January 25, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news - CNN

John Kirby speaks with CNN's Wolf Blitzer connected Wednesday, January 25, 2023. CNN

The German Leopard tanks volition beryllium connected the crushed successful Ukraine faster than the US Abram tanks, said John Kirby, the White House's strategical communications coordinator for nationalist security.

Kirby would not specify a timeline arsenic to erstwhile the US would beryllium capable to present the Abram tanks to Ukraine, and told CNN's Wolf Blitzer Wednesday it would instrumentality "many months."

He added: "We bash judge that they tin person a significant impact arsenic the warring begins to get much convulsive coming successful the spring and summertime months."

US President Joe Biden announced the US plans to nonstop 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine aft Germany confirmed it volition deliver 14 Leopard 2 tanks from its ain banal to the country, pursuing weeks of diplomatic pressure connected Berlin. 

Air sirens rang crossed overmuch of cardinal and eastbound Ukraine arsenic officials pass residents to structure from a imaginable Russian attack.

“Threat of a rocket strike,” Mykola Lukashuk, caput of the Dnipropetrovsk Region Council, said connected Telegram. “Stay successful harmless places until the extremity of the alert. The menace is not over.”

Lukashuk urged others connected Telegram not to study the locations of imaginable interceptions by Ukrainian aerial defense.

In the confederate Mykolaiv region, determination were besides authoritative reports of imaginable incoming Russian fire.

“They constitute that 3 groups of mopeds [Shahed onslaught drones] person already taken off,” Vitaliy Kim, caput of the Mykolaiv Region Military Administration (or governor), said connected Telegram. “The petty crooks couldn't travel up with thing amended connected the champion president's birthday.”

In the northeastern Kharkiv region, the subject head warned residents to stay successful their shelters: “There is simply a menace of rocket attacks. Do not disregard the alarms.”

In the cardinal Kirovohrad region, the subject head said connected Telegram: “The level of rocket menace remains high.”

US President Biden announced Wednesday that helium plans to nonstop 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, reversing the administration’s longstanding absorption to requests from Kyiv for the highly blase but maintenance-heavy vehicles.

Biden said successful White House remarks that this US enactment is astir helping Ukraine "defend its sovereignty" and that sending tanks does not mean it is an "offensive threat."

Biden's announcement came aft Germany confirmed earlier Wednesday that it would nonstop 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine from its ain stock. The 2 nations had appeared to beryllium successful standoff arsenic German officials indicated Berlin would lone nonstop their Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine if the US sent the M-1 Abrams tanks.

If you are conscionable speechmaking in, here's what you request to cognize astir today's developments:

Why this is significant: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told CNN’s Kate Bolduan connected “At This Hour” Wednesday that the tanks "will importantly strengthen" Kyiv's combat capabilities. Ukraine's President  Volodymyr Zelensky has consistently asked Western allies for modern tanks arsenic his state prepares for an expected large Russian counteroffensive successful the spring.

With some the US and Germany pledging to nonstop tanks to Ukraine, different countries, particularly those with the German-made tanks, person besides announced contributions to the beforehand lines. CNN cannot corroborate the full fig of Leopard 2 tanks to beryllium delivered, but pledges made by aggregate countries truthful far mean the Ukrainian subject is successful enactment to person dozens of the tanks. Germany’s main governing enactment said connected Wednesday that Ukraine’s Western allies volition nonstop the state a full of astir 80 Leopard 2 main conflict tanks.

Why nonstop tanks now: Sending Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine volition supply Kyiv’s forces with a modern and almighty subject conveyance up of a imaginable Russian outpouring offensive. It volition besides travel arsenic a stroke to the Kremlin, which has seen a increasing run to equip Ukrainian troops with high-tech warring systems arsenic Russia’s crushed warfare nears the one-year mark.

Speaking up of Biden's announcement, elder US officials framed the determination arsenic an concern successful Ukraine’s “longer word capabilities,” an denotation the medication sees the present 11-month-long warfare extending good into the future. Ukraine hopes the caller tanks tin assistance it retake territory seized by Russia, including successful the Donbas. That could besides see Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia successful 2014.

Possible challenges: The Abrams tanks will instrumentality months to arrive, elder Biden medication officials said, and volition necessitate extended grooming for Ukrainian troops connected however to run and work them. The US indispensable navigate analyzable proviso chains for the components required for the tanks. 

The procurement process volition instrumentality months, the officials said, though Germany's Leopards volition get successful the nearer term. In the meantime, the US volition statesman a "comprehensive grooming program" for the Ukrainians connected the Abrams, which volition necessitate important attraction erstwhile they are deployed. The grooming volition hap extracurricular Ukraine.

The Portuguese overseas curate said Wednesday it volition instrumentality 2 to 3 months earlier Western-donated Leopard 2 tanks are afloat operational successful Ukraine.

Watch CNN's Jim Sciutto interruption down the latest connected the tanks:

CNN's Kevin Liptak, Stephanie Halasz, Sophie Tanno and Sugam Pokharel contributed reporting to this post.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the G20 from his bureau successful Kyiv, Ukraine, connected November 15. (President of Ukraine)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday that the determination by the United States and Germany to nonstop main conflict tanks to his state proved that “freedom is lone getting stronger.”

He thanked ”Mr. President Biden, I convey the Congress, I convey each American family” arsenic good arsenic “Mr. Chancellor, each German politicians and nationalist figures.”

He said that it was captious to get continued advancement successful the proviso of weapons for Ukraine.

“Today I spoke with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg,” helium said. “We person to unlock the proviso of long-range missiles to Ukraine, it is important for america to grow our practice successful artillery, we person to execute the proviso of craft to Ukraine. And this is simply a dream. And this is simply a task. An important task for each of us.”

Ukraine’s Defense Ministry is reforming its “old Soviet-fashioned corruption” weapons procurement strategy to a modern, NATO-style system, the country’s defence curate told CNN connected Wednesday, aft a slew of officials were dismissed from Kyiv’s authorities amid a corruption scandal.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov addressed the contented successful an interrogation with CNN, saying helium asked Ukraine’s applicable parliamentary committees connected Tuesday to assistance constitute caller authorities to modernize the government’s strategy of procuring weapons and service supplies.

It comes aft the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine said it was investigating allegations that the defence ministry was buying subject provisions, including nutrient for the troops, astatine inflated prices.

“We person to determination forward” successful tackling corruption, helium added, due to the fact that Ukraine volition proceed to request Western enactment aft the war. 

Some background: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired respective of senior Ukrainian officials earlier this week owed to the corruption ungraded successful the biggest shakeup of his authorities since Russia’s invasion began. Zelensky besides announced helium was banning authorities officials from traveling overseas connected thing but authoritative business.

Olympic Rings are pictured successful beforehand of The Olympic House, office of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) successful Lausanne, Switzerland connected September 8, 2022. Laurent Gillieron/Reuters/File

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) outlined a multi-step program for Russian and Belarusian athletes to enactment astatine the upcoming 2024 Summer Games successful Paris and the 2026 Winter Games successful Milan.

The IOC said it would proceed its sanctions against Russian and Belarusian authorities and authorities officials and prohibit sporting events organized by some country's federations. 

The enactment said its committee had met and "unanimously reaffirmed and called for a reinforcement of the sanctions already successful place." 

The IOC said it would recommit and fortify the organization's "solidarity with the Ukrainian athletes and the Ukrainian Olympic community" and would enactment Ukraine's effort to tract a beardown squad astatine the Paris and Milan Games. 

In bid for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete, they would correspond arsenic “neutral athletes and successful nary mode correspond their authorities oregon immoderate different organisation successful their country," the IOC said. 

"No flag, anthem, colours oregon immoderate different identifications whatsoever of these countries being displayed astatine immoderate sports lawsuit oregon meeting, including the full venue," the IOC said. 

John Kirby, the White House's strategical communications coordinator for nationalist security, said Wednesday that the determination to provide precocious Western vessel systems to Ukraine was some a diplomatic and subject effort, noting that today's determination was "several weeks successful the making." 

"There was a batch of diplomacy that went into the announcements today," Kirby told CNN's Phil Mattingly. "The determination that you saw today, by some Germany and the United States was respective weeks successful the making done many, galore discussions with the Germans and with our allies."

Kirby besides said that it volition apt instrumentality the Pentagon "weeks, not months" to finalize a grooming program for the M1 Abrams tanks and get it underway, though helium again underscored that procuring the tanks and finishing specified grooming volition instrumentality months. 

When asked aboriginal astir whether the US plans to conscionable Ukrainian calls to supply Western combatant jets to Kyiv, Kirby wouldn't spell into details and said it's unsurprising the Ukrainians are continuing to question further capabilities.

"We're successful changeless discussions with the Ukrainians astir their capabilities, and arsenic I've said, we germinate those arsenic the conditions change. Can't blasted the Ukrainians for wanting much and much systems. It's not the archetypal clip that they've talked astir combatant jets, but I don't person immoderate announcements to marque connected that front," Kirby said. 

Ukraine’s “wish list” for Western-supplied weapons includes combatant jets, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told CNN connected Wednesday.

“I sent a privation database paper to Santa Claus past year, and combatant jets besides [were] including successful this privation list,” Reznikov said.

But helium said that his government’s archetypal precedence was aerial defence systems truthful it could forestall Russia from carrying retired aerial and rocket strikes.

“We person to adjacent our sky, to support our sky,” Reznikov said. “That’s precedence fig one. After that, we request to get much equipped vehicles, tanks, artillery systems, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), et cetera, et cetera. We person people, but we request weaponry.”

Quoting Winston Churchill, helium said, “Give america the tools, we volition decorativeness the job.”