News blog about the Ukraine war
Canada does not rule out troops in Ukraine
From dpa, afp, Reuters, LMK, bm, csi, sic, cc, lex, lec, das
Updated on March 2, 2024 – 3:18 a.m. Reading time: 35 min.
Canadian soldiers on an armored vehicle (archive image): Will they soon be stationed in Ukraine? (Source: IMAGO/Creative Touch Imaging Ltd/imago)
Macron stands by his statement regarding ground troops in Ukraine. The Netherlands and Ukraine conclude a bilateral defense agreement. More information in the news blog.
The most important things at a glance
Canada does not rule out troops in Ukraine
12:10 a.m.: Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair is not excluding his country’s soldiers in Ukraine. In an interview with the Toronto Star, he said the idea of NATO troops was discussed at the recent NATO summit in Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron first spoke about sending soldiers. According to the defense minister, a limited contingent would be an option for Canada. The condition, however, is that the soldiers are stationed far from the front and are not involved in fighting.
Blair said that the Canadian military already has a small presence in Ukraine to protect Canadian diplomatic personnel and has trained thousands of Ukrainian soldiers as part of Operation Unifier – although that mission was moved from Ukraine to other countries after Russia In 2022 the full-scale invasion had begun.
Ukraine: Russia continues to put pressure on the front
11:55 p.m.: According to the Ukrainian military, Russia is keeping the pressure high, especially west and southwest of the industrial city of Donetsk. In the Avdiivka area, 20 attacks were repelled, and in the Novopavlivka area the Russian military tried to break through the defense lines 25 times, the Ukrainian General Staff said in its situation report on Friday evening. Just a few weeks ago, Kiev had to evacuate the fortress area around Avdiivka, which had been fought over for months. Now the next line of defense behind them is under pressure.
The General Staff reports attacks on the towns of Berdychi, Orlivka and Tonenke, where the Ukrainian military wanted to dig in after withdrawing from Avdiivka.
Zelensky thanks Netherlands for new arms deliveries
9:29 p.m.: After the visit of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj thanked him for providing further arms aid. “Today there is a new package of military assistance from the Netherlands for our soldiers,” Zelensky said in his daily video message. He estimated arms deliveries to be worth two billion euros this year. The Ukrainian president made the video recording in the city of Kharkiv, which was heavily destroyed by Russia’s war of aggression.
Zelensky once again emphasizes the importance of anti-aircraft defenses for protecting the country. The Netherlands is helping to secure the skies over Ukraine with its participation in the coalition of states that supplies Kiev with F-16 fighter jets, he said. The arms package was part of a security agreement that Rutte and Zelensky signed in Kharkiv. For Ukraine, it is the sixth agreement of its kind with a Western state.
Zelensky is promising his compatriots further arms packages and new security agreements with other countries for March. He doesn’t give any details about it. Ukraine is heavily dependent on Western support in its two-year-long defensive battle against the Russian invasion.
Dutch Prime Minister Rutte makes a quick visit to Kharkiv
5:56 p.m.: The Netherlands became the seventh country to conclude a ten-year security agreement with Ukraine. The agreement that Prime Minister Mark Rutte and President Volodymyr Zelenskyj signed today in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv provides for military aid of two billion euros in the current year alone, as Zelenskyj announced.
For this purpose, Rutte traveled at short notice to the second largest Ukrainian city, which is around 40 kilometers from the Russian border and is regularly the target of Russian air strikes. According to Zelensky, the Russian military has destroyed more than 20,000 buildings in the city in the past two years.
Germany, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Italy and Canada have already made similar commitments to the Netherlands. This is intended to strengthen Ukraine until it can join NATO.
