February 3, 2023 Russia-Ukraine news

Ukraine will fight to hold onto the eastern city of Bakhmut for as long as it can, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday. 

Zelensky also urged the West to supply long-range weapons to help Kyiv stay on Bakhmut and push Russian troops out of the Donbas region.

The Ukrainian president said that Russia wants revenge for its military failures.

"Russia wants revenge. Revenge in the east where they didn't succeed. They want to take the east. Our task is not to give them this chance by strengthening our army with necessary weapons. I think we have every chance," Zelensky said at the news conference.

Ukrainian officials have said in recent weeks they believe Russia is preparing for a spring offensive. 

Norway has decided to order 54 German Leopard 2 tanks to strengthen its defense capabilities, the Norwegian government announced on Friday. The tanks are expected to be delivered in 2026, with an option to purchase an additional 18 units.

“New main battle tanks are of great importance to the Armed Forces, significantly strengthening the Army. In today's security situation, European defense cooperation is becoming increasingly important,” Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said at a joint press conference alongside some of his ministers.

“By procuring German tanks, we ensure that Norway has the same type of tanks as our Nordic neighbors and close allies. We are also forging closer security policy ties with Germany,” he added.

The current battle tanks used by Norway were bought in 2001, according to the government.

The number of Russian ships capable of launching missiles on Ukrainian territory from the Black Sea has increased, the Ukrainian military's Operational Command South said in Facebook post Friday.

"A massive missile attack with the use of aircraft is not excluded. Do not ignore air raid warning signals, be vigilant and attentive," Operational Command South warns. 

CNN is unable to independently verify this assessment. 

The European Union will provide an additional $27 million to support Ukraine’s de-mining of the liberated territories that were temporarily occupied by Russian armed forces, EU top diplomat Josep Borrell announced Friday

“A large spread of mines and other explosive ordnances is being found in territories liberated by Ukrainian Armed Forces. We will provide up to 25 million euros to support de-mining efforts in these endangered areas. Protecting civilians and their livelihood is a priority," Borrell said on the sidelines of the EU-Ukraine summit taking place in Kyiv.

These funds are on top of the $18 million allocated in 2022 for this purpose, a spokesman of the EU Commission told CNN.

The funding will include essential equipment for Ukrainian state mine action operators and support the capacities of the Ukrainian authorities to effectively manage the national mine action sector, the diplomatic service of the EU said Friday in a press release.

Air raid sirens rang across Kyiv Friday, as European Union leaders prepared to meet in the Ukrainian capital amid President Volodymyr Zelensky's bid for accession to the bloc.

Here are the latest developments:

Russia’s mass mobilization, looming offensive and missile-borne terror against civilians is triggering fresh calls for even greater Western lethal aid to Ukraine, days after leaders signed off on their latest package that included the first tanks.

A building public debate over whether to send F-16 fighter jets is resurfacing a dilemma underlying the entire NATO response: Is the aim of the United States and its allies simply to allow Ukraine to ensure its survival or is it to help it expel Russia from all its territory and to ensure the defeat of Russian President Vladimir Putin?

The likely escalation in the war, close to its first anniversary, comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warns that Moscow is mustering its forces for a “revenge” attack against the free world. The sense that another turning point is approaching was, meanwhile, underscored Thursday by CIA Director William Burns.

Washington is hearing Ukraine’s calls for even more multi-billion dollar assistance. It is about to announce a new $2.2 billion haul that includes longer-range missiles for the first time, according to multiple US officials. CNN’s Kevin Liptak and Oren Liebermann reported that the Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb — a guided missile with a range of 90 miles — will be included in the package. It could take weeks or months for the weapon to arrive, however, since the US will contract with American arms manufacturers to provide it.

Still, the latest US offering solidifies one of the most important and ironic consequences of the war. One of Putin’s perceived invasion goals was to forever sever the hopes of Ukraine, which was once part of the Soviet Union, of joining NATO. It may not be a member of the alliance, but Ukraine is now waging a stronger-than-expected response against Moscow using some of the West’s most advanced military kit.

Read Collinson's full analysis here.

A Ukrainian intelligence official said he thinks fighting in eastern Ukraine will intensify over the next few months, as Russian President Vladimir Putin's goal is "to capture Donbas by March."

"We expect very active events in February-March. Putin's task is to capture Donbas by March," Andriy Yusov, a representative of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, said in remarks published Friday on its website.

CNN is not able to independently verify those claims. 

Yusov went on to say that this alleged plan "will not work" and that "these dates have already been postponed many times."

"The intensity that we are seeing in Donbas now is an attempt to implement these plans. Not counting the losses in manpower and equipment. The enemy is trying to fulfil the dictator's task," Yusov added. 

"So yes, there will be active events in the near future. The Ukrainian Defense Forces are not waiting around."

Andrii Chernyak, another representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, said earlier there are signs that Russia is preparing for a big offensive aimed at seizing eastern parts of the country.

"We observe that the Russian occupation forces are redeploying additional assault groups, units, weapons and military equipment to the east. According to Ukraine's military intelligence, Putin has ordered to seize the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions by March," Cherniak said in commentary published in the Kyiv Post Wednesday.

The comments came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and senior Ukrainian officials warned Russia is planning a major new offensive in the coming months, repeatedly asking Western allies for more weapons, tanks and fighter jets. 

The German government has authorized manufacturers to send Leopard 1 battle tanks to Ukraine, beginning the process of dispatching offensive armored vehicles to Kyiv and bolstering its military efforts against Russia's invasion.

''I can confirm that an export license has been issued," Germany's government spokesperson, Steffen Hebestreit, announced Friday. However, he declined to comment on the number of these tanks that would be exported.

The Leopard 1 had been in service since the 1960's until it was phased out in 2003, and it cannot keep up to the same extent as a Leopard 2 tank on the battlefield, according to Germany's armed forces spokesman Arne Collatz.

Remember: After longstanding pressure from NATO allies, Germany agreed in January to send 14 Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine — a move that Kyiv hopes will be a game-changer on the battlefield. The decision of leaders from the US and Germany to send contingents of tanks to Ukraine marks a major moment of the nearly year-long war.

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

Two heads of companies working with Ukraine's Defense Ministry are under investigation for misappropriating nearly UAH 120 million (or $3.23 million) from the department, as Kyiv makes efforts to bolster anti-corruption measures amid a prospective EU membership bid.

"Under the guise of supplying food to military units, the offenders transferred part of the funds to the bank account of a company they controlled. The total amount of stolen funds is over UAH 120 million," Ukraine's National Police said in a statement Friday. 

The heads of the two companies entered into an agreement with the Ministry of Defense to provide food for the personnel and the staff animals of military units, as well as food for military educational institutions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, "the criminals transferred part of the proceeds to the bank account of the company previously involved in the criminal activity," Ukraine's National Police said.  

The two company officials are charged with committing a crime under Part 5 of Art. 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which includes misappropriation, expropriation or seizure of property through abuse of office, committed in a particularly large scale. 

The defendants face imprisonment for a term of 7 to 12 years with confiscation of property, police added. 

The criminal activity was exposed by investigators from the Main Department of the National Police working jointly with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) under the procedural supervision of the Prosecutor General's Office, according to the statement. 

The revelations come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says his government is working on “new reforms” that will make the country “more human, transparent and effective." Rooting out widespread corruption is an important part of its EU candidacy.

Zelensky has also fired a number of senior Ukrainian officials linked to corruption investigations related to the procurement of wartime supplies.