© Reuters. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, Iceland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Thordis Kolbrun Reykfjord Gylfadottir and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, meet to discuss how to help Ukraine defend itself
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(Reuters) – The situation on the front lines in eastern Ukraine “has become tougher” as Russian forces push for gains that they could show on the first anniversary of their invasion, on Feb. 24, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a sombre assessment.
CONFLICT
* A Russian missile destroyed an apartment building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk late on Wednesday and at least two people were killed and seven wounded injured, the regional governor said.* Russian forces were manoeuvring to try to surround the eastern city of Bakhmut, where troops were fighting building to building for gains of barely 100 metres (yards) a night amid constant Russian shelling, a soldier in a Ukrainian unit of Belarusian volunteers told Reuters from inside the city. * Reuters could not independently verify battlefield reports.* A former commander of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group who fled to Norway told Reuters he wanted to apologise for fighting in Ukraine and was speaking out to bring the perpetrators of atrocities in the conflict to justice.
* President Vladimir Putin said Russia’s military must stop Russian regions being shelled from Ukrainian territory, which he said had left many people homeless or without power.
CORRUPTION CRACKDOWN* Ukrainian authorities raided an influential billionaire’s home, part of what Zelenskiy said was a drive to root out corruption. Separate raids were carried out at the Tax Office and on the home of a former interior minister, two days before Kyiv hosts a summit with the European Union where it wants to show it is cracking down after years of corruption.
ARMS AND DIPLOMACY
* Germany needs to order new Leopard tanks quickly to replace those going to Ukraine, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said, adding that he did not care where the money came from.
* EU countries will seek a deal on Friday on a European Commission proposal to set price caps on Russian oil products amid divisions between member states, diplomats said.
* Olympic officials are working behind the scenes to contain growing opposition to plans for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete at the Paris Olympics as the Ukraine war threatens to rekindle Cold War-era sporting friction.
* Russia said it wanted to preserve its last remaining nuclear treaty with the United States despite what it called a destructive U.S. approach to arms control. Washington on Tuesday accused Moscow of violating the New START treaty by refusing to allow inspections on its territory.
