The German government is delivering another Patriot air defense system to bolster Kiev after Ukraine asked for it for months, while a commander in the embattled country said the situation on the front was becoming more difficult.
The German air defense system comes from the Bundeswehr and is to be handed over immediately, the German Defense Ministry announced on Saturday in Berlin.
So far, Germany has delivered two Patriot systems to Ukraine and the system has proven itself in the fight against Russian aggression, the ministry said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj thanked the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for the Patriot system and other missiles for the Patriots, which are already in use in Ukraine.
“Thank you, Olaf, for your leadership,” he wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “This is a real show of support for Ukraine at a critical time for us.”
He also called on the leaders of other countries to follow Germany’s example.
Berlin’s decision comes after efforts by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock to attract partners for more air defense systems.
Zelensky has been calling for more Patriot defense systems for months to better protect the country’s airspace from Russian missile and drone attacks.
In a telephone conversation with Zelensky, Scholz also reaffirmed Germany’s solidarity with Ukraine and discussed ways to further strengthen Ukraine’s air defense.
Scholz and Selenskyj agreed that further efforts by the partners were necessary, said a federal government spokesman. They also discussed a high-level international peace conference on Ukraine in Switzerland in the summer and the Ukraine Reconstruction Conference in Berlin.
Zelensky emphasized how important it was for Germany to support his country in repelling the Russian invasion.
“Germany’s leadership is truly tangible, and thanks to this leadership we will be able to save thousands of lives and provide Ukraine with greater protection from Russian terror,” Zelensky said in his evening video address.
At the same time, he addressed further words of thanks directly to Chancellor Olaf Scholz: “Olaf, Mr. Chancellor, thank you again for the air defense.”
Zelenskyj indicated that further arms deliveries had also been discussed in the phone call with Scholz. “We are also working with Germany on another IRIS-T system, which is also a powerful air defense system, and on missiles for our existing air defense systems.”
On the ground, the Ukrainian military highlighted the fighting on the front lines and called for better technology to help Kiev’s forces fend off the Kremlin’s attacks.
“The situation on the Eastern Front has deteriorated significantly in the last few days,” wrote Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyj on Telegram.
He said this was due to increased offensive efforts by Russian troops after Russia’s elections that gave Putin another term.
The situation around the cities of Lyman, Bakhmut and Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region is particularly delicate, Syrskyi said. In Pokrovsk in particular, west of the city of Avdiivka, which was captured by the Russians at the beginning of the year, the Russian military is trying to break through the defense lines with dozens of tanks.
Syrskyi called for equipping the Ukrainian army with high-tech weapons such as drones. Only through technological innovation would it be possible to offset the numerical superiority of the Russian attackers.
Meanwhile, several people were injured in rocket attacks on the Russian-occupied city of Luhansk.
Russian politician Vladimir Rogov, leader of the “We are together with Russia” movement, wrote on his Telegram channel on Saturday that rocket attacks had occurred near the bus station and a machine factory.
Three civilians were injured and several residential buildings were damaged, he said.
Ukrainian media, however, reported that the attack was aimed at a military unit and a collection of military vehicles near the factory.
Further west, in the small town of Tokmak in the Zaporizhia region, which was also captured by the Russians during the war, the death toll rose to ten after an attack on Friday.
Two more bodies were found under the rubble of a residential building, Moscow-appointed governor for the occupied part of the Zaporizhia region, Yevgeny Balitsky, said on Telegram.
Two people are still missing, he wrote, and 18 people are being treated in hospital for their injuries.
Russia has targeted Ukrainian energy facilities. Against this background, Kiev has started building two more nuclear reactors in the west of the country.
The Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported that the foundation stone for reactor units 5 and 6 of the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant was laid in the presence of Energy Minister German Galushchenko and the US Ambassador to Kiev, Bridget Brink.
In contrast to other types of power plants, Russia has so far spared nuclear facilities with its drone and missile attacks – also out of the knowledge that this could lead to a nuclear catastrophe, the extent of which is difficult to calculate.
The blocks are being built in collaboration with the US nuclear energy company Westinghouse Electric Company. According to the company, these are AP1000 pressurized water reactors with a service life of at least 60 years.