Zelenskyy vows to defend ‘fortress’ Bakhmut

Ukrainians will fight “as long as we can” to hold the eastern city of Bakhmut, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed on Friday, as he hosted European Union (EU) leaders to discuss further sanctions on Russia and Kyiv’s prospects for joining the EU.

Meanwhile, the United States said it would send more than $2.175 billion in military aid to Ukraine, including new rockets that would double the range of Kyiv’s attacks to reach most of Ukraine’s territory currently held by Russia.

The head of the EU’s executive commission and the heads of the 27 EU national leaders are in Kyiv to demonstrate their support for Ukraine on the first anniversary of Russia’s February 24 invasion of the neighboring country.

As he and Zelenskyy’s government discussed various issues, air raid sirens rang out in Kyiv and across the country – a regular occurrence during months of Russian missile attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure far from the battlefields in the east and south – but there was no report. of recent air strikes.

Zelenskyy, flanked by EU leaders at a press conference, said European sanctions should aim to prevent Russia from rebuilding its military capabilities. And he has a message of contention about Bakhmut, the focal point of Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion and Moscow’s drive to gain war momentum.

“No one will give Bakhmut. We will fight until we can. We consider Bakhmut our fortress,” he said.

Russian forces are closing in

Moscow says Russian forces are encircling the city, which had a pre-war population of about 75,000, from several directions and are struggling to control a road that is also a vital supply route for Ukrainian forces.

“If weapons (supply) are made fast, especially long-range weapons, not only we will not leave Bakhmut but also we will start removing the invaders from Donbas (region of eastern Ukraine), occupied since 2014,” Zelenskyy said.

The US military aid announced on Friday includes rockets known as Ground Launched Small Diameter Bombs (GLSDB). The 94-kilometer distance will provide all Russian supply lines in eastern Ukraine, as well as part of the Crimean peninsula, also seized by Moscow in 2014.

Sanctions from the EU, Canada

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the 10th package of sanctions would hit “trade and technology that supports Russia’s war machine.”

The package, which the EU has prepared for the anniversary of the invasion, is set to fall short of some of the demands of Ukraine, and Kyiv’s ambition to join the EU can take back from it like.

Ukraine applied to join the European Union the day after Russia invaded last year. The EU has accepted the application, but has rejected Ukraine’s call to quickly become a member while the country is at war.

EU officials have listed various membership requirements, from political and economic stability to the use of various EU laws. The process will take years.

Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly announced on Friday that Canada will impose further sanctions on Russian individuals and companies for invading Ukraine last February.

“Canada has sanctioned 38 individuals and 16 entities associated with Russian disinformation and propaganda,” Joly said.

Fuel price cap

European Union countries agreed on Friday on a commission proposal to set a price cap on Russian oil products from Sunday to limit Moscow’s ability to finance the war. They include a US$100 cap on premium oil products such as diesel and a US$45 per barrel cap on discount products such as fuel oil, diplomats said.

The same price cap for crude oil came into effect in December.

The Kremlin says the plan will unbalance global energy markets, but Moscow is acting to minimize the impact on oil and gas revenues. Russia will nearly triple its daily foreign currency sales to 8.9 billion rubles ($174 million Cdn) a day over the next month to offset lower oil and gas revenues.

Tanks and air defense systems

The German government says it has approved the delivery of Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine from its stockpile. The tanks could be delivered sooner than the Leopard 2s promised by Germany and other countries last week.

Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Oleksii Reznikov, said the new tanks supplied by NATO countries would be an “iron hand” in a counterattack against Russian lines.

Meanwhile, France and Italy have completed technical negotiations for the joint delivery of the SAMP / T-MAMBA air defense system to Ukraine in the spring of 2023, the French Defense Minister said.

“This will allow Ukraine to defend itself against Russian drones, missiles and aircraft attacks, through coverage of significant parts of Ukrainian territory,” the ministry’s statement said.