After months of negotiations, the EU states have agreed to continue joint financing of military equipment for Ukraine. According to the agreement reached in Brussels, the move is intended to guarantee the supply of weapons, ammunition and other goods worth at least five billion euros, according to the current Belgian EU Council Presidency and several diplomats.
To this end, it is planned to provide the European Peace Facility (EFF) with additional funds. This financing instrument can be used to reimburse EU member states for military support to Ukraine attacked by Russia and to pay for joint orders.
Meanwhile, in his evening video speech, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also focused attention on the EU perspective for his country, which has been a candidate for membership for several months. The aim is to begin official accession negotiations in the first half of this year, he emphasized.
Navalnaya: Putin is a gangster
Shortly before the presidential election in Russia, opposition politician Yulia Navalnaya called for the foreseeable re-election of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin not to be recognized internationally. “Unfortunately, too many people in the West still see him as a legitimate political leader, discuss his ideology and search for the political meaning of his actions,” wrote the widow of government critic Alexei Navalny, who died in Russian custody in mid-February, in a guest article in the US Washington Post newspaper.
She suggested looking at the Kremlin leader differently and deriving political steps from this: "Putin is not a politician, he is a gangster," she wrote. This explains his brutality, his penchant for luxury and his desire to kill. His status is important for a mafia boss, which is why foreign countries should deny Putin international recognition after the election. A gangster and those around him also care about money. Therefore, the opportunities for enrichment for his inner circle should be restricted in order to stir up discontent among the Russian elite, she demanded.
Austria expels two Russian diplomats
Austria has meanwhile declared two Russian diplomats persona non grata. Those affected must leave Austrian territory by March 19 at the latest, said a spokeswoman for Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP). Both had "taken actions that are incompatible with their diplomatic status." This formulation is usually used when discussing intelligence activities.
Russia reports deaths and injuries in border region
According to authorities, one person was killed and three others injured in Ukrainian attacks in the Russian border region of Belgorod. The deceased was a driver and the injured were a man and two women, the region's governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said on Telegram on Thursday. He also reported damage to buildings.
Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that eight Ukrainian missiles had been shot down by air defense as they approached Belgorod. This could not initially be independently verified. Whether the damage was caused by falling debris or whether bullets got through could not be seen in the first photos on social networks.
What is important today
The Bundestag will debate again today about supporting Ukraine with the German Taurus cruise missile. The Union is putting its proposal, which was discussed for the first time in November, to the vote, which calls on the federal government to “immediately” hand over this extensive weapons system to Ukraine. However, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) rejects this, as he recently made clear again in the government survey in the Bundestag.
