Sean Gallup | News Getty Images | Getty Images Ukraine’s relations with Germany have soured this week, with Kyiv questioning why Berlin reneged on its promise to provide heavy weaponry. Tensions over Germany’s provision of Leopard tanks and infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine — or the lack thereof — peaked this week when Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba publicly questioned why Berlin was backtracking on its pledge to send those weapons in Ukraine. “Disappointing messages from Germany, while Ukraine now needs Leopards and Marders — to free people and save them from genocide,” Kuleba said on Twitter, adding that “there is not a single logical argument why these weapons cannot be surrendered, only abstract fears. and excuses”. “What does Berlin fear and what does Kyiv not fear?” he added. Read the full story here. — Holly Elliott
Russian mercenary company Wagner Group is recruiting convicts for the war in Ukraine
Russian mercenary company Wagner Group is recruiting criminals and has been doing so since at least July, the British Ministry of Defense said in its daily intelligence update posted on Twitter. “The Kremlin-linked Russian private military company Wagner Group has been conducting a campaign to recruit Russian convicts for service in Ukraine since at least July. The prisoners were offered commutation of their sentences as well as monetary incentives,” the ministry wrote. A mural praises Russia’s Wagner Group and its mercenaries fighting in Ukraine on March 30, 2022 in Belgrade, Serbia. Pierre Crom | Getty Images The Wagner group was notorious for fighting on behalf of Russian interests in places like Libya, Syria and parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The Kremlin denies links to the group. The group’s recruitment campaign has been “revamped”, the report added, citing a recently released video “highly showing Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin making a recruitment offer to prisoners”. Prigozhin in the video says he is only looking for “fighters for assault units.” This, in addition to the fact that Russia’s military academies have shortened training time for cadets and are moving their graduation dates forward, “suggests that two of the most critical shortages in the manning crisis are probably combat infantry and junior commanders “, wrote the Ministry of Defense of Britain. — Natasha Toorak
Berlin takes control of Rosneft’s German unit
The German government is taking control of Russian oil and gas giant Rosneft’s operations in Germany, its Ministry of Economic and Climate Affairs announced. Germany’s federal network agency BNetzA will take over the local units — RN Refining & Marketing GmbH and Rosneft Deutschland GmbH — which make up about 12 percent of Germany’s oil refining capacity, the ministry said. In a statement, the German Ministry of Economy states: “The continued business activities of the affected refineries were at risk due to the ownership of the companies. Central providers of critical services such as suppliers, insurance companies, IT companies and banks, as well as customers, were no longer willing to work with Rosneft.” The move is “a further step to ensure our energy security,” tweeted Deputy Minister Jorg Kukies. — Natasha Toorak
Reports of a mass grave site outside the recaptured city of Izium
A damaged tank is seen in the town of Izium after the withdrawal of Russian forces, in Kharkiv region, Ukraine on September 14, 2022. Metin Atkas | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images A mass grave site has been found in a forest near the recently liberated city of Izium, the Associated Press reported, revealing the latest iteration of a well-documented pattern of actions suspected to have been carried out by Russian forces who occupied the area for more than six months. The site was marked with wooden crosses and a marker on a larger grave said 17 Ukrainian soldiers were buried there. Ukrainian forces recaptured the city in an operation that saw thousands of Russian forces retreat. “We haven’t counted them yet, but I think there are more than 25 or even 30,” Oleg Kotenko, a Ukrainian government official, told the AP. The news agency quoted a local resident, Sergei Gorodko, as saying that many adults and children killed in a Russian attack on a residential building were among the hundreds of people buried in individual graves. Russia’s foreign ministry has yet to comment publicly and did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment. — Natasha Toorak
The US announces a new $600 million security aid package for Ukraine
US M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Launchers (HIMARS) fire a salvo during the ‘African Lion’ military exercise in the Grier Labouihi region of southeastern Morocco on June 9, 2021. Fadel Senna | AFP | Getty Images The Biden administration approved another $600 million arms package to further aid Ukraine in its ongoing battle against Russia, according to the Defense Department. The package is said to include additional munitions for High Mobility Artillery Missile Systems (HIMARS), artillery shells, vehicles and anti-drone aerial systems, among other equipment. It marks the 21st withdrawal of equipment from Defense Department stockpiles since August last year. So far, Washington has sent more than $15.1 billion in security aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s unprovoked war in Ukraine. — Natalie Tam
Putin acknowledges China’s concerns over Ukraine as a sign of friction
Chinese President Xi Jinping (R), Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh (unseen) hold a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders’ summit in Samarkand on Sep 15, 2022. China and Russia’s relationship may not necessarily be on an equal footing, said Griffith University Associate Professor Matthew Sussex. Alexander Demyanchuk AFP | Getty Images Russian President Vladimir Putin said he understood China’s Xi Jinping had concerns about the situation in Ukraine, a surprise admission of friction with Beijing over the war after a week of stunning Russian losses on the ground. Since Russia’s invasion, China has taken a cautious line, criticizing Western sanctions against Russia but not stopping short of supporting or helping the military campaign. Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping (C) during his visit to the Moscow Zoo in Moscow, Russia, June 5, 2019. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is on a three-day state visit to Russia. Mikhail Svetlov | News Getty Images | Getty Images “We highly appreciate the balanced position of our Chinese friends regarding the crisis in Ukraine,” Putin told Xi in their first meeting since the start of the war. “We understand your questions and concern about this. During today’s meeting, we will of course explain our position.” Xi did not mention Ukraine in his public remarks, nor did he refer to a Chinese reading of their meeting, which took place in Uzbekistan on the sidelines of a regional summit. Beijing’s support is widely seen as essential for Moscow, which needs markets for its energy exports and sources to import high-tech goods as it faces sanctions imposed by the West. The last time the two men met, they signed a “borderless” friendship agreement between their two countries. Three weeks later, Russia invaded Ukraine. The Russian president’s comments suggested a Chinese shift toward a more critical stance, at least privately. Ian Bremer, a political science professor at Columbia University, said it was the “first public sign that Putin recognizes the pressure to back down.” — Reuters
