war | Report: Scholz wants to decide on leopards next week

Day 325 since the beginning of the war: The Kremlin reports the capture of Soledar. Russia’s parliament speaker wants to expropriate war opponents. All information in the news blog.

10:27 p.m.: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) plans to triple its staff in Ukraine. In the future, it will be permanently present at all five locations of nuclear power plants in Ukraine, the authority announced on Friday evening in Vienna. IAEA Director Rafael Grossi is traveling to Ukraine next week to prepare for reinforcements. While there have been isolated missions since Russia’s war of aggression began, this decision “marks a major expansion,” the IAEA said.

So far, the IAEA is only in Zaporizhia, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, with “up to four” representatives on site. In the future, “around eleven to twelve experts” would be present in Ukraine at all times to “monitor the situation, check the equipment” or “provide technical assistance,” the IAEA said.

10:07 p.m.: In view of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, NATO wants to relocate several of its AWACS reconnaissance aircraft, which are normally stationed in Germany, to Romania. The machines are intended to support the alliance’s increased presence in the region and to monitor Russian military activities, as the NATO command authority for air force management announced on Friday.

According to plans, the Awacs will arrive at the Otopeni airbase near the Romanian capital Bucharest next Tuesday and will then remain there for several weeks. The airport is only around 200 kilometers away from the eastern border of the EU and NATO country with Ukraine. In addition, the north of Romania also borders on the country attacked by Russia.

9.45 p.m.: The pressure on Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) is increasing: After Poland announced that it wanted to deliver Leopard tanks to Ukraine, other countries also signaled their willingness to do so. Now the demands are getting louder in Germany too – both in the opposition and in the traffic light coalition. The Bloomberg news agency is now reporting, citing unspecified government sources, that the Chancellor wants to make a decision next week – presumably in favor of a delivery.

Next Friday, the so-called Ukraine contact group of allies of the country will meet at the US base in Ramstein. The decision should be made by then, according to Bloomberg. Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) wanted to send a clear message. In the meantime, however, it seems unclear whether she will still be in office by then: According to consistent media reports, Lambrecht wants to resign.

9.45 p.m.: The battle for Soledar and other eastern Ukrainian cities continues, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Ukrainians continued to fight against the Russian troops there, says Zelenskyj in his nightly video message. Russia previously reported taking Soledar in eastern Ukraine after days of heavy fighting. According to the Defense Ministry in Moscow, Russian units are said to have completely conquered the small town on Thursday evening.

5:57 p.m.: Russians who are 30 or older and have not previously served in the military are to receive compulsory military training in the future. This is reported by the Ura portal, citing statements by Duma deputy Viktor Sobolev.

According to Sobolev, this should prevent the men in Ukraine from becoming “cannon fodder”. A corresponding law has already been passed. According to Sobolev, it is also necessary for reservists to organize additional training camps. The Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had previously ordered the age for Russian conscription to be adjusted: Whereas Russians between the ages of 18 and 27 were previously drafted into the military, the age limit is now between 21 and 30 years.

5.50 p.m.: In the Russian border region of Belgorod, a tank is said to have been destroyed by an exploding ammunition. This is reported by the Russian news portal Baza. Accordingly, the ammunition detonated during repair work on a T-72 main battle tank. Two other tanks were damaged.