to his post on Facebook. Pavlyuk was also a commander of Ukrainian troops in Donbas, where Russia stoked a military conflict nearly nine years ago.
The defense minister said he also tapped Vitaliy Deynega, an IT specialist who set up a charity in 2014 to help rebuild the Ukrainian army, and Andriy Shevchenko, the former Ukrainian ambassador to Canada.
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