Day 334 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Germany will Not Stop Poland from Sending Leopard Tanks

Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

Zelensky: A new offensive of the Russian Federation can be launched in any direction

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that a new offensive by the Russian Federation could be launched in any direction. In an interview with Germany's ARD television, he noted that there is now a big gap between Ukraine's and Russia's worldviews, as Putin thinks about where to attack and Ukrainians where to defend. Meanwhile, Poland has requested to create an alliance of countries willing to send Leopard battle tanks to Kyiv.

An air alert was declared last night in six Ukrainian regions. At the same time, Russian troops continue to gather forces for the offensive towards Bakhmut and try to attack the Ukrainian units in the direction of Zaporizhzhia and Avdeyevka, the Ukrainian military reports.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said that her country would not stand in the way if Poland decides to provide part of its Leopard tanks to Ukraine. So far, however, Berlin has not agreed to provide tanks directly to Kyiv. Earlier, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that Poland could create a "small tank coalition" to provide Ukraine with Leopard tanks if no agreement was reached in Germany to send them. This month, Poland and Finland expressed willingness to supply the German-made machines in response to Kyiv's requests. However, re-export requires the formal consent of Berlin.

Meanwhile, in his evening address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky promised decisive action against abuses in the state apparatus after a corruption scandal in Kyiv. Allegations of high-level corruption include a report of...