The first tank support from a Western country… Zelensky “expects other allies to join”
Britain has decided to support Ukraine with tanks (Challenger 2, photo) for the first time in a Western country. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the 14th (local time) that he agreed to provide additional weapons, including Challenger 2 tanks, British media reported. The BBC expected that the UK would provide 14 Challenger 2 tanks and regarding 30 AS90 self-propelled howitzers.
Prime Minister Sunak said Challenger 2 support would help defeat Russian ground forces. President Zelensky tweeted, “It will be of great help in strengthening the Ukrainian army,” and will give the right signal to other allies.
Britain is the first Western country to provide tank support to Ukraine. Ukraine has been asking the West to provide heavy armored tanks to subdue Russia in ground battles, but the United States, France and Germany only promised armored vehicles for fear of escalating the war with Russia.
With the UK’s support for the Challenger 2 tank, it is expected that pressure on Germany and the United States to support tanks will increase. On the 11th, Polish President Andrzej Duda announced that he would send 14 German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. To do this, approval from Germany, the country of manufacture, is required, and German Deputy Chancellor Robert Haveck hinted at a positive possibility on the 12th, saying, “We must not prevent other countries from making decisions in favor of Ukraine.” Ukraine is demanding that the United States also provide support for Abrams tanks.
News”/>Apartment destroyed by Russian missile… at least 20 deaths Ukrainian rescuers search for people in the rubble of an apartment building in Dnipro, south of Ukraine, following it was destroyed by a Russian missile attack the day before. Archyde.com Yonhap News
Meanwhile, on the same day, Russia launched a massive attack on several parts of Ukraine. In southern Dnipro, at least 20 people, including children, were killed and 64 injured following a missile attack on a nine-story apartment building, Archyde.com reported. In a video posted on social media, Dnipro’s deputy mayor Mihailo Lysenko said survivors continue to send text messages.
President Zelensky once once more asked the West to provide more weapons to fend off Russian attacks on civilians, saying that the death toll from the apartment attack might rise.
Key infrastructure in the capital Kieu was also attacked by Russian missiles. No human casualties have yet been reported. Russia’s attack on Kieu was two weeks following January 1st. In addition, Kharkiv in the northeast, Odessa in the south, and Lviv in the west were also attacked. The Ukrainian Air Force said it intercepted 25 of 38 missiles launched by Russia.